In Rhode Island, in order for the delivery of a lease termination or eviction notice to be legal, certain rules and procedures must be followed. If they are not and the case proceeds to court, the case may be postponed or dismissed by a judge.
Who Can Serve Eviction Notices in Rhode Island?
In Rhode Island, landlords can serve eviction notices and lease termination notices themselves. Landlords may choose to hire a sheriff, process server or independent party over eighteen (18) years old to serve an official notice, but they are not required to do so by law.
When Can Eviction Notices Be Served in Rhode Island?
In Rhode Island, lease termination and eviction notices can be served immediately on any day of the week and at any time of day.
A 5 Day Notice to Quit for nonpayment of rent is the eviction notice for tenants that do not pay rent in full and on time. A landlord can serve notice to the tenant if the rent balance due is more than fifteen (15) calendar days late, either in part or in full.
Acceptable Forms of Service in Rhode Island
Rhode Island landlords may deliver an eviction notice by any method which adequately informs the other party. The law recognizes these methods as having a presumption of legal validity:
- Hand delivery to the tenant
- Mailed delivery via first class mail, to the tenant’s address of record or last known residence
By default, notice is considered complete when it is received. Except with a 5 Day Notice To Quit for unpaid rent only, mailed notice extends the notice period by one (1) calendar day, to account for variable delivery times.
Obtaining Proof of Service in Rhode Island
Landlords can show proof that the notice was delivered through the following methods:
- Hand Delivery – by completing a Declaration of Service at the time of delivery
- First Class Mail – mail receipt and completing a Declaration of Service
Rhode Island Eviction and Lease Termination Notice Forms
| Notice Form | Grounds |
| 5 Day Notice To Quit | Eviction for Unpaid Rent |
| 20 Day Notice To Comply or Vacate | Eviction for Lease Violation |
| 20 Day Notice To Vacate | Eviction for Repeat Lease Violation |
| 10 Day Notice To Vacate | Ending a Weekly Lease |
| 30 Day Notice To Vacate | Ending a Monthly Lease /
Ending a Tenancy of Less than 1 Year |
| 90 Day Notice To Vacate | Ending a Yearly Lease |
Sources
- 1 R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-14
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(a) (1) A person has notice of a fact if:
(i) He or she has actual knowledge of it;
(ii) He or she has received a notice or notification of it; or
(iii) From all the facts and circumstances known to him or her at the time in question he or she has reason to know that it exists.
(2) A person “knows” or “has knowledge” of a fact if he or she has actual knowledge of it.
(b) A person “notifies” or “gives” a notice or notification to another person by taking steps reasonably calculated to inform the other in ordinary course whether or not the other actually comes to know of it. A person “receives” a notice or notification when:
(1) It comes to his or her attention; or
(2) It is delivered in hand or sent by first class mail to him or her at a place held out by him or her as the place for receipt of the communication, or in the absence of such designation, to his or her last known place of residence.
(c) “Notice,” knowledge or a notice or notification received by an organization, is effective for a particular transaction from the time it is brought to the attention of the individual conducting that transaction, and in any event from the time it would have been brought to his or her attention if the organization had exercised reasonable diligence.
Source Link - 2 R.I. Super. Ct. R. Civ. P. 6(D)
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Additional Time After Electronic Service or Service by Mail. Whenever a party has the right or is required to do some act or take some proceedings within a prescribed period after the service of a notice or other paper upon the party, and the notice or paper is served upon the party electronically or by mail, one (1) day shall be added to the prescribed period.
Source Link - 3 R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-18-35(a)
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If any part of the stipulated rent is due and in arrears for fifteen (15) days, the landlord shall send a written notice, in a form substantially similar to that provided in § 34-18-56(a), specifying the amount of the rent which is fifteen (15) days in arrears, making demand for the rent, and notifying the tenant that unless he or she cures the breach within five (5) days of the date of mailing of the notice, the rental agreement shall terminate, and the landlord shall commence an eviction action in the appropriate district court or housing court.
Source Link
