A call has been made again for the strengthening of landlord-tenant legislation as multiple stakeholders work to address homelessness in Bermuda.

Denise Carey, the chief executive of the charity Home, believes that attention should be placed on tightening the laws.

Oversight and regulation of matters involving landlords and tenants in Bermuda is governed by several primary pieces of legislation, including those related to rent increases and rent apportionment.

In Home’s annual report released last Tuesday, Ms Carey said Bermuda was facing a housing crisis and listed factors that have contributed to homelessness on the island.

She pointed out that a national register of landlords and rental agencies was needed for the island to establish a property portal that captures all social, affordable and rental accommodation in both social and private sectors in a centralised database.

“We have not put anything in place on what we need to do to strengthen landlord rights and tenant rights,” she said. “We need to strengthen the landlord and tenant legislation.”

Ms Carey noted that when a tenant was unable to pay rent or if a landlord believed that the tenant was not taking good care of the property, “there should be early interventions, mediations that the landlord can reach out to before they head towards the court”.

Reference was made in the Throne Speech to landlord-tenant legislation and a possible amendment to existing law.

In November 2021, following the Throne Speech, Minister of Home Affairs Walter Roban said the landlord and tenant legislation had not been updated to match the evolution in the rental market since the 1990s.

“As in most jurisdictions, disputes between landlords and tenants have increased and legislation is needed to address these issues and provide adequate guidance and protection to landlords and tenants,” he said.

Mr Roban said the economic impact suffered by residents “highlighted the ambiguity” in the current landlord and tenant laws and the need for updated legislation.

“A more comprehensive Act will enable Consumer Affairs to better assist landlords and tenants by giving clear guidance on settling rental disputes and potentially avoiding civil court,” he noted.

Responsibility for enforcement of the landlord and tenancy laws falls on the courts. As such, Mr Roban said both parties had little option but to resort to the courts to settle disputes because of “a lack of clear direction” from the law.

“The court process can be long, is generally not user-friendly and can prove to be expensive with no guarantee of a positive outcome,” he said.

Mr Roban said updated legislation would introduce emergency enforcement powers for Consumer Affairs, which could now only do its best to “conciliate issues that arise but cannot enforce remedies”.

He said “heinous acts” had been committed by some landlords. The list include shutting water and electricity, removal of windows and doors as a way to force tenants to leave and putting tenants belongings out of the rental premises.

On the other hand, he said some tenants “have indulged in illegal activities or engaged in intimidation against elderly landlords”.

Mr Roban said the occurrences “require immediate intervention by an authority where there have been contraventions of the legislation”.