Shutters don’t look pretty but they do work!


s.6 Criminal Law Act 1977 does not prevent you entering the property if it is vacated by the squatters.’


For most purposes, evicting squatters


will require court proceedings. Evictions and possessions are governed by Part 55 of the Civil Procedure Rules, which contain specialist provisions for evicting trespassers. The most useful of these being the ‘Interim Possession Order’, which allows a property owner to obtain an interim order that gives the squatters 24 hours to vacate the property, failing which they will have committed a criminal offence and will be liable to be arrested. The legal details of this order are easy to get wrong, and it is better to seek legal advice than to attempt to undertake the process yourself. However, there are a number of steps that property owners and managers can take to smooth the eviction process and help speed it along:


Maintain good docuMentary records of ownership The only person strictly entitled to regain possession of the property is the person who was entitled to occupy it immediately before the squatters took possession. As a general rule, any squatters in occupation of the property will wish to stay there for as long as possible and will do whatever they can to delay eviction proceedings. A favourite delaying tactic is to dispute the right of the claimant to bring possession proceedings against them in the first place. It is much easier to refute this if the owner


or managing agent of the property has clear records as to when the property was bought, when the last leasehold interest expired and names of any former tenants and when they vacated the property.


Maintain clear channels of coMMunication Possession proceedings tend to be frantic, particularly if they are being run with a sense of urgency, for example if vacant possession is needed to secure a sale. It is helpful for solicitors to have a single point of communication from whom to take instructions and who is easily contactable. If the property is being run by managing agents, then it is crucial that they should be able to contact the owner of the property at short notice and have his full co-operation in removing the squatters as it is likely proceedings will have to be bought in the owner’s name.


Be flexiBle Urgent possession proceedings are usually listed at short notice, particularly if your solicitor has refused to take no for an answer from the listings office. It is extremely useful if somebody representing the owner of the property can be present at the hearing to give the solicitor instructions and as such a certain amount of flexibility as to hearing dates and availability is useful.


Be prepared As a general rule it is advisable to have your various plans in place so that you can secure the property upon re-entry as soon as you become aware that it has been occupied. That way, if the squatters leave for any


reason before they have been evicted, or decide to quit the property once notice of the proceedings has been served on them, you will be in a position to move quickly and retake and secure the property without delay. Most builders can provide this service at a price although there are specialist contractors who usually do this better and more cheaply. Similarly it is advisable to have a firm of


commercial bailiffs on hand to execute any possession order. The courts tend to steer property owners to their own bailiffs who tend not to be very enthusiastic and are often not available for weeks or even months. Commercial bailiffs can usually be activated on the day of the hearing or shortly afterwards.


Matthew Knight is the Senior Partner of Knights Solicitors. Knights are the nominated solicitors for a number of legal fees insurance schemes. www.knights-solicitors.co.uk


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PROPERTYdrum DECEMBER 2010 39


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