Truth Isn’t Defamation: It’s a Mirror for Landlords, Agents, and Solicitors

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Let’s clear the air before anyone tries to twist any narrative: this website/blog is not defamation. This is not a smear campaign. This is not a personal vendetta. This is truth, and truth, when backed by evidence, lived experience, and public interest, is not only lawful, it is necessary.

Over the past year, I have made the conscious decision to speak out. To share what I’ve witnessed and experienced. To expose patterns of negligence, disrepair, mismanagement, and systemic failures. Not through gossip. Not through rage. But through facts, documents, timelines, screenshots, and a full digital trail.

Some people will say, “Careful what you say, you might get sued for defamation.”

To them, I say this: learn what defamation actually means.

What is Defamation in the UK?

In simple terms, defamation is when someone publishes a false statement that causes serious harm to the reputation of another individual or entity.

There are two types:

Libel / written defamation (articles, social media, posts, etc.)

Slander / spoken defamation (spoken comments, videos, etc.)

Under the Defamation Act 2013, a statement is only considered defamatory if:

It is not true.
It causes serious harm to the reputation of a person or organisation.
It cannot be justified as being in the public interest, or as honest opinion based on facts.

So let’s ask the obvious:

Am I telling the truth? Yes.

Do I have evidence? Yes.

Am I speaking on issues that concern the public (tenants, housing standards, council responsibility)? Yes.

Case closed.

The Difference Between Defamation and Accountability

Some professionals and public figures confuse criticism with defamation. They think if you call out their failures, their inaction, their silence, you’re attacking them.

No.

When you’re a public servant, a landlord, a letting agent, or a solicitor representing others, your work affects real lives. If your actions (or inactions) create harm, you are accountable to the public. That’s not an attack. That’s transparency.

Speaking the truth isn’t defamatory. It’s necessary. Because silence is what allowed these systems to fail for so long.

Misleading Statements? Only If You Fabricate Facts

Let’s talk about the phrase “misleading statements.” It gets thrown around whenever someone doesn’t like what’s being said about them.

But in UK law, misleading the public or a tribunal requires intentional falsehoods or omissions.

Everything I’ve posted, every screenshot, every message, every letter, every interaction, is backed up by proof. If something is blurred for privacy, the original is stored. If I express an opinion, I state clearly that it is an opinion.

I follow the facts. I follow the evidence. I follow the law. And I make sure I don’t cross the line.

Because unlike those who are nervous now, I know where the line is.

This Isn’t About Revenge. This Is About Reform.

I didn’t build Tenant Support UK to seek revenge. I built it because I had no one to help me. I built it because I became the help I needed.

People like me aren’t supposed to have a voice. But I found mine. And I’m using it.

So let this article serve as the line in the sand:

If you’re doing your job properly, you have nothing to worry about.

If you’ve cut corners, lied, ignored your responsibilities, or tried to silence tenants, then yes, you might see your reflection in what I write.

But don’t call it defamation.

Call it a mirror.

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