On the eve of section 21 being abolished, I was served an eviction notice. I was far from alone | George Francis Lee

The Renters’ Right Act has finally given tenants in England more security over their housing, but landlords still hold the upper hand when setting rents You never welcome an email from your landlord, or in my case, my landlord’s agent. I happened to be in an airport waiting for a flight when something landed in my inbox that made my stomach drop. Two words popped out in the subject line: “Section 21”. Miles from home, staring at my phone, I felt useless and despondent at being served a no-fault eviction notice days before the new Renters’ Right Act made them illegal at the start of May. Once a feature of England’s rental market, section 21s had allowed landlords to force tenants out of their homes with only a minimum of two months’ notice. Presumably not wanting the hassle of having to use a section 8 notice – citing one or more legal grounds to end a tenancy – my landlord evicted me at the 11th hour. It turns out that I was one of many. In the buildup to 1 May, solicitors reported thousands of people seeking advice after being served notices. People don’t come to expect charity from their landlords, but the fact that so many have slipped in section 21s at the last possible moment