More than 100 vulnerable Merseyside families have lost their homes in the last 12 months as a result of a controversial law that allows landlords to evict them for no reason.
Research from the Reach PLC data unit has revealed 134 Merseyside residents had their homes repossessed under the Section 21 law last year.
Section 21 notices allow landlords to evict tenants without a reason after their fixed-term tenancy ends.
Campaigners say it has become a leading cause of homelessness because it makes revenge evictions possible when tenants complain about disrepair.
Liverpool council's Landlord Licensing Team have also warned of families living in squalid conditions because they are too scared of eviction to complain.
The Government are finally set to ban these "no fault" evictions in a bid to reform the relationship between tenants and landlords.
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But while this is welcome news going forward - it is too late for the hundreds who have already lost their homes because of this loophole.
Data from the Ministry of Justice shows that in 2018, landlords in Merseyside made 555 claims for an accelerated possession order, where tenants had not left by the date specified in the Section 21 notice.
There were 448 court orders issued against tenants, allowing landlords to apply for a warrant for the tenants’ eviction, and 319 warrants issued last year.
In total, 134 families in Merseyside had their homes repossessed under Section 21.
The number of no-fault evictions was up slightly from 2017, when 120 families were removed from their homes under the law.
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The new laws preventing no-fault evictions will come into force later this year.
They were announced following a campaign by a coalition of renter unions and housing campaigns including homeless charity Shelter.
Liverpool City Council have been vocal supporters of this campaign and in November backed a motion to write to the Housing Minister urging the government to abolish this section of the Housing Act.
Councillor Lynnie Hinnigan, who is cabinet member for housing, welcomed the ban as a "positive move" that would make renters more comfortable about complaining about disrepair.
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But she vowed the council - who have prosecuted more landlords than any other authority in the country - would not be complacent in their fight for fairer housing.
Mould, cracked ceilings and decrepit walls and floors are just some of the squalid but common conditions landlord licensing officers frequently discover on their health and safety inspections of Liverpool houses.
Cllr Hinnigan said: "Generally, I do think it is a positive move and hopefully tenants will feel more secure and will feel able to complain whilst they are still in the property.
"Tenants can always seek independent legal advice for free too as there are plenty of solicitors willing to take on real cases of illegal eviction.
"We are currently investigating claims of harassment to tenants from a landlord and are currently building our legal case so that’s positive but it does take time and relies on residents building up trust with the officers so they will give us a statement."
