Protection from Eviction Act 1977: Landlord's Guide

The Protection from Eviction Act 1977 makes it a criminal offence to remove an occupier from a residential property other than by following lawful procedures. It creates two distinct offences — unlawful eviction and harassment — carrying penalties of up to 2 years' imprisonment and unlimited fines, plus civil damages typically £15,000-£30,000 per incident. The Act distinguishes excluded occupiers (lodgers, holiday lets, trespassers — who can be removed on reasonable notice without court order) from non-excluded occupiers (tenants and most others — who require a court possession order). This page covers both offences, the categories of occupier, and the common landlord errors that produce prosecution.

What the Act does

The Protection from Eviction Act 1977 makes it a criminal offence to remove an occupier from a residential property other than by following lawful procedures. It is the statute that prevents landlords from using force, threats, or self-help to recover possession — and that makes "no eviction without a court order" a settled principle of English law for almost all residential occupiers.

The Act is short, old, and has been substantially overlooked in landlord training despite being one of the most consequential statutes a residential landlord can fall foul of. It creates two distinct criminal offences — unlawful eviction and harassment — both carrying potentially substantial penalties including imprisonment. It also defines the categories of occupier ("excluded" and "non-excluded") that determine which procedures the landlord must follow to lawfully end an occupation.

Every residential landlord should understand the Act because the cost of breaching it is severe and the conduct that breaches it is often unintentional. The classic failure: a landlord, frustrated by a tenant who refuses to leave after notice has expired, changes the locks while the tenant is at work. The locks-changing is itself a criminal offence under the Act, and the tenant's subsequent claim for damages and re-instatement of the tenancy is straightforward. Many such cases proceed through the County Court each year.

The two criminal offences

Section 1 — Unlawful eviction

Section 1 makes it an offence to "unlawfully deprive the residential occupier of any premises of his occupation of the premises or any part thereof." This includes:

• Physically removing the occupier from the property.
• Changing the locks while the occupier is absent, preventing their return.
• Removing the occupier's belongings.
• Cutting off utilities (gas, electricity, water) to drive the occupier out.
• Refusing to allow the occupier to return after a temporary absence.
• Any other action that has the effect of depriving the occupier of their occupation.

The offence is committed by the landlord, the landlord's agent, or any person acting on the landlord's behalf. Hiring someone else to change the locks does not provide a defence — the landlord remains liable for actions taken on their instructions.

Section 1(3) — Harassment

Section 1(3) creates a separate offence of harassment of residential occupiers. Conduct constituting harassment includes:

• Acts likely to interfere with the peace and comfort of the occupier or members of their household.
• Persistent withdrawal or withholding of services reasonably required for the occupation.
• Acts intended to cause the occupier to give up the occupation or to refrain from exercising any right or remedy.

Harassment offences are often easier to prosecute than unlawful eviction because they cover a wider range of conduct and can be committed without physical removal. Examples that have founded prosecutions:

• Cutting off heating in winter.
• Visiting the property repeatedly without notice.
• Threatening to "make life difficult" if the tenant does not leave.
• Removing the front door or windows.
• Interfering with the occupier's post.
• Damaging the occupier's belongings.

Penalties

Both offences are triable either way (in the magistrates' court or, for serious cases, the Crown Court):

• Summary conviction in the magistrates' court: fine up to £5,000 and/or up to 6 months' imprisonment.
• Conviction on indictment in the Crown Court: unlimited fine and/or up to 2 years' imprisonment.

Civil remedies are available to the occupier in addition to any criminal sanction:

• Damages — typically substantial, particularly where the occupier was effectively homeless following the eviction. Awards of £5,000-£25,000 are typical; awards exceeding £100,000 have been made in egregious cases.
• Re-instatement of the tenancy — court orders requiring the landlord to allow the occupier back into the property.
• Injunctions — preventing further interference.

A typical contested unlawful eviction can cost the landlord £15,000-£30,000 in damages and costs alone, before considering any criminal sanction. Combined civil and criminal exposure of £40,000-£60,000 is realistic for a single incident.

Excluded vs non-excluded occupiers

The Act distinguishes between "excluded" occupiers (those with limited statutory protection) and "non-excluded" occupiers (those with full statutory protection requiring court order). The category determines what procedure the landlord must follow.

