How To Evict A Commercial Tenant Without A Lease UK

It is important to note that a verbal lease is as legally binding as a written one. The problems occur when there is a dispute as it will be a case of one side’s word against the other. If the landlord accepts rental payments from the tenant, then an oral lease of less than 3 years will be taken as a permissible legal interest for the tenant. As many small businesses prefer to initially rent a property for a short period of time, this can mean that many arrangements between a landlord and tenant are upheld on the premise of a verbal contract. In this article, how to evict a commercial tenant without a lease UK, we take a look at the mechanism and the process involved.

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For a free initial discussion on how we can help you with the legal aspects of evicting a commercial tenant, get in touch with us today. We will review your situation and discuss the options open to you in a clear and approachable manner. Early expert legal assistance can help remove your tenant and also avoid the stress of dealing with these issues on your own. Simply call us on 0345 901 0445 or complete our online enquiry form and a member of the team will get back to you.

What is the mechanism involved

Renting a property on a commercial basis without a lease is not frequently advised, as without a written lease the exact terms of the contract are not declared or legally binding.

However, depending on the nature of a specific renting agreement, such as how it started, how long it has been going on for, the tenant may still have a number of rights under the Landlord and Tenants Act 1954.

If there is no written lease but a tenant is renting a commercial property then their agreement with their landlord is normally classed as a verbal or oral lease. The key issue with verbal lease agreements is the difficulty in enforcing them should a dispute arise.

A key benefit of verbal leases however is the ease at which the parties can modify the lease on short notice. Simply, a verbal agreement is as legally binding as a written Tenancy Agreement.

As soon as a landlord allows access into the property and accepts rental payment, a verbal contract is formed.

If you find that you do not have a tenancy agreement and your tenants are causing you problems which warrant their eviction, despite the lack of tenancy agreement we are still able to find a quick and legal eviction resolution for you.

We can deal with the eviction process on your behalf in the event that you do not have tenants who will co-operate with you, as many landlords do not feel comfortable discussing these matters directly with the tenant.

What rights does the tenant have?

The nature of the agreement, and how long it has been in effect, will mean that the tenant may still have a number of rights in accordance with the Landlord and Tenants Act of 1954.  Again, the lack of paperwork can prove problematic if a dispute arises.

The tenant will have a right to appeal for relief from forfeiture of the lease. Where the lease has been forfeit, but the tenant is able to remedy the breach by paying rent that is owed, he may be entitled to relief from forfeiture. The idea is to put the landlord and tenant back into the position they would have been in had forfeiture not taken place.

Where the landlord has issued forfeiture proceedings in the County Court, the tenant has a right to automatic relief from forfeiture if he pays all arrears, interest and costs into court not less than 5 clear days before the first hearing. On this payment, the landlord’s claim ceases, and the lease is reinstated as if it were never forfeit. If the tenant does not obtain relief in this way, he has various opportunities to apply for relief later. The final opportunity being up to 6 months after the landlord has recovered possession.

If the landlord has forfeited by peaceable re-entry, the tenant may apply to the County Court for relief from forfeiture within 6 months of the re-entry. The Court will consider the application and will make an order for relief if it sees fit. The Court will ensure that payment of the rent arrears is a condition of the granting of relief from forfeiture. It will typically also require the tenant to pay the landlord’s costs.

Forfeiture or relief from forfeiture proceedings can also be issued in the High Court, although this is rarer. The rules in the High Court are different to the County Court.

Gaining Possession of the property

It may be possible to consider changing the locks and taking physical possession as opposed to the use of court proceedings and CPR 55.

However, any person who uses or threatens to use violence to persons or property to gain entry to the property will be guilty of an offence if either of the following apply:

• There is someone present at the property who opposes the re-entry.
• The person attempting re-entry is aware that someone opposes the re-entry.

Consequently, a court order for possession will be needed unless entry can be gained peaceably and in most cases, the safest approach is to obtain a court order for possession.

How We Can Help

Our team is well versed in dealing with all the various aspects commercial property possession proceedings and we are here to help in any way we can. We are able to explain clearly the legal issues and provide open, honest and professional advice.

How to Contact our Commercial Property Solicitors

It is important for you to be well informed about the issues and obstacles you are facing. However, expert legal support is crucial in terms of reducing risk, saving you money and ensuring you achieve a positive outcome.

To speak to our Commercial Property solicitors today, simply call us on 0345 901 0445, or allow a member of the team to get back to you by filling in our online enquiry form . We are well known across the country and can assist wherever you are based. We also have offices based in Cheshire and London.

Authored by Ben Posted in Commercial Property, News Tagged as