What Happens if Your Tenant is Martha from Baby Reindeer?
Netflix’s smash hit Baby Reindeer has been hitting the headlines for many many reasons, from the real life Martha’s interview with Piers Morgan to an investigation into writer and star Richard Gadd… but what if you were renting to a stalker – how involved in this are you, as a landlord?
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Being a landlord is fraught with potential issues – from missed gas safety checks to rent arrears. But what is not often talked about is where the landlord stands when their tenant is a criminal. How liable are you? When – and should – you step in?
The Baby Reindeer Effect
If you haven’t seen it, Baby Reindeer follows struggling comedian-cum-barman Donny Dunn, who is stalked for 3 years by Martha. The story is based on the real life experiences of writer and star Richard Gadd.
We’re not going to dig into all of the crimes portrayed on the show, but we are going to look at some landlord nightmares that are depicted, including:
- Regular house parties in Donny’s shared flat
- Regular drug use in that flat
- The horrendous state of Martha’s flat
House Parties
Now, we say it time and time again – your property is your tenant’s HOME. Therefore, they are entitled to live as they please in it – within reason. We’re not suggesting theys have the right to damage the place in any way, but they do have the right to enjoy their living space. And, on occasion, this might mean a party, from a housewarming to a birthday gathering.
A good tenant can throw a party WITHOUT being a public nuisance. They’ll let the neighbours know, they’ll cap the noise at a reasonable hour and they won’t create a disturbance that necessitates the police being called.
But in Baby Reindeer, you see quite the opposite – regular huge parties in the main character’s home. This creates some issues for the landlord, including:
- Complaints from neighbours regarding the noise and disruption
- Potential visits from the police to let you know about anti social behaviour
- Probable damage to your property – think wine stains on the carpet, scuffs on walls and skirting boards and cigarette burns in the woodwork
So what can you do about that?
Firstly, make sure that you’re properly referencing your tenants. A great agent can get this all sorted out for you, so if you don’t have one (or you’re looking to change), get in touch and we can help you out.
Secondly, take the first step in letting your tenant know that their behaviour is not on. Take the neighbour’s complaints seriously and investigate. This could mean organising a trip to check on the property – if the parties are as rowdy as the neighbours claim, there will likely be evidence of this. Make sure you give 24hrs notice of your visit AND that you get the required permission to access the property.
If you find evidence of damage to the property or of excessive partying, give your tenants a written warning and remind them that this antisocial behaviour could breach their contract.
If the written warning has no effect and the neighbours continue to complain, or if the damage you find is excessive, you want to take steps towards legal action and eviction. Currently, you can still serve a Section 21, but Section 8 also works here, you would just have to prove the issues and demonstrate that you have grounds for eviction.
If you’re at all nervous of this step or unsure, check out Landlord Action for help and advice!
Regular Drug Use
Let’s be clear when we’re talking about drug use in this context, I’m not talking about weed farms being set up in your property. That’s a whole other issue.
But the use of drugs in your property is something you need to be aware of and act on.
Landlords, as a rule, don’t allow smoking in their property with good reason. So you won’t want someone to be sparking up a joint in the living room – or worse. There are fines and prison sentences for taking drugs, carrying drugs or making and selling drugs and obviously these penalties get more severe depending on the class of drug.
This is absolutely not something you want you or your property involved in!
So how will you know? Well, it may be again that the neighbours alert you – perhaps they’ve seen something that has raised their concerns. Or, you might spot drug paraphernalia in the property when you go to inspect.
You have two options here:
- Go to the police
- Take steps to evict
If you go to the police this could snap the tenant out of their behaviour. However, there is also the possibility that your tenant will know you did this and it would ruin the relationship going forward.
We do recommend that if you think your tenant is making or dealing drugs from the property you go to the police because you do not want to be considered an accessory or concealing wrongdoing.
