Martin Callan - Bowling & Co Solicitors - www.bowlinglaw.co.uk
Many tenancies will contain covenants on the part of the tenant against criminal behaviour or conviction. Recently, the courts have had to consider two cases involving applications to evict tenants from their properties following their convictions for criminal offences. The Housing Act 1988 allows a landlord to evict a tenant if the tenant commits a criminal offence in the locality of the dwelling.
In the first of the cases in point, the tenant was convicted of offences under the Protection of Children Act 1978. He was sentenced to four years’ imprisonment and his housing association landlord sought possession of his property. He argued that his criminal activity predated his tenancy, as it had occurred when he was living nearby but was not a tenant of the housing association. He claimed that his conviction could not therefore be used as the ground on which his property was to be repossessed. The Court of Appeal rejected this argument.
In the second case, a tenant, who had several convictions connected with illegal drugs, had set up in his home a ‘sophisticated and extensive’ system for growing cannabis. The court allowed the landlord’s application for a possession order, but suspended it for two years to give the tenant the chance to show he had changed his ways. The local authority appealed the decision. The Court of Appeal took the view that the tenant had breached the terms of the tenancy by carrying out the criminal activity and had also disregarded the rights of his neighbours. In the absence of clear evidence that his undesirable activity had ceased, an immediate possession order was granted.
Tenants who breach the terms of their tenancies by committing criminal acts are getting short shrift in the courts. However, the caselaw will always be specific to the particular facts, so there is no guarantee that criminal behaviour or conviction will result in possession, as the court will take into account a wide variety of factors when determining whether or not to grant possession. If you have any questions relating to this article or the issues raised in it please email martin.callan@bowlinglaw.co.uk.
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