Using Guarantors on Tenancies

A guarantor is a third party, usually a parent, family member or employer, who agrees in writing to cover a tenant's rent and, often, other liabilities such as damage, if the tenant does not pay. Landlords typically ask for one where referencing raises a question that a guarantor can reasonably answer: insufficient income, limited or no UK credit history, or a first tenancy with no rental track record.

This guide covers when to ask for a guarantor, how to make the guarantee properly enforceable, and a practical point that matters more since the Renters' Rights Act 2025: what an open-ended periodic tenancy means for how long a guarantee actually lasts.

When to ask for a guarantor

A guarantor request usually follows directly from referencing. Our tenant referencing guide sets out the checks that typically trigger this, but the most common situations are:

• Income below your affordability threshold, where the applicant's own earnings do not comfortably cover the rent.
• Limited UK credit history, common for students, recent arrivals to the UK, or young applicants with no prior tenancies or credit agreements in their name.
• A weak or unavailable previous landlord reference, where a guarantor provides some additional reassurance alongside other checks.

A guarantor is not a substitute for referencing the tenant properly in the first place. It is an additional layer of security once you already have a reasonably clear picture of the tenant, not a way to skip checking them at all.

Many landlords also set a minimum standard for who counts as a suitable guarantor, commonly requiring the guarantor to be a UK resident, in employment or with a sufficient independent income, and ideally a homeowner, since this makes both referencing and any future enforcement more straightforward. None of this is a legal requirement, but it is a reasonable and common practice, provided it is applied consistently rather than adjusted case by case.

A worked example shows why this matters in practice. A student applicant has no income and no UK credit history, so the landlord asks for a parent as guarantor. The parent lives overseas and has no UK assets or UK-based income. On paper, the guarantee looks like it provides cover, but if the tenant later falls into arrears, pursuing an overseas guarantor through the UK courts is considerably harder and slower than pursuing one based in the UK. A landlord who checks this upfront, and asks for a UK-based alternative guarantor or a larger deposit within the statutory cap instead, avoids relying on a guarantee that looks reassuring but is difficult to actually enforce.

Making the guarantee enforceable

A guarantee is only as good as the document behind it, and a badly drafted one can turn out to be worthless exactly when you need it. To be enforceable:

• Use a deed, not a simple letter. A guarantee for future obligations, such as rent that has not yet fallen due, generally needs to be executed as a deed to be binding, since it is not always supported by the kind of consideration an ordinary contract requires.
• Have it signed and witnessed, with the witness's name and address recorded, following the normal formalities for executing a deed.
• Reference the tenancy agreement it relates to, so there is no ambiguity about which tenancy, which tenant and which property the guarantee covers.
• Encourage the guarantor to take independent advice before signing. Many landlords ask the guarantor to confirm in writing that they have had the opportunity to take legal advice, which strengthens the deed if it is ever challenged.
• Reference the guarantor too. A guarantor with no income or a poor credit history offers little real protection; check their ability to actually meet the guarantee before relying on it.

Periodic tenancies changed what "for the term" means

Before the Renters' Rights Act, guarantee deeds often promised to cover a tenant's obligations "for the initial fixed term and any renewal or extension of it". That wording made sense when tenancies had a defined term with a clear renewal point. Since 1 May 2026, new and converted tenancies in England are Assured Periodic Tenancies with no fixed term and, structurally, no "renewal" to speak of, since the tenancy simply continues indefinitely until it ends under the Renters' Rights Act rules.

A guarantee still drafted around fixed-term language is at risk of being read narrowly, potentially leaving a gap in cover once the tenancy runs beyond whatever term the guarantor originally understood themselves to be covering. When drafting or renewing a guarantee now, the safer approach is to have it cover the tenancy for as long as it continues, including after any lawful rent increase under Section 13, rather than tying it to a term structure that no longer exists in the same way. If you are relying on an older guarantee deed for a tenancy that converted to periodic status, it is worth reviewing the wording rather than assuming it still covers the tenancy as intended. Our guide to the Renters' Rights Act covers the wider conversion to periodic tenancies this all stems from.

What the guarantee should cover

A clear guarantee deed should state, in plain terms:

• The rent obligations it covers, and whether that includes future rent increases.
• Whether it covers damage beyond the deposit, and any cap on the amount.
• Whether it covers costs such as court fees if possession proceedings become necessary. Our guide to Section 8 evictions sets out the costs and process a guarantee of this kind would actually be covering.
• How and when the guarantee can be brought to an end, and by whom.

Vague guarantees, for example simply stating the guarantor "guarantees the tenancy" without specifying what that covers, invite disputes later about exactly what the guarantor is on the hook for.

It is also good practice to notify the guarantor whenever a Section 13 rent increase takes effect, even where the deed already covers future increases in principle. A guarantor who was never told the rent went up, and is then asked to cover an increased arrears figure they knew nothing about, is far more likely to dispute their liability than one who was kept informed throughout the tenancy.

Ending a guarantee

A guarantee generally continues for as long as the tenancy it relates to continues, unless the deed itself sets out an earlier end point or a formal release is agreed. A tenant cannot unilaterally end someone else's guarantee, and a guarantor who simply changes their mind is not automatically released either, since the whole point of the deed is to bind them regardless of a later change of heart. If a guarantor's circumstances change significantly, such as bankruptcy, the practical answer is usually to find a replacement guarantor or an alternative form of security, rather than assuming the original guarantee has quietly lapsed.

How Property HQ helps

Property HQ stores guarantor details and the signed guarantee deed alongside the tenancy record, so if a payment issue arises, you can see immediately who the guarantor is, what the guarantee actually covers, and how to contact them, without digging through old email threads to find the paperwork.

Disclaimer

This guide is general information for UK landlords, not legal advice. Guarantee deeds are contracts with real legal weight; have your wording checked by a solicitor, particularly for tenancies that converted to periodic status under the Renters' Rights Act 2025.