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This economic downturn has led to a huge surge in tenants abandoning their properties to avoid paying rent, new figures reveal.

Letting Protection Service has found that the number of landlords who claim for lost rent soared tenfold over the last year – a big blow for landlords trying to pay their mortgages during this difficult time.

In October 2007, 91 landlords experienced a runaway tenant; LPS has found that just 12 months later the number rocketed to 1,286. In January 2009 alone, 1,117 tenants ran without telling the landlord, compared to just 218 in 2008.

Kevin Firth, director of the LPS, says: “Firstly we would advise tenants that running away from financial difficulties is never the best way to deal with them. It could have a negative impact on your credit rating and could potentially mean you are breaking the law.

“For landlords – especially those who are relatively new to the buy to let market – these figures give a stark warning. The landlords in our figures are sensible because they have taken out insurance on their rent – but there could be thousands who have not, and in the current economy they will undoubtedly suffer from that loss.”

If you haven't got insurance to protect you from a loss of earnings, talk to your financial adviser right away. This is a big problem, and it's only going to get worse. If you found yourself without rental income all of a sudden, how long would you survive?

SOURCE: LPS, 11/03/09

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