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4 1946

RENT RESTRICTIONS ACT, 1946

Chapter 2.

Lawful Rent of Controlled (Non-1923 Act) Premises.

Controlled (non 1923 Act) premises.

13. —This Chapter applies to every controlled premises, other than premises in respect of which evidence is forthcoming that they are controlled (1923 Act) premises.

Basic rent of certain controlled (non-1923 Act) premises.

14. —(1) Subject to subsection (2) of this section, this section applies to—

(a) controlled (non-1923 Act) premises in respect of which evidence is forthcoming of both the following facts—

(i) that they were, on the 7th day of May, 1941 (in this section referred to as the relevant date) held by an occupying tenant thereof under a contract of tenancy not being for more than a term of five years, and

(ii) the rent at which they were so held;

(b) controlled (non-1923 Act) premises in respect of which evidence is forthcoming of all the following facts—

(i) that they were not so held on the 7th day of May, 1941,

(ii) that they were last so held on a date (in this section also referred to as the relevant date) being not more than five years before the 7th day of May, 1941, and

(iii) the rent at which they were so held.

(2) This section shall not apply to premises to which, on the relevant date, the Act of 1923 applied.

(3) The basic rent of premises to which this section applies shall be the net rent at which they were held on the relevant date.

(4) For the purpose of this section, the net rent at which premises were held on the relevant date shall be taken to be—

(a) in case the landlord at the relevant date habitually paid or allowed a deduction or set-off against, or indemnified the tenant in respect of the rates or any part thereof, the rent payable at that date less the amount of such payment, allowance, deduction, set-off or indemnity (as the case may be);

(b) in any other case, the rent payable at that date.

(5) References in sections 15 and 17 of this Act to the relevant date shall be construed as references to the date which is the relevant date for the purposes of this section.

Revision of basic rents of promises to which section 14 applies.

15. —(1) If, on an application to the Court under this subsection by the tenant of premises to which section 14 of this Act applies, the Court is satisfied—

(a) that, in the local financial year which includes the relevant date, there was in force, by virtue of any statute, a remission of two-thirds of the rates in respect of the premises or a reduction of the valuation of the premises for the purposes of the assessment and levying of rates, and

(b) that at the date of the application such remission or reduction is no longer in force, and

(c) that the basic rent of the premises exceeds the rent (in this subsection referred to as the notional rent) which, if the said remission or reduction had not been in force, the landlord might, at the relevant date, reasonably have expected under a contract of tenancy in the same terms as the contract of tenancy subsisting at the said date, assuming (if it was not the case) that the tenant was responsible for the rates,

the basic rent of the premises shall be determined by the Court and shall be the amount which, in the opinion of the Court, represents the notional rent, and thenceforth the premises shall, without prejudice to the previous application thereto of paragraph (a) of section 23 of this Act, become premises to which section 16 of this Act applies as if such determination had been made under that section.

(2) If, on an application to the Court under this subsection by the landlord of premises to which section 14 of this Act applies, the Court is satisfied—

(a) that, in the local financial year immediately preceding the local financial year which includes the relevant date, there was in force, by virtue of any statute, a remission of two-thirds of the rates in respect of the premises or a reduction of the valuation of the premises for the purpose of the assessment and levying of rates, and

(b) that, at the relevant date, such remission or reduction was no longer in force, and

(c) that at the relevant date the landlord habitually paid or allowed a deduction or set-off against, or indemnified the tenant in respect of the rates or any part thereof, and

(d) that the basic rent of the premises is less than the rent (in this subsection referred to as the notional rent) which, if the said remission or deduction had continued to be in force, the landlord might, at the relevant date, reasonably have expected under a contract of tenancy in the same terms as the contract of tenancy subsisting at the said date, assuming that the tenant was responsible for the rates,

the basic rent of the premises shall be determined by the Court and shall be the amount which, in the opinion of the Court, represents the notional rent, and thenceforth the premises shall, without prejudice to the previous application thereto of paragraph (a) of section 23 of this Act, become premises to which section 16 of this Act applies as if such determination had been made under that section.

(3) If, on an application to the Court under this subsection by the landlord or tenant of premises to which section 14 of this Act applies, the Court is satisfied that the basic rent of the premises either exceeds, or falls short of, by an amount exceeding one-fifth of the basic rent, the rent (in this subsection referred to as the notional rent) which, if the premises were premises to which section 16 of this Act applies, would be determined by the Court as the basic rent thereof, the basic rent of the premises shall be determined by the Court and shall be the amount which, in the opinion of the Court, represents the notional rent, and thenceforth the premises shall, without prejudice to the previous application thereto of paragraph (a) of section 23 of this Act, become premises to which section 16 of this Act applies as if such determination had been made under that section.

