What is Section 196 of the Law Of Property Act 1925?

Section 196 of the Law of Property Act 1925 provides a mechanism for a landlord to serve a tenant notice without having to prove that it has been received. 

Section 196 provides for effective service even if the tenant never received the document.

There are different ways to achieve effective service, and these include:

• Leaving a document at the tenant’s last known address. It can be helpful if this is done with an independent witness
• Putting the document in the letterbox or sticking it to the door in a location where the tenant will have to remove it to gain entry. The wording for this in Section 196 is “affixed or left for them.”
• Registered post or recorded delivery is permitted under the Section 196 rules providing that the letter or document is not returned as undelivered or the addressee does not refuse delivery.

Section 196 cannot be used for all documents, including claim forms for possession proceedings and court papers.

The first port of call for serving notices should be the tenancy agreement. Section 196 of the Law of Property Act can be used if the tenant’s contract is unclear or silent on this point and is a fallback in tricky cases.