Changes to the Electronic Communications Code: The 2022 Reforms

Updated September 2026. This article was reviewed and corrected in September 2026. There is no “Communications Code 2022”: the Code has been in force since 28 December 2017 and was amended by the Product Security and Telecommunications Infrastructure Act 2022, so we have corrected the name and added the dates the changes actually came into force.

Numerous legal disputes regarding attempted reductions in rent since the 2017 Electronic Communications Code.

The Electronic Communications Code, set out in Schedule 3A to the Communications Act 2003 and in force since 28 December 2017, has resulted in numerous legal disputes regarding attempted reductions in rent between landlords and operators. This has delayed the rollout of 5G networks across the UK.

A consultation took place between 27 January and 24 March 2021. The consultation outlined what the government believed were the key issues that impact the effectiveness of the Code and set out a range of suggestions intended to address these problem areas.

The Government responded, and the Code was amended by the Product Security and Telecommunications Infrastructure Act 2022, which received Royal Assent in December 2022. The changes came into force in stages: the upgrading and sharing changes in 2023, the requirement to consider alternative dispute resolution and the new interim arrangements for renewal applications on 7 November 2023, and the changes to rent on renewals under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 on 7 April 2026.

Some of the changes are designed to speed up Phone Mast renewals, the new agreements will still continue to allow upgrades and sharing, operators will need to consider alternative dispute resolution, before taking landlords to Court and, since 7 April 2026, rent on the renewal of older leases protected by the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 whose primary purpose is to grant Code rights is assessed on the Code’s no-network assumptions, unless the renewal notice or request was served before that date.

It remains to be seen whether these changes will get Phone Mast lease renewals moving again.

The view of The Phone Mast Advice Company Ltd is the change to the Law in 2017 has failed to help speed up the rollout of 5G sites and improve overall coverage. The Law should be repealed and there now needs to be a Public Enquiry into the current state of the UK’s mobile network Infrastructure.

The Phone Mast Advice Company Ltd has over 15 years experience advising Phone Mast landlords and can be contacted on: 0203 8830605.

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