Basic rent of controlled (non-1923 Act) premises to which section 14 does not apply.

16. —(1) This section applies to every controlled (non-1923 Act) premises other than premises to which section 14 of this Act applies.

(2) The basic rent of premises to which this section applies shall be determined by the Court as follows:—

(a) in the case of premises consisting of a separate and self-contained contained flat or tenement forming part of any buildings which, after the 7th day of May, 1941, are or which at that date were being bona fide reconstructed by way of conversion into two or more such flats or tenements, the basic rent of the premises shall be the rent which, in the opinion of the Court, the immediate landlord of an occupying tenant of the premises might, if the premises, as reconstructed, had been in existence in the year ending on the 7th day of May, 1941, reasonably have expected in that year under any given contract of tenancy not being for more than a term of five years;

(b) in any other case, the basic rent shall be the rent which, in the opinion of the Court, the immediate landlord of an occupying tenant of the premises might, in the year ending on the 7th day of May, 1941, reasonably have expected under any given contract of tenancy not being for more than a term of five years.

(3) For the purpose of the determination by the Court of the basic rent under this section the tenant shall be deemed to be responsible for the rates.

(4) Where, under Article 5 of the Order of 1944, the basic rent of any premises was determined by the Court, the said determination shall, for the purposes of this Act, be deemed to have been made under this section and the said basic rent shall be the basic rent of the premises.

Lawful additions to basic rent of controlled (non-1923 Act) premises.

17. —(1) In subsection (2) of this section, the expression “the critical date” means—

(a) in the case of premises to which section 14 of this Act applies, the operative date,

(b) in the case of premises to which section 16 of this Act applies, the date of the institution of the proceedings in which the basic rent of the premises is determined.

(2) For the purposes of this Act, the sum mentioned in any paragraph of this subsection shall, in the case set out in that paragraph, be a lawful addition to the basic rent of controlled (non-1923 Act) premises:

(a) in case the landlord of the premises pays or allows a deduction or set-off against, or indemnifies the tenant in respect of, the rates or any part thereof, a sum equal to the amount for the time being of such payment, deduction, set-off or indemnity (as the case may be);

(b) in case the landlord, on or after the critical date, expends any amount (excluding any amount expended on decoration or repairs) on the improvement or structural alteration of the premises, a sum equal to eight per cent. per annum of that amount;

(c) in case the landlord, on or after the critical date, expends any amount on repairs to the premises which are wholly or mainly rendered necessary because of acts of waste by, or the neglect or default of, the tenant or any person residing with him or any of his lodgers or subtenants a sum equal to eight per cent. per annum of that amount;

(d) in the case of premises to which section 14 of this Act applies, if the landlord has, on or after the relevant date, and before the critical date, expended any amount on the improvement or structural alteration of the premises (but not including therein any amount expended on decoration or repairs) a sum equal to eight per cent. per annum of that amount;

(e) in case the landlord, during a period comprising the two years 1945 and 1946, or 1946 and 1947, or 1947 and 1948, or 1948 and 1949, or 1949 and 1950, expends an amount in excess of two-thirds of the basic rent of the premises on putting the premises into a reasonable state of repair, a sum equal to fifteen per cent. per annum of such excess or excesses of expenditure;

(f) in the case of premises to which paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of section 16 of this Act applies, a sum equal to eight per cent. per annum of such amount as bears to the total cost of the reconstruction of the buildings referred to in that paragraph the same proportion as the rateable valuation of the premises bears to the rateable valuation (or the total of the rateable valuations) of the said buildings as reconstructed.

(3) For the purposes of subsection (2) of this section, the amount of any grant under the Housing (Financial and Miscellaneous Provisions) Acts, 1932 to 1944, as amended or extended by any subsequent enactment, shall not be reckoned as part of any amount expended on any improvement, structural alteration or repairs to which that subsection applies.

(4) In the application of this Chapter to a small dwelling, within the meaning of the Local Government (Rates on Small Dwellings) Act, 1928 (No. 4 of 1928), the following provisions shall have effect:

(a) the word “rates” in paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of this section shall not include a rate made by virtue of the last-mentioned Act on the owner of such small dwelling, and

(b) the amount by which the rent of such small dwelling is increased by virtue of section 6 of the last-mentioned Act shall be taken into account as a lawful addition in calculating the lawful rent of such small dwelling.

Lawful rent of controlled (non-1923 Act) premises.

18. —The lawful rent of controlled (non-1923 Act) premises shall be—

(a) in case there is no lawful addition to the basic rent of the premises, the basic rent of the premises,

(b) in any other case, the sum of the basic rent of the premises and the lawful additions thereto.