Letting agents and landlords are racing to take out rental insurance ahead of the Renters' Rights Act coming into force in May, according to new analysis from Goodlord.
Goodlord tracked a 41% increase in demand for rental insurance products between September and December 2025, a jump that coincided with the Renters' Rights Bill receiving Royal Assent on 27 October.
"The passing of the Bill into law really focused minds across the sector," said Oli Sherlock, managing director of insurance at Goodlord. "There had been so many false starts over the years, it took Royal Assent for lots of agents to truly step up their preparations. We saw an absolute explosion in rent protection demand as soon as the Bill cleared the final stages; it was like a massive alarm had sounded across the market."
A separate Goodlord survey of 234 letting agents and landlords found that 76% said the Act had increased their likelihood of taking out insurance. Just 11% said their position was unchanged, and only 1% said they were now less likely to put cover in place as a result of the legislation.
The Act is due to be fully implemented on 1 May and introduces a range of new rules for the private rented sector. Among the most significant changes is the abolition of so-called 'no fault' evictions under Section 21, meaning landlords seeking to remove tenants must navigate a more complex process via a Section 8 notice. T
Tenants will also gain the right to formally appeal rent increases, and agents will no longer be permitted to request more than one month's rent in advance, with payment not legally due until the first day of the tenancy.
Together, these changes are fuelling concern among industry professionals, who worry about lengthy court delays around evictions, protracted rental disputes, and last-minute tenancy drop-outs.
Rent protection insurance typically covers agents and landlords if tenants miss or withhold rental payments, and can also extend to additional costs such as legal fees and property damage.
"The Act is bringing in a lot of change and the market is recalibrating accordingly," Sherlock added. "Lots of the major causes of concern, whether that's around court backlogs, gazundering, or disappearing tenants, may not come to pass in the volumes some predict, but agents and their landlords clearly don't want to take any chances at a time of such market uncertainty."
