Will the PRS Database delay your next Insolvency appointment?

Harrison Drury Solicitor, Charles Mather, considers how the proposed PRS Database could impact insolvency appointments involving tenanted residential property.

Taking control of a tenanted residential property is rarely straightforward. Charles Maher, Solicitor in our Insolvency and Restructuring team, considers the impact of the proposed Private Rented Sector (PRS) Database on pre-appointment checks.  

The proposed Private Rented Sector (PRS) Database is part of the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 reforms in England. For insolvency practitioners, registration could become an important consideration where a sale strategy depends on obtaining vacant possession. 

The Private Rented Sector Database Regulations 2026 remain in draft as of 9 November 2026. Under the current draft, the scheme would begin in the West Midlands on 15 December 2026 and come into force for the North West on 15 May 2027. 

Government guidance sets out a three-month registration window for each region, with a North West deadline of 14 August 2027. The final legislation and operational details should be checked again before an appointment is made. 

Why does registration matter for an officeholder? 

The proposed scheme requires an active landlord entry and an active dwelling entry for relevant privately let properties. Once the applicable provisions are in force, a failure to register could affect the ability to market or let a property and, subject to limited statutory exceptions, prevent a court from making a possession order in the landlord’s favour. That is a potential obstacle where a sale strategy depends on obtaining vacant possession. 

The initial rollout will cover properties that are already let or become let during that period. The Government has indicated that future legislation will require registration of unoccupied properties before marketing them for let. 

An appointment does not itself answer who should appear as landlord on the database. A receiver, administrator or trustee should establish the identity of the residential landlord and the extent of their own powers before making or altering an entry.  

The draft Regulations expressly permit specified third parties, including receivers and insolvency officeholders, to act in defined circumstances. They should be ready to provide evidence of their authority. 

What needs to happen immediately after appointment? 

The proposed rules give certain third parties the scope to create an entry before they have assembled all tenancy and property compliance information.  

For an already let dwelling, omitted information must then be supplied within 28 days of the entry being made. Information that subsequently becomes out of date must also be updated within 28 days. A temporary ability to register with incomplete information is therefore not a substitute for promptly securing the tenancy file. 

Where records are poor, the first days of an appointment may need to cover tenancy agreements, rent details, gas and electrical safety records, energy performance information and any relevant property licence.  

The appointee should also identify who will monitor changes and renewals while the property remains under management. 

What should insolvency practitioners do now? 

1. Map the portfolio. Identify tenanted residential dwellings, their location and the proposed regional commencement date. Do not assume that one entry covers an entire block. 
2. Check the proposed possession route. Test the statutory ground, notice period and registration position before building vacant possession into the realisation timetable. 
3. Obtain the records and authority. Seek registration details, tenancy and safety documents, and appointment or security documents showing authority to act. 
4. Budget for ongoing compliance. Allow for registration fees, annual renewal, document retrieval, updates and any delay caused by incomplete records. The draft Regulations leave the fee to be determined by the database operator rather than fixing a sum in the instrument. 

Building registration into pre-appointment checks 

The practical point is simple: where a tenanted dwelling forms part of the security or insolventcy estate, database readiness should be assessed before – not after – control is taken. 

Identifying missing records, confirming authority to act and checking the proposed possession route early will help practitioners build a more realistic timetable for managing and selling the property.  

As the rollout approaches, practitioners will need to check the final Regulations, commencement provisions and database processes. 

Charles Mather qualified as a Solicitor in our Insolvency and Restructuring teams in 2024. He advises individuals and organisations on a wide range of contentious and non-contentious issues, including regulatory and local authority investigations and prosecutions, insolvency and data protection. 

For advice on an appointment involving tenanted property, contact Harrison Drury’s Insolvency & Restructuring team on 01772 258321. 

Charles Mather