Wales Written Statement: How a Late or Missing Statement Bars Your Notice

The written statement of the occupation contract might be the most underestimated compliance requirement in Welsh landlord law. For a new contract, miss the 14-day deadline and you face a six-month bar on serving a section 173 notice. For a converted contract, the written statement deadline was 31 May 2023. Late issue also creates statutory compensation liability, normally capped at two months' rent, with a court able to increase it if the failure was intentional.

The Requirement

For a new contract, section 31(1) of the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016 requires the landlord to provide a written statement to the contract-holder within 14 days of the occupation date. For a converted contract, Schedule 12 instead gave the landlord six months from 1 December 2022 to provide the statement, ending on 31 May 2023. This is not optional, and it's not the same as handing over a tenancy agreement — it's a specific statutory document setting out the fundamental provisions, supplementary provisions, and additional terms of the contract.

The Welsh Government publishes model written statements that landlords can use. These cover mandatory terms that apply by law (such as repair obligations, notice provisions, and succession rights), supplementary terms, and any additional terms the parties have agreed.

What Happens If You're Late

If the written statement is delivered after the applicable deadline, two consequences follow:

A six-month restriction bar: Under Schedule 9A, paragraph 2 (as applied to converted contracts through Schedule 12), from the date you actually deliver the late statement, a six-month period must pass before you can serve a section 173 notice. This is in addition to the six-month notice period itself — so a late statement effectively adds a year to your possession timeline (six-month bar + six-month notice).

Compensation liability: Under section 35, compensation accrues at one day's rent for each day of delay, up to two months' rent. If the failure was intentional, the contract-holder can apply to the court for an increase under section 87.

What Happens If You Never Issued One

If the written statement was never issued at all, the section 173 notice bar is ongoing — you cannot serve a valid no-fault notice until you issue the statement and then wait six months. There's no way around this. A landlord who discovers they never provided the written statement is looking at a minimum six-month delay before they can even start the notice process.

For converted contracts — legacy ASTs that converted on 1 December 2022 — landlords were required to issue a new written statement reflecting the RHWA 2016 terms. Many landlords who were self-managing at the time missed this requirement, particularly accidental landlords and those who had been using verbal agreements.

Proving Delivery

In a court dispute, you'll need to prove when the written statement was delivered. "I'm sure I gave it to them" is not sufficient. Keep a copy of the signed receipt, the recorded delivery confirmation, or a witness statement confirming hand delivery.

For the initial 14-day window, proof of delivery within that period matters. If you can't prove timely delivery, the court may treat it as a late statement — triggering the six-month bar even if you believe you delivered it on time.

The Impact on Notice Timelines

Consider two scenarios:

Landlord A issued the written statement within 14 days. They can serve a section 173 notice any time after the six-month initial bar (section 175), wait six months, and proceed to court. Total minimum: 12 months from occupation date.

Landlord B never issued the written statement. They issue it today, wait six months, serve a section 173 notice, wait another six months. Total: 12 months from today, plus however long has already passed. If they'd been managing the property for years without a statement, they've lost nothing extra beyond the 12 months — but they can't start until they fix the gap.

The Connection to Agents

Landlords who previously used letting agents and have taken back self-management are particularly exposed. The agent may or may not have issued a compliant written statement under RHWA 2016. When you take over management, verify the paper trail. Don't assume the agent handled it — check for a signed copy with a delivery date.

If the agent didn't issue a written statement, or issued one that doesn't comply with the model terms, you'll need to issue a fresh one. The six-month bar runs from the date of the fresh statement.

Fixing It

If you haven't issued a written statement:

1. Download the model written statement from the Welsh Government
2. Complete it with the correct terms for your occupation contract
3. Serve it on the contract-holder with proof of delivery
4. Mark the delivery date — you cannot serve a section 173 notice for six months from that date

There's no shortcut and no exemption. The sooner you issue it, the sooner the six-month clock starts.

For the full Schedule 9A compliance checklist and notice process, see our Ending an Occupation Contract in Wales guide.

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