Renters could be owed thousands if their landlord does not follow this one rule

Renters could be due a refund of 12 months' rent if their landlord has not properly licenced the property they are living in.

According to UK housing law, if landlords are renting a single property to multiple residents they need to licence the property with the local council.

The council can then check if the property meets the right standards for multiple occupancies.

Other types of rental property may also have to be licensed under local council rules.

If your landlord hasn't licensed your rental property properly then you could be owed a refund through a rent repayment order (RRO) which could amount to a few thousand pounds.

A tenant or the council can apply for this through a tribunal, and a council might offer help doing this as they run the licencing scheme.

The amount you can get back through a rent repayment order depends on how much rent you pay (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

If you are to do this there most likely will be fees involved, however, these fees can be claimed back if you are successful.

The amount you would get back depends on how much rent you pay.

If the rent for your entire property is £750, then you could be entitled to a refund for the entire year which would equate to £9000, if the landlord is ordered by the tribunal to repay the entire amount.

If your landlord has broken this one rule, you could be owed thousands (Getty Images)

If you receive Housing Benefit for rent or have used Universal Credit to pay your rent then this can be reclaimed from the landlord by the council or the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).

The charity Shelter, which campaigns for tenant rights, says your landlord must have a house in multiple occupations (HMO) licence from the council if these two things apply to the property:

• you share with four or more other people
• there are two or more separate households

HMO licences usually last around five years, however in some areas, councils make landlords apply more often.

Shelter also highlighted that an HMO licence cannot be transferred to another person so If your landlord changes, they will have to reapply for the licence.

If your landlord does not have an HMO licence, then alongside having to repay rent, they cannot evict you from the property with a section 21 notice or "no-fault eviction" notice and they can be banned from renting out properties.

According to the group, Justice for Tenants, you can also apply for a rent repayment order if:

• The landlord has not complied with a council notice
• The tenant has been harassed or evicted without the correct paperwork.