Guarantor agreements in 2026: what every landlord needs to know

Updated July 2026 · Applies to England · 6 minute read

A guarantor promises to cover a tenant's rent, and usually other money owed under the tenancy, if the tenant cannot or will not pay it themselves. Landlords typically ask for one when a tenant cannot show the income history or credit record a reference check would normally want to see - students and people new to the UK are common examples. It sounds like a simple safety net, but the Renters' Rights Act has changed how a guarantee behaves once a tenancy is running, and getting the wording wrong can leave you holding a guarantee that stopped working months before you needed it.

When you can ask for a guarantor

There is nothing stopping a landlord from asking any applicant for a guarantor. What changed on 1 May 2026 is that the request cannot be applied selectively. Refusing applicants because they have children or receive benefits is now unlawful discrimination, so a guarantor requirement - like any affordability check - must be applied on the same basis to everyone, not used to screen out a particular group (see our guide to pets, children and benefits clauses). Reasonable, consistent checks are still fine: proof of income, a credit check with consent, a landlord reference, and a guarantor where the numbers do not stack up alone.

What a guarantor is actually agreeing to

A guarantor promises to pay the rent, and usually the reasonable cost of damage beyond fair wear and tear, if the tenant does not. Because tenancies since 1 May 2026 are periodic with no fixed end date, that liability does not expire after a year or two - it runs for as long as the tenancy continues, which could be many years. Where there is more than one tenant on a joint and several tenancy, a guarantee usually covers the whole rent, not just the share of the person the guarantor knows, unless the document says otherwise - worth spelling out before anyone signs.

The trap that can empty a guarantee without anyone noticing

Guarantee agreements follow a long-standing principle: if the tenancy terms are varied without the guarantor's consent, the guarantee can lapse. A Section 13 rent increase is exactly this kind of variation. Before 1 May 2026, landlords could fall back on renewing a fixed-term tenancy to get a fresh guarantee signed each time, and the threat of Section 21 kept tenants cooperative. With fixed terms and Section 21 both gone, that safety net has gone too. The fix is to make sure the guarantee expressly states, from the outset, that it covers the ongoing periodic tenancy and any future lawful rent increase - one that only mentions the original rent can become worthless exactly when you need it.

New in 2026: guarantors are released when the tenant dies

Section 19 of the Renters' Rights Act adds a genuinely new protection. For any guarantee entered into on or after 1 May 2026, the guarantor stops being liable for rent from the date the tenant dies. Arrears and damage from before that date are unaffected, but rent afterwards cannot be recovered from the guarantor, even if the tenancy continues for other joint tenants. The rule varies depending on how many tenants there are and how they are related to the guarantor, summarised below.

Situation	What happens to the guarantee
Sole tenant dies	Ends for rent from the date of death; arrears and damage from before that date are still recoverable
Joint tenants, and the tenant who dies is the guarantor's only relative among them	Ends for rent from that death, even though the tenancy continues for the surviving tenants
Guarantor is related to more than one joint tenant	Continues until all of those related tenants have died
All joint tenants die	Ends for rent from the date of the last death
Guarantee was signed before 1 May 2026	This protection does not apply; the older terms and general guarantee law still govern

"Family member" is defined widely here - a spouse, civil partner or cohabitee, or a parent, child, grandparent, grandchild, sibling, aunt, uncle, niece, nephew or cousin, including step and half relations. Guarantees signed before 1 May 2026 are not automatically upgraded, so an older one still relies on its own wording and general law.

Getting the paperwork right

A guarantee needs to be in writing to be enforceable, and is usually better executed as a deed - signed in front of an independent witness - since a deed does not require the guarantor to receive anything in return to be binding. Give the proposed guarantor time to read the tenancy agreement, encourage independent advice if wanted, and get everything confirmed in writing before the tenancy starts rather than rushed through on moving-in day. Treat the guarantor's own ability to pay the way you would a tenant's, with a reference and ideally a credit check before you rely on the promise.

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to ask every tenant for a guarantor? No, and if you do ask, apply the same standard to everyone. Refusing an applicant simply because they have children or receive benefits is unlawful, so a guarantor request must be a consistent affordability check, not a way to screen out a particular group.

Is a guarantor liable for the whole rent when there are joint tenants? Usually yes, unless the guarantee limits it. A guarantee for a joint and several tenancy normally covers the whole rent, not just the share of the tenant the guarantor knows, so read the wording carefully before signing.

Does a guarantor's liability end when the tenant dies? For guarantees signed on or after 1 May 2026, yes. Liability for rent ends on the date of death, though arrears and damage from before that date are unaffected, and the rule for joint tenancies depends on the guarantor's relationship to the tenant who died.

Does a guarantee automatically cover a rent increase? Not necessarily. Long-standing guarantee law can release a guarantor if the tenancy terms change without their consent, including a Section 13 increase, unless the guarantee expressly covers the ongoing periodic tenancy and future increases.

This guide is general information for landlords in England, not legal advice for your specific circumstances. If a guarantee is central to a tenancy, independent legal advice on the wording is worth the cost.