The lodger agreement template that keeps a lodger a lodger
Renting a room in your own home is the simplest letting there is – if the paperwork keeps it that way. A lodger is an excluded occupier with a licence, not a tenant: no deposit protection duty, no court process to end the arrangement, and none of the Renters' Rights Act machinery. But those advantages depend on the document (and the living arrangement) saying the right things. That is what this pack is for.
What's in the £15 pack
- Lodger licence agreement – customised to your household by our generator: names, room, payment, bills, deposit, notice period and house rules (guests, smoking, pets).
- Live-in landlord checklist – Right to Rent, gas safety, insurance and mortgage notifications, council tax, and the Rent a Room scheme's tax-free allowance.
- Plain-English notes – what each clause does, and the handful of things that could accidentally turn your lodger into a tenant.
Why the wording matters more than people think
The label "lodger agreement" carries no legal weight – courts look at the reality. What keeps the arrangement a licence: you live in the property as your only or main home, you share living space, and the lodger has no exclusive possession of their room. Our agreement states each of those facts explicitly, reserves reasonable room access, and covers the trap nobody thinks about: what happens if you move out (clause 8.3 – the licence ends rather than silently becoming a tenancy). Unsure which side of the line your arrangement falls? Read lodger agreement vs tenancy agreement first – if your renter is actually a tenant, you need our tenancy pack instead.
What the free templates get wrong
The free lodger templates circulating online are mostly fine on names and payments and silent on everything that matters: no Right to Rent confirmation, no gas-safety obligation, no exclusive-possession language, deposit clauses copied from tenancy agreements that reference protection schemes which don't apply, and nothing about the landlord moving out. A lodger dispute has no deposit scheme adjudicator to fall back on – the document is the whole system.
Create your lodger agreement in 10 minutes
Answer a short questionnaire, watch the agreement build live, and download it as Word and PDF – with the checklist and notes included.
Start my lodger agreement →Frequently asked questions
Does a lodger agreement need to be witnessed or use a special form?
No. A signed written agreement between you and your lodger is all that is needed – there is no prescribed form for a lodger licence.
Does the Renters' Rights Act apply to lodgers?
No. Lodgers sharing a resident landlord's home are excluded occupiers outside the Act – one of the main advantages of taking a lodger rather than letting a whole property.
Do I have to protect a lodger's deposit?
No – tenancy deposit protection does not apply to lodgers. Keep the deposit modest, record it in writing and agree a room inventory; the paper trail is the protection.