If, however, you think your tenant is only taking drugs on the property, for personal use only, we recommend that you take the steps mentioned before:
- Send a written warning, reminding them this behaviour would be a breach of contract
- Take steps towards eviction if the behaviour continues
Junk and Damage
Martha’s flat in the show is… well, it’s in a pretty bad state. It’s filthy and full of junk, which is exactly what a landlord does NOT want to see when they come to do a regular inspection here.
The issue here is potential damage to the property – which could be expensive. In this state, you are definitely going to be keeping hold of that deposit to rectify the problems, but it’s also very possible that the deposit just won’t cover it, leaving you out of pocket.
The condition of Martha’s flat could indicate something deeper at work, so you could reach out to mental health charities as a first step, to see if there is any support available to help your tenant get things back on an even keel. It’s possible social services may need to get involved, if they’re not involved already.
However, you can also take the previous steps we’ve talked about – a written warning about being in breach of contract and move towards an eviction if there is no change.
In this instance there is also the additional option to pursue the tenant through small claims court if the damage was extensive and beyond what the deposit could fix. Again, we’d recommend talking to Landlord Action for expert advice on what you can do!
What about stalking?
Baby Reindeer is, famously, a show with stalking at its heart. In 2023, stalking and harassment 32% of all police recorded violence – that is almost a third, which is shocking.
Given that statistic, it’s entirely possible that you are – or have in the past – rented to someone who has stalked or harassed another person.
Unfortunately, there are no tell tale signs that you as a landlord are likely to spot in the property that indicate your tenant could be stalking or harassing someone. Unlike drugs or damage or wild parties, there won’t be any trace – as most stalkers are not going to have a room dedicated to the object of their obsession.
So, as a landlord, it’s likely that you won’t be aware of it at all and therefore cannot do anything about it. But, what if you find yourself the victim of stalking or harassment by a tenant? Now, there is something you can do.
As of November 2012, stalking is a criminal offence in England and Wales, so this is absolutely something that the police can help you with and you should therefore involve them as soon as possible and follow their advice.
You will also need to cut the relationship with your tenant. Speak to Landlord Action about getting them removed from your property as quickly as possible, with as little interaction with you as possible. However, if the harassment continues after they have left your property, here is what you need to know:
- If you feel you are in immediate danger – call 999. If they are approaching you in the street or at your home and you are frightened, make the emergency call.
- Keep a log of every interaction you have with them. Log dates and times every time you see them, they approach you or they contact you. Keep a note of what happened or was said in these interactions. Any letters, emails or texts should be kept (we recommend you screenshot messages they could delete). This log can be used as evidence later.
- Get support while this is happening. Speak to specialised support networks who can advise you on what to do next.
- Keep talking to police so that you understand what they are doing to resolve this, you’re keeping them up-to-date with what is happening and they are advising you on the next steps you need to take.
What about domestic violence?
But stalking isn’t the only criminal activity that you could be drawn into. What if your tenant is the victim of domestic abuse?
In 2023, the police flagged 846,929 recorded offences as domestic abuse-related. 668,103 were violence against the person offences and 33,777 sexual offences.
It’s possible that instead of complaints from neighbours about partying, you could receive regular noise complaints about arguing. Alternatively, you may be made aware of the situation if the tenant requests a change to the security of the property, like the installation of CCTV or a change of locks.
It is not for you to rescue your tenant, no matter how sympathetic you may be to their situation. We do not mean to be cruel in saying this – but you could inadvertently make it worse.
If you are aware of any domestic abuse faced by your tenant, we recommend:
- Do not push your tenant to confide in you. They may not be comfortable doing so or may know more than you about someone listening in
- Do not involve police or social services unless your tenant has asked you to. We understand that this is really hard, but a police visit could end badly for the victim, if they are not ready to have them involved. However, if you suspect someone is in immediate danger or children are involved, you should voice your concerns to the relevant authorities
So there you go – those are the issues highlighted in Baby Reindeer that YOU could face as a landlord. Have you ever faced any of these issues? What would you do if you did.
