A focus on hoarding

[Music] Welcome to HQN Podcasts. [Music] Hello and welcome to the latest HQN Podcast. My name is John Land and today I'm delighted to be joined by Kerry Harrison, a senior associate at Devonshers. To find out what housing professionals need to know about hoarding, from a legal, housing management and safety perspective. Kerry, welcome. Thank you for having me. Good to see you. Hording can be quite a complex issue for housing providers to manage. So, let's start with the legal aspect. What do landlords need to know in terms of legislation for hoarding? So, in terms of legislation, I mean, there is no legislation that specifically addresses the issue of hoarding. And there is no single legal definition of hoarding. So, when we look to the legal remedies that are available to landlords in dealing with hoarding, what we're often looking at really is tendency enforcement. And we consider whether the hoarding is at such a level that it's in breach of the terms of the tendency agreement between the landlord and the tenant. So, for example, there will very likely be terms of the tendency agreement in relation to the condition of the property. And the obligation is on the tenant to keep it a certain standard, which the tenant may be breaching as a result of the hoarding. It may be, for example, that a tenant's in breach of other terms of the tendency as a consequence of the hoarded items. And that could be in relation to access or repairs. We may find that the level of hoarded items means that contractors are not able to access the property, inspections or to undertake works. So, in these situations, a landlord doesn't have the right to enter the property or to handle any of the goods, the storing of the items that are stored inside. Instead, the landlord would ultimately be looking to make an application under part eight of the civil procedure rules for an injunction order to compel the tenant to adhere to the terms of the tendency and to clean the property or provide access as needed. Or in the most serious cases, a landlord could look to seek possession of the property. And this will be done firstly by serving a notice. And in the case of a short tenancies, for example, that would be a notice of seeking possession, relying on ground 12 of schedule two of the Housing Act 88 in relation to the breach of tenancy. And perhaps ground 13 in relation to the deterioration of the property depending on what we're looking at in terms of the hoarding itself. So, when that being said, legal action really should be a last resort when dealing with issues of hoarding. The hoarding is recognised now as a mental health disorder, hoarding disorder. And it can also be part of other mental or physical health problems. Dimension or depression could be examples of that. And I often find this to be the case in the matters that I'm instructed on. It may be that there's an underlying issue that could amount to a disability in accordance with the Equality Act, for example. And it's really willing to be aware of this and its duties under the Act when addressing issues of hoarding. Another point to mention is that should legal action be necessary. Attendance capacity may also need to be considered and assessed. And if a tenant is deemed to lack capacity, it may be that a litigation friend is required in any proceedings or even an application to the court of protection may be necessary. And an application to the court of protection, that can actually be used as an alternative to possession proceedings. And in the most serious cases, a dulls application, a deprivation of liberty can be made. And that's to remove the tenant from the property while it's cleared in their absence. And I've worked on a case before where it was agreed with the tenant that they would move to a decant property while their home was cleared. And fumigation works were undertaken because there was an infestation of bedbugs. And in this matter, it was effective because the tenant's primary issue here was that it was in relation to the witnessing of the separation of a disposal of the items rather than retaining the items themselves. So here, that was rather effective. But the issue of hoarding generally is incredibly nuanced. And the most effective way to address it, legally speaking, and otherwise, will depend on the circumstances of any given matter. It's certainly not a one-size-fits-all approach. Exactly. And you touched on this already, but there has been a change in approach from housing providers to hoarding in the last 10 years or so, hasn't there? There has. I mean, the whole landscape has changed significantly, I would say. When I first started out around 15 years ago, the approach was far more procedural. What we would find, and perhaps I'm oversimplifying, but we would often find that where a tenant had received written requests from a landlord to clear a property and didn't comply with those. And an application for an injunction order would then be made and generally obtained. And then it would be if the tenant failed to comply with the terms of that injunction order, a claim for possession would then almost immediately follow. And while the legal options haven't changed, it's the landscape that landlords now have to navigate when addressing issues of hoarding that has changed significantly. As I mentioned, hoarding now is recognised as a mental health disorder or being associated with other mental or physical health problems. And that with the potential engagement of the Equality Act, a landlord will need to demonstrate that action taken is a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim. And consideration needs to be given to the impact on the tenant who may find it incredibly distressing if hoarded items