Can my landlord charge me for paying rent late?
Only interest, only once rent is more than 14 days overdue, and only up to the Bank of England base rate plus 3 percentage points. Flat late fees are not lawful.
Under the Tenant Fees Act 2019 a landlord in England cannot charge an arbitrary flat late fee. The only permitted charge is interest, and it's constrained twice over:
- It is only chargeable once the rent is more than 14 days overdue.
- The rate cannot exceed the Bank of England base rate plus 3 percentage points.
Tenarize enforces both. Your landlord cannot set a rate above the cap, and the amount is recalculated against the current cap every time it's charged — so if the base rate falls after they set it, the charge is automatically reduced to the legal maximum rather than continuing at a rate that has since become too high.
Worth knowing: Whether your landlord charges interest at all is up to them. If they do, the tenancy agreement generated by Tenarize states the rate on its face — and if it says no interest applies, none is charged.
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Not legal advice
These answers describe how Tenarize works and summarise the law in England as the product implements it. They are not legal advice about your situation, and the law changes. For free independent help, Citizens Advice and Shelter both cover renting in England; for anything unusual or contested, take advice from a solicitor.
Tenarize does not currently support Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland, whose tenancy regimes are different.