Squat at your peril!
As part of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 a new law passed on the 1 May 2012 will make it a criminal offence to squat in a residential building. The provisions were debated extensively in both Houses of Parliament and are subject to commencement by statutory instrument.
What does this mean for landlords?
When the new law comes into effect any person entering a residential building as a trespasser, and who lives there or intends living there commits an offence punishable by imprisonment of up to a year, or a fine of up to £5000 or both. The law will be retrospective, in so far as it will apply whether entry to the building took place before or after commencement of the Act.
But not everyone will welcome the Act
The bill was subject to intense lobbying by homeless charities on the basis that it would criminalise persons who occupied neglected and abandoned properties. The offence will also apply to third parties invited to live at the property by the primary trespasser.
Good news for residential landlords
The new law will be a welcome relief to landlords who have vulnerable properties and have had to spend considerable sums on having to evict squatters, but will be a disappointment to landowners or landlords of commercial premises who may still need to revert to the Courts to get the premises or land back.
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