Sponsored content: Andy Talbot, director of marketing, ATE and broker at Arag, explains how legal expenses insurers support policyholders through complex legal changes that impact employers, landlords, tenants, small businesses and the self-employed.
If 2025 was the year that the government managed to get much of its – and some of its predecessor’s – legislation onto the statute books, 2026 is when most of it comes into force.
This isn’t unusual. Most new governments arrive in a flurry of flagship bills, that take a year or more to work their way through parliament. And most new laws include measures that will be introduced months later.
All the new legislation being introduced this year may not be that onerous, but maintaining compliance with every detail, especially when so much is changing, will be a challenge for the millions of businesses and individuals affected.
Prevention is always better than cure. While insurance products can help with both, it’s the day one benefits offered by legal protection policies that are already proving their worth.
Legal advice helplines and online resources offer up-to-date support to guide policyholders over the shifting regulatory sands from the day the policy is taken out, offering huge value for the typically modest premiums, even if there’s never a need to make a claim.
Working order
The Employment Rights Act codified the core of Labour’s manifesto pledge to “make work pay” and represents the most significant overhaul of workers’ rights in a generation.
While some measures around unions and industrial action have already been introduced, the reduction of the unfair dismissal qualifying period to six months will not come into force until 2027.
Most of the measures arrive this year, though. April will see more employees eligible for statutory sick pay with removal of the lower earnings limit and waiting period, the introduction of bereaved partners’ paternity leave, day one rights to unpaid parental leave and paternity leave and stronger protections for whistleblowers exposing sexual harassment.
This is just the tip of the iceberg, with other measures coming in April, October and into 2027.
Let it be
While the Renters’ Right Act shares some key measures with the Renters (Reform) Bill that was never passed by the previous government, like abolishing Section 21 “no-fault” eviction notices, it goes much further and demands as much attention from landlords as the Employment Rights Act does from employers.
Where employment law reforms are being introduced over more than a year, the changes for landlords and their tenants are mostly focused on one date.
As well as an end to no-fault evictions, fairer rules on rent increases, outlawing bidding wars and a host of other measures, all assured shorthold tenancies will become rolling, assured periodic tenancies from 1 May.
Support Acts
These two pieces of landmark legislation are just the headlines.
This year, landlords and the self-employed will also need to comply with making tax digital for income tax. Some may need to catch up with the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025 and the Online Safety Act 2023, most of which was implemented last year.
It’s not all bad news for SMEs though. The government is also cracking down on late payments, which should be welcome news for most.