are disturbed. I should also mention that the Housing Unbidseman has published a spotlight report titled Attitudes Respect and Rights. And that reports on vulnerable residents and landlords should really be live to this when they're dealing with issues of hoarding. Because often we find that whether there are issues of hoarding, the tenant does often tend to have associated vulnerabilities. So what point do landlords generally need to go down the legal route? So if a landlord finds there are issues with a tenant hoarding items in one of their properties, the point at which they may want to seek legal advice to tackle the issue will very much depend on the circumstances of the specific case. One of the main considerations is the level and the severity not only of the hoarding itself, the hoarded items, but the impact of the hoarding. And that impact will not only be on the tenant but also any neighbours, even the landlord, impact dealing with complaints, or the property itself, which may be damaged or impacted in some way. So as I've said generally, a landlord is expected to first work with the tenant to try and address the issues. And it may be that the tenant is known to support services or in receipt of support for example. And if that's the case, the landlord should liaise with those support services and try to work collaboratively to try and address the issue. Or if there is no such support in place, a landlord should give consideration as to whether any referrals should be made, perhaps adults safeguarding, but that's certainly a route that should be considered and explored. And of course there may be exceptions to this. If there is an urgent risk of harm, for example, such as an assessment by the fire services, a serious fire risk, which may warrant more prompt action being taken, and legal intervention will then naturally come at a sooner point. But in terms of engagement of legal services, I often also advise on the non-legal measures that can be explored prior to taking any legal action. And some landlords do find that beneficial to have a legal steer very early on in tackling the issue. And one of the things that does need bearing in mind is the impact on other tenants, isn't it? Yes, the impact on other tenants will be part of the landlord's assessment and decision making process when deciding how to address the issue of holding. A landlord should be considering the impact. And that impact could include smells coming from the Horted Property. There could be a sanitation risk, depending on the nature of the Horted Items, and it may be that the vermin are attracted to the property, and there may be an issue of infestation. It may be that Horted Items are considered an increased fire risk, and that can be of particular importance and impact upon neighbours. In a block of flats, for example, yeah, where tenants could be significantly impacted. I recently acted on a matter that involved hoarding in a flat that was situated in the Horted Items. yn ymdwch i'r gwybod yn fflladau sy'n gwybod yn fflladau sy'n gwybod yn fflladau. Mae'r gwybod yn fflladau sy'n gwybod yn fflladau sy'n gwybod yn fflladau sy'n gwybod yn fflladau sy'n gwybod yn fflladau sy'n gwybod yn fflladau sy'n gwybod yn fflladau yn fflladau sy'n gwybod yn fflladau sy'n gwybod yn fflladau sy'n gwybod yn fflladau sy'n gwybod yn fflladau ends say many i beginsdim bet faer crossenung wiryr shirtne y ffranniad nw Sc LC dadar. Pradplo Kevin Ass-Steve transporto'i gweldMynd i pethERw wheithnig. Spraw適or∎ddo yn y mynd sydd hymdg i ran. Biz fo sydd wedi hallen чет糾 cyd Tree Lyfffynll roedd bryr itan eu fel sec haystwy. Mae'r gwaithio yn yma i'r gwaithio yn yma yn yma i'r gwaithio yn yma i'r yma yn yma i'r yma i'r yma. Mae'r gwaithio yn yma i'r gwaithio yn yma i'r gwaithio yn yma i'r yma. Mae'r gwaithio yn yma i'r gwaithio yn yma i'r gwaithio yn yma i'r gwaithio yn yma. Mae'r gwaithio yn yma i'r gwaithio yn yma i'r gwaithio yn yma i'r gwaithio yn yma i'r gwaithio yn yma. A lot of people expected to act in conjunction with support services, including the fire service, as I've mentioned the issue of hoarding can create a really significant fire risk to the tenant and to those in the locality of the property. So engagement of the fire service can be incredibly important and we've found that it can be effective in addressing the hoarding both in terms of obtaining reports from the fire service to evidence the severity of the particular hoarding issue and to assess the fire risk. And that can then be used to form the landlord's decision making in terms of what action is appropriate and to support any legal action that needs to be taken demonstrating to a judge that perhaps an injunction order or a possession order is necessary in this instance. But also, the fire service I've found have been incredibly helpful in seeking to give the tenant practical steps to minimise the fire risk as best possible. And that's certainly useful for the period of time between an assessment being carried out and legal proceedings being concluded so when the issue is hopefully ultimately resolved. Often litigation can be lengthy and a landlord would want to ensure that those in its properties and in around its properties are safe. And we have previously engaged fire service to undertake checks with the tenant and to advise the tenant on how they can minimise the fire risk that will kind of assess the property and go around the property and actually engage with the tenant to give them some practical tips and to impress the importance of the situation on them. Kerry, thank you so much. It's been lovely to talk to you today and some really useful tips on how to manage hoarding so it's very grateful for that. Thank you very much having me. Thank you. [Muziek]