Good Lawyer Guide's response

Yes. If you have a business lease then you can demand that your landlord gives a new lease when your old one expires. This will be at current market rent (not the rent you were paying into the old lease).

There are a few occasions when your landlord can refuse you a new lease (eg if he plans to redevelop the site or if he plans to use the premises for his own business). But, these exceptions are few and far between. The general rule is that you can claim a new lease – and cannot be forced out at the end of your existing lease.

Praveen Chaudhari's response

Yes, as long as the lease has not been excluded from sections 24-28 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954. If the Landlord has served notice on you then it is imperative that you take legal advice straight away.

The lease renewal should be on the same terms as the existing lease (subject to rent review and updating).

There are occasions where the landlord can refuse to grant a new lease and you should take advice if such notice is given.

Daniel Stanton's response

If the lease was NOT 'contracted out' at the start (either by a Court order or notice and statutory declaration procedure), the grounds on which a landlord may oppose an application for a new lease must be set out in the Landlord's notice at the end of the lease, if the Landlord chooses to serve one. The notice can be served at any time but must not expire before the end date in the lease nor less than 6 months nor more than 12 months before it takes effect.

The grounds of opposition are:
(a)where you are liable to repair and the property isn't in good repair at the end of the lease because of your failure to comply.
(b) where you have persistently delayed in paying rent.
(c)where you have substantially breached the other terms of your tenancy or you've generally been a 'bad tenant'.
(d)where the landlord can provide alternative premises on reasonable terms.
(e)where you sublease part of a property and the landlord can get less rent than he can for the whole, or the landlord needs to dispose of the whole property.
(f)where the landlord intends to demolish, reconstruct or refurbish the premises.
(g)where the landlord intends to occupy for his own busines or residence.

Where the landlord looks to end the lease on one of the 'no-fault' grounds, there may be a liability to pay compensation to the tenant.

The above paraphrases the grounds set out in section 30(1) of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 and is not a substitute for comprehensive legal advice on your individual situation.