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Removing squatters and trespassers
From 1st September 2012, a new criminal offence of squatting in a residential building was introduced. The new offence does not apply to occupation of commercial premises, so it will be necessary for owners of commercial property to continue to rely on the existing civil remedies.
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Halsbury's Law on trespass
Every landowner has a right to remove trespassers from their land or property, under their ancient rights of Common Law found in Halsbury’s laws of England, Para 1400, volume 45 of Fourth edition. A person or group of people on land without the landowner’s permission is deemed to be a trespasser. An owner of property is entitled to take reasonable steps to prevent trespassers from entering his property. If the force or violence used in turning out a trespasser is excessive, the person who uses such force himself commits a trespass upon the person of the person removed. To justify the expulsion of a trespasser, the person who uses force must be in possession or acting under the authority of the person in possession. If a trespasser erects a building on the land of another, the person who is entitled to possession of the land may pull down the building, even though the trespasser is in it.
Fully certificated
Our enforcement agents are fully certificated and have the necessary resources and manpower available to conduct the eviction of the illegal occupiers once an order for possession has been obtained. Our enforcement agents can also arrange for manned security and dog handlers to attend on the site in the event that the same is required.
Take your property back
Eviction specialists
Under section 6 of the Criminal Law Act 1977, it is an offence for a property owner, without lawful authority, to use force or violence to recover possession of the property. Therefore, it will generally be necessary for a property owner to issue civil proceedings against the squatters. Our team can help you to follow the appropriate course of action throughout the eviction process.
A reputation for professionalism matters to us. If we’ve assisted you with eviction, please review our service.
Evicting tenants
On obtaining the Order for Possession, we are able to remove the tenants through the use of our High Court Enforcement Officers by transferring the Order to the High Court and obtaining a Writ of Possession.
Before being able to undertake this action however, we would have to obtain permission from the Judge at the County Court where you obtained the Order of Possession originally. The Judge would have to find that you have valid reason to use a High Court Enforcement Officer, who can act within 24 hours, rather than County Court Bailiffs that can take between 6 weeks and 3 months to remove a tenant. Therefore, we would need to make an application by request to the Judge. Without this permission, private bailiffs/enforcement agents cannot be used.
In order to apply for this, an application would need to be completed, we are able to assist you in completing this application on your behalf for a fixed fee plus the court fee. Our specialist team are able to draft the documentation so that a Judge may look favourably on your situation and find that it is reasonable and necessary to act promptly in the re-possession of the property and grant permission to use a High Court Enforcement Officer.
When you have permission to use a High Court Enforcement Officer to take possession of your property, we are able to transfer the Order to the High Court on your behalf. On the High Court processing the Order, we are granted a sealed Writ of Possession, which then allows us to undertake the re-possession of the property and the eviction of your tenant on your behalf. The entire process generally takes approximately 10 days to obtain the High Court Writ, once the Judge has provided permission to transfer from the County Court, which is faster than the County Court Bailiffs. On receipt of the Writ of Possession from the High Court, we are able to act within 24 Hours to complete the eviction.
Evicting squatters
Our specialist team can assist commercial landlords to draft the appropriate documentation to issue proceedings against squatters in the County Court. Once the claim is issued, the Court will list it for an early hearing date.
A Possession Order will be granted at the hearing, unless the squatters defend the claim and prove to the Court that they have a legal interest in the land. The possession order will usually provide for immediate possession of the property.
If the squatters fail to vacate the property of their own accord, our enforcement team can transfer the matter to the High Court for enforcement, which is a quicker process than using the County Court Bailiffs. Additional permission is not required from the court to allow a High Court Enforcement Officer to undertake the eviction.
The entire process usually takes approximately 14 days (dependent on the speed of the court). Alternatively, it is possible to apply for an Interim Possession Order against the squatters, subject to compliance with certain conditions. This can be applied for at the same time as the Possession Order. Contact us for assistance.
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If you need a specialist in eviction, then contact 24 Hour Bailiffs Ltd in the UK. Our experienced team can help with your eviction.
Call us: 01227 750966