Landowners face 90% rent cuts under new telecoms rules

New telecoms rules affecting around 15,000 sites have come into force, with warnings they could slash rents and undermine UK mobile rollout.

From today (7 April), an expansion of the Product Security and Telecommunications Infrastructure (PSTI) Act brings thousands more landowners — including farmers — into the Electronic Communications Code, a system critics say has already cut rents by up to 90%.

Ministers say the changes will support growth and accelerate rollout, but industry groups warn they risk doing the opposite.

The reforms extend a framework introduced in 2017, which shifted payments to a “no-scheme” valuation model and fundamentally changed the economics of hosting telecoms infrastructure.

A coalition including the British Property Federation, the Farmers Union of Wales and APWireless said extending the system could worsen tensions between operators and site providers.

Disputes have surged since the 2017 changes, with more than 1,000 legal cases compared with just 33 over the previous three decades, while negotiations have slowed and relationships between operators and landowners have deteriorated.

Campaigners say this is already affecting rollout, with sites delayed, lost or never delivered where agreements cannot be reached.

The warning comes as the UK continues to lag behind much of Europe on mobile connectivity, ranking 24th out of 32 countries for 5G availability.

The expansion is expected to put further pressure on relationships between telecoms operators and landowners, many of whom host masts on private land.

A recent survey found 35% of landowners hosting masts are considering withdrawing altogether, raising concerns over future network expansion.

The coalition said it supports the government’s ambition to improve connectivity, but warned the current framework is having unintended consequences.

“We support the government’s ambition to improve connectivity and recognise its role in driving economic growth,” the group said.

“However, it is disappointing to see a framework that has led to increased disputes, longer negotiations, and growing reluctance among landowners to host mobile infrastructure being extended without a clear understanding of how it is working in practice.”

They added that where agreements break down, sites can be “delayed, lost, or never secured in the first place”, affecting coverage and capacity.

“The intention behind the 2017 reforms was to speed up rollout and make investment easier. In reality, they have made the underlying relationships harder to manage,” the statement said.

The coalition also warned that a key safeguard — a complaints mechanism under Section 70 — has yet to be implemented.

Without it, they argue there is no clear independent route to resolve disputes or concerns about conduct, and are calling for it to be introduced alongside a review of the framework.

Without further action, industry groups warn tensions will rise — with more landowners stepping away and further delays to rollout.