Squatters & Trespassers: How to Remove Them Legally (UK 2026)

You've found someone living in a property you own, with no agreement and no rent. It's one of the more alarming things that can happen to a landlord. It usually happens to an empty property: between tenancies, during a refurbishment, or on an inherited house.

The good news is that this route is faster than evicting a tenant, and in a residential property the police can be involved. The bad news is that the quickest-looking fix, going round and changing the locks, is the one that turns your problem into a criminal offence committed by you. This guide shows you how to tell whether it really is squatting, when the police can act, which court route to use when they can't, and what you must never do.

Guidance, not legal advice.

First: is this actually a squatter?

Everything else depends on this question.

• A squatter (a trespasser, in legal terms) got in without your permission and has never had a tenancy or licence from you. A licence here just means permission to be there.
• A former tenant who has not left is not a squatter. That stays true after their notice has run out, and even if they have stopped paying. They are still a tenant in law, so you go through Section 8 and, if needed, a warrant of possession (the court's authority for bailiffs to remove them). Treating them as a squatter is unlawful eviction. See tenant won't leave after notice.
• A guest or permitted occupier who overstays is usually not a squatter either. They had permission at some point, and that changes the route.

Get this wrong and the consequences are severe. If there is any doubt, take advice before you act.

The answer is usually on paper: who had a tenancy with you, and when it ended. From £7.99 a month, LetCompliance keeps every tenancy on the property with its dates, and on paid plans a former tenant who has not left goes through its Section 8 notice builder (Form 3A) and possession tracker rather than a call to the police. Get started

Residential property: squatting is a criminal offence

Squatting in a residential building is a criminal offence under section 144 of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012. So you can report it to the police, who have the power to act. You are not forced down a civil route through the courts.

What to do:

• Call 101, or 999 if a break-in is happening now or someone's safety is at risk.
• Say clearly that you are reporting squatting in a residential building under section 144.
• Have proof that you own the property.

Police responses vary. Some forces treat it as a civil matter unless pushed, so be precise about the offence and, if you need to, ask politely for it to go higher.

Know the limits. The offence covers residential buildings only. Squatting in a commercial building or on land is not a criminal offence under section 144, so those go down the civil route below.

The civil routes

Interim Possession Order (IPO). This is the fast court route, where it applies:

• You must apply within 28 days of when you knew, or ought reasonably to have known, that the trespassers were there.
• It gets you possession only. You can't claim damages in the same application.
• Once an IPO is served, staying on is a criminal offence for the trespassers. That is what gives it teeth.

A possession claim against trespassers (CPR Part 55). This is the standard route when you can't use an IPO: for example, if the 28 days have passed or you also want damages. It is slower, but it can deal with everything, and you can bring it against "persons unknown" if you don't know their names.

Either way, you'll usually need proof of ownership, evidence of when you discovered the occupation, and photographs.

What you must never do

If someone is inside and objects to you coming in, using or threatening violence to get in is an offence under section 6 of the Criminal Law Act 1977. In plain terms:

• Do not force the door, change the locks while they are inside, or remove their belongings.
• Do not cut off utilities to drive them out.
• Do not hire people to "clear" the property.

Taking matters into your own hands (what lawyers call self-help) is how a landlord with a clear legal case ends up as the defendant. Use the police for a residential building and the court for everything else.

A worked example

Priya inherits her aunt's house. It sits empty for four months while probate finishes. In October a neighbour calls: there are lights on and the side gate is open.

Priya drives over and finds three people inside. The back door has been forced. Her instinct is to tell them to get out and change the locks in the morning.

She does neither. She photographs the forced door from outside, notes the date and time, and calls 101 to report squatting in a residential building under section 144. She is specific about the wording, because the first officer she speaks to starts to describe it as a civil matter. She gives the crime reference to her insurer the same day.

The police attend, and the occupants leave. Total elapsed time, a little under a week.

Two details did the work. She called it in as a criminal offence in a residential building rather than as a dispute, and she never touched the door herself. Had she changed the locks that night with people inside, the conversation with the police would have been about her.

If the property is commercial, or the police will not act

Section 144 only covers residential buildings. For a commercial unit, a plot of land or a garage block, squatting is not a criminal offence under that section, so you are in the civil courts.

You also need the civil route if the police decline to treat it as criminal, which does happen. Do not spend a fortnight arguing. Start the claim.

The Interim Possession Order is the fast option, and the deadline is the thing to watch. You must apply within 28 days of when you knew, or ought to have known, that the trespassers were there. Miss it and you fall back to an ordinary possession claim against trespassers, which works but takes longer. An IPO deals with possession only, so if you also want damages for the damage they caused, that is a separate claim.

Keep one habit through all of it. Write down when you discovered the occupation and how, because that date decides which route is still open to you.

After they leave

Getting possession back is the start, not the end.

Secure it properly the same day. New locks, boarded or repaired points of entry, and an alarm if the property will stay empty. Squatted properties are often re-entered within days because the weak point is still weak.

Tell your insurer immediately, and check the unoccupancy conditions before you assume you are covered for the damage. Many policies require inspections at set intervals while a property is empty, and a missed inspection is the reason claims get declined.

Photograph everything before you clear up, including any belongings left behind. Items left by trespassers still need handling with care rather than skipping on sight.

Then deal with the cause. A property that sat empty for four months is what invited the problem. Shorten the void, keep it looking lived in, and put the inspections in a diary rather than in your head.

Practical prevention

Empty properties attract this, so during a void or refurbishment:

• Keep the property looking occupied and secured: good locks, no visible vacancy, post cleared.
• Check it regularly, and log the checks.
• Tell your insurer it is unoccupied. Most policies have unoccupancy conditions, and breaching them can void cover exactly when you need it.
• Minimise the void: the shortest gap between tenancies is also the best security. See how to reduce void periods.

Prevention is mostly records and speed. In LetCompliance an empty property keeps its record: inspections with dated photos, repairs logged against it, and certificate reminders at 90, 30, 14, 7 and 1 days. That shows the property was being actively managed, which matters if you ever need to show occupation was never permitted. And a shorter void is the best security: the shareable advert, online applications and viewings get the next let moving. Track void inspections: free for one property, no card needed.