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Question Title: Service by email
| Question: 335 |
| I am about to serve a section 21 notice on my tenant. Is it possible to serve it by email ?
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| Answer: |
| Yes, it is now quite permissible to serve notices by email. The difficulty, however, as with other methods of serving notices, is to effect conclusive service. In other words, it is essential that the landlord can prove, in court proceedings, that the tenant actually received the notice - especially where the tenant denies receiving the notice. The Civil Procedure Rules contain guidance on the service of documents in court proceedings. They permit service by e-mail where the tenant or his solicitor has expressly agreed that they are willing to accept such service and have provided an e-mail address for the purpose. Where a notice is served in this way there is no need to send an additional 'hard' copy by post. In terms of proving service, many email systems now allow the user to request a receipt from the addressee on receiving the email. Provided that the email is sent and acknowledged in this way, then this should be adequate proof that the notice has been sufficiently served. However, the law is not yet sufficiently clear on this point to confirm whether the method represents conclusive service, or whether a tenant could deny receipt of the email notice. Until the law with respect to electronic communications is further developed, best advice suggests that landlords should continue to serve important notices in the traditionally accepted manner, either by registered post or in person.
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References:
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Pages:
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Hyperlinks:
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Letting Update Journal |
Oct 2003 page 26 |
letting-update-journal.html
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Letting Handbook |
Chapter 12 |
letting-handbook-and-factsheets.html
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For more information, discuss on the Forum
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