Excluded occupiers

Section 3A defines excluded occupiers — narrower categories who do not need a court order to be lawfully removed, but who still cannot be removed by force or harassment:

• Lodgers sharing accommodation with a resident landlord (the most common category).
• Resident landlords sharing accommodation with members of their family or household.
• Holiday lets for short periods.
• Hostels provided by social services or charities.
• Asylum seeker accommodation in defined circumstances.
• Trespassers (those who entered without any right).

Excluded occupiers can be required to leave on reasonable notice. Once notice has expired and the occupier is genuinely absent (e.g., at work or away for the day), the landlord can change the locks and end the occupation without a court order. But the landlord cannot use force or threats while the occupier is present, cannot remove their belongings while they are still in occupation, and cannot harass them under section 1(3).

Non-excluded occupiers

All other residential occupiers — primarily tenants under the Housing Act 1988 (as amended by the Renters' Rights Act 2025), licensees with a statutory right of occupation, and certain other categories. Non-excluded occupiers can only be removed by court order, regardless of the basis on which the landlord seeks possession.

For non-excluded occupiers, the procedure is:

• Notice. Serve a Section 8 notice (under the Housing Act 1988 / Renters' Rights Act 2025) or its equivalent for other types of occupation.
• Expiry of notice. Wait the prescribed notice period.
• Court possession claim. If the occupier has not left, issue a possession claim in the County Court.
• Possession order. Obtain an order from the court specifying when the occupier must leave.
• Warrant of possession. If the occupier still does not leave, apply for a warrant of possession; bailiffs enforce.

Common landlord errors

1. Changing the locks before the warrant is enforced

A landlord who has obtained a possession order, but where the occupier has not yet been physically evicted by bailiffs, cannot lawfully change the locks. The possession order entitles the landlord to possession; it does not authorise self-help. Wait for the warrant to be enforced.

2. Treating a lodger as needing court order

Some landlords incorrectly believe all occupiers require court orders. Lodgers are excluded occupiers and can be required to leave on reasonable notice without a court order — provided the landlord uses no force or threats and respects the lodger's belongings. Excessive caution here costs landlords months of unnecessary occupation.

3. Treating a non-lodger as a lodger

More common is the opposite error — a landlord treats an arrangement as a lodger arrangement (and tries to remove on notice without court order) when the arrangement is actually a tenancy. The legal status is determined by the substance, not the agreement title. See our lodger vs tenant guide.

4. Cutting utilities

A landlord frustrated with non-paying tenants sometimes cuts off the gas or electricity to "encourage" them to leave. This is harassment under section 1(3) and a criminal offence — even where the tenants are months in arrears.

5. Removing belongings

Removing tenants' belongings while they are still in occupation is unlawful eviction even if the landlord intends to "store" the belongings rather than discard them. Wait until the occupier has lawfully been removed (by bailiffs after a possession order, or by the occupier voluntarily leaving) before touching their property.

6. Threatening behaviour

Verbal threats — "I'll make your life difficult", "I'll let myself in if you don't pay", "Things will start happening if you don't leave" — can constitute harassment even if no physical action follows. Document communications carefully and keep a professional tone even where the tenant has caused substantial loss.

When self-help is permitted

The Act does not prohibit all landlord action without a court order. The narrow categories where self-help is lawful:

• Excluded occupier left and not returning. Where an excluded occupier (lodger) has clearly abandoned the property and is unlikely to return, the landlord can take possession after reasonable notice.
• Trespassers without colour of right. True squatters who entered without any right at all can be removed without a court order — but the landlord must be careful: occupiers with any apparent right to be there (former tenants, family members, ex-partners) require court order.
• Following a court order, after the warrant has been executed. Once bailiffs have removed the occupier under a warrant of possession, the property is back in the landlord's hands.

In all other circumstances, self-help is unlawful. The cost of getting this wrong is the principal reason the Act's offences continue to be committed and prosecuted decades after enactment.

Authoritative sources

• Protection from Eviction Act 1977.
• Government guidance on eviction (gov.uk).
• Our Section 8 guide — for the lawful procedure for non-excluded occupiers.
• Our lodger vs tenant guide — for the excluded vs non-excluded categorisation.