Research carried out for Direct Line business insurance appears to show that 24% of private rented sector landlords don't feel on top of and suffer stress brought on by the pace of regulatory change in the sector. 16% of those surveyed said they were unaware of "licensing scheme changes", 12% were unaware of new smoke alarm and carbon monoxide detector requirements and 10% were unaware of upcoming changes to minimum residential property energy performance standards.

The research (carried out by Opinium surveying 2000 UK adults, between 11th and 15th February 2022, of whom 222 were landlords) also showed that of those landlords who felt they were coping (67%) most did their own research, instructed a managing agent, utilised landlord/letting trade publications and newsletters or sought advice from a solicitor.

However, no mention was made of Local Authority resources easily accessible to landlords. Especially with regard to licensing and health & safety issues relevant to private landlords, Local Authority web pages can be invaluable and will include team contact details that a landlord can use to make themselves aware (for no cost bar the time it takes to use the Local Authority page's search box - "private sector housing" and "selective licensing" being good examples) of what requirements and regulations they need to know about in the area where their property is located.

Jamie Chaplin, Landlord Business Manager at Direct Line business insurance, said "landlords are faced with a range of challenging regulatory changes" and that the research suggested this was making many landlords consider selling their properties. The research does also, though, show the paths that many landlords do take to get on top of the problem.