boydens.co.uk 61 Landlords What to do when a tenant abandons a property. Taken from Property Professional, the member magazine of our agency’s professional body, Propertymark. Don’t leave me this way It’s one of the trickiest issues for landlords and fraught with legal complexity, so how should you deal with abandonment and manage properties when you suspect that a tenant has left before their tenancy has ended without notifying you and without any intention to return? “We’ve seen an uptick in tenants abandoning properties over the course of the pandemic, mainly in situations where they can no longer meet their liabilities under the tenancy,” says Tristan Sharples, Senior Associate and commercial dispute resolution expert at law firm Freeths LLP. While arrears are the most common reason, there is also the possibility that a tenant is, for example, on holiday, has gone into hospital or is remanded in custody awaiting criminal trial. Tenancy agreements in Scotland allow no access at all except in cases of emergency, and across the UK, if the tenant hasn’t surrendered the property or you haven’t legally taken repossession, the tenant still has the right to return during the period covered by the original tenancy agreement. If they do so and find the locks changed, or a new tenant in situ, the agent or landlord is at high risk of being found guilty of illegal eviction.
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