The 28-Day Pet-Request Duty Under the Renters' Rights Act

The pet rules in the Renters' Rights Act 2025 look simple, which is exactly why landlords trip over them. A tenant asks to keep a pet; the landlord means to think about it; weeks drift by; and the landlord has, without realising, breached a statutory duty. The Act does not just encourage landlords to consider pets — it imposes a hard 28-day deadline to respond in writing, and it removes the option of an unreasoned "no."

This guide sets out precisely what the duty is, the consequence of missing the deadline, what counts as a fair refusal, and the pet-insurance myth that still circulates widely. The pet provisions amend the Housing Act 1988, inserting new pet-consent obligations into the assured tenancy framework.

Disclaimer: This guide is for information only and does not constitute legal advice. Always check the current statutory wording for your situation.

The Duty in One Paragraph

When a tenant makes a written request to keep a pet — a request that should describe the pet — the landlord must give or refuse consent in writing, on or before the 28th day after the request. Consent must not be unreasonably refused. That is the whole spine of it: written request, written answer, 28 days, no unreasonable refusal.

Two features catch landlords out. First, the clock starts on the tenant's request, not on when you get round to looking at it. Second, silence is not neutral — failing to answer is itself a failure to comply, not a soft "no."

Failure Point: Missing the 28 Days Has a Consequence

The reason the deadline matters is that it is enforceable. If you do not respond within the 28 days, the tenant is not simply left waiting — they can take the matter to court, and the court may order that the obligation be performed. In other words, a landlord who ignores a pet request can find the decision effectively taken out of their hands.

It is worth being precise about what the Act does and does not do here. It does not create automatic "deemed consent" — the pet is not treated as approved just because the deadline passed. What it does is give the tenant a route to enforce your duty to deal with the request properly. The practical effect is much the same: ignoring the request is the worst thing you can do, because it converts a decision you controlled into a dispute you may lose.

Never let a pet request slip past 28 days. LetSorted logs tenant requests with a timestamp so the clock is visible from day one — and keeps your written response on file as proof you complied. See how tenancy management works →

What Counts as a Reasonable Refusal

"Not unreasonably refused" is not the same as "cannot refuse." You retain a genuine discretion — you just have to exercise it on a fair basis and say so in writing. Reasons that are capable of being reasonable include:

• A superior landlord's prohibition. Where you hold the property under a head lease that forbids pets, refusing is generally reasonable — you cannot grant what your own lease bars.
• An unsuitable match of animal and property. A large dog in a small flat with no outside space, for instance, may justify refusal on the specific facts.

Reasons that will not wash on their own include a flat "I don't allow pets" with nothing behind it, or a refusal aimed at deterring the tenant rather than addressing a real problem. If you refuse, state the reason in writing within the 28 days — an unreasoned refusal is as exposed as no answer at all. The government's guidance on new rules for the private rented sector is the authoritative overview, and our checklist on renting to tenants with pets works through the practicalities.

The Pet-Insurance Myth

Here is the misconception that will not die: that the Act lets landlords require tenants to take out pet insurance as a condition of keeping an animal. It does not.

Earlier versions of the reforms floated a pet-insurance mechanism, and that history is why the myth persists — but it is not the law that was passed. Under the Renters' Rights Act as enacted, you cannot make pet insurance a condition of consent. If you write "consent granted, provided you buy pet insurance" into your response, you are imposing a condition the Act does not support.

So how are you protected against damage? Through the ordinary route: the tenancy deposit and the tenant's normal liability to make good any damage they or their pet cause, assessed against your check-in inventory. That makes a dated, thorough inventory more important, not less — see how to document property condition for court for the standard courts expect.

A Simple Compliant Process

To stay on the right side of the duty:

1. Ask for pet requests in writing, describing the animal, so the 28-day clock has a clear start.
2. Diarise the 28-day deadline the moment the request lands.
3. Decide on the facts — is there a genuine, fair reason to refuse this specific pet in this specific property?
4. Respond in writing within 28 days, either granting consent or giving your reason for refusal.
5. Do not attach unlawful conditions such as mandatory pet insurance.
6. Rely on the deposit and inventory for damage protection, backed by good condition records.

Handled this way, the pet duty is not a threat — it is just another dated decision to log and evidence, like the rest of modern tenancy management under the Act.

The same discipline applies to the other request tenants now put in writing: permission to install an EV charge point. That one sits under a different regime, with its own timescale and its own set of electrical checks — but the habit is identical. Date the request, decide on the facts of the property, answer in writing, and keep the file.

What's Actually in Force: The Rest of This Series

• Does Awaab's Law apply to private landlords?
• Section 8 Ground 8: why your rent-arrears notice can fail
• Rent increases under the Renters' Rights Act: how a Form 4A notice becomes invalid
• Pets and the Renters' Rights Act: the 28-day duty landlords keep missing (this article)

Frequently Asked Questions

How long do I have to respond to a tenant's request to keep a pet?

You must respond in writing within 28 days of the tenant's written request. The Renters' Rights Act requires you to give or refuse consent in writing on or before the 28th day after the request. If you need to consult a superior landlord you should still act within the statutory framework and respond in time, so do not treat 28 days as a soft target.

Can I just refuse a pet because I would rather not have one in the property?

No. Consent cannot be unreasonably refused. You can refuse for a genuine, fair reason — for example, where a superior landlord's head lease prohibits pets, or where the specific animal is unsuitable for the property — but a blanket "no pets" stance without a reason is not enough. If you refuse, put the reason in writing.

Does the Act make tenants buy pet insurance?

No. This is a persistent myth. The Renters' Rights Act does not require the tenant to take out pet insurance, and you cannot make it a condition of consent. Your protection for any pet-related damage runs through the tenancy deposit and the tenant's ordinary liability to make good damage, not through a mandated insurance policy.

This guide is for information only and does not constitute legal advice.