Landlord must pay damages to tenant for wrongful eviction

A landlord who repossessed and sold a property while the tenant was in prison has been ordered to pay damages for wrongful eviction.

It’s an unusual case but a timely reminder of the dangers of taking the law into your own hands.

The landlord first re-entered the property and changed the locks while the tenant was away from home. The tenant returned and was able to gain entry, but shortly afterwards he was sentenced to a term in prison.

The landlord then entered the property again and sold it with vacant possession.

The tenant sought damages for wrongful eviction under the Housing Act 1988 on the basis that the landlord had wrongfully deprived him of the occupation of the premises.

The landlord put forward the defence that he believed that the tenant had abandoned the property and surrendered the tenancy. He submitted a counter claim to recover rent arrears.

The judge held that the tenant had not abandoned the premises and that the landlord had taken a calculated risk in re-entering and changing the locks. He had no reasonable grounds for believing that the tenant was no longer at the premises.

That decision was upheld by the Court of Appeal which agreed that the tenant had not done anything that could amount to a surrender of the tenancy.

The case highlights the need for landlords to seek legal advice when faced with situations like this. In order to mount a successful defence, the landlord would have to be able to prove that he believed, and that it was reasonable to believe, that the property had been abandoned.

If he is unable to do this then he is likely to be found liable for wrongful eviction. A more certain approach would be to seek a possession order.

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