Scope: England and Wales — the Protection from Eviction Act 1977 applies across both, though the tenancy regimes it protects differ. See the divergence map. Verified against the legislation on 14 August 2026.
Almost everything else on this site is about civil penalties: money, recoverable by a council or a tribunal. This one is different. Unlawfully evicting or harassing a residential occupier is a criminal offence, prosecuted in the criminal courts, carrying an unlimited fine and imprisonment.
And the risk of committing it went up on 1 May 2026, because the only lawful route out of a tenancy is now a ground and a court order. When the lawful route gets slower, the unlawful one gets more tempting.
The two offences
Unlawful eviction
Depriving a residential occupier of their occupation without lawful process. The obvious version is changing the locks while the tenant is out. It also covers removing their possessions, refusing to let them back in, and physically excluding them.
It does not require a court to have been involved at all. A tenant who has been served notice, whose notice has expired, and who has simply not left is still lawfully in occupation until a court order is executed by a bailiff. Notice expiring is not permission to act.
Harassment
Acts likely to interfere with the peace or comfort of the occupier or their household, or persistently withdrawing services, done with intent to make them give up occupation.
This is the offence landlords commit without recognising it. It includes:
- Cutting off or failing to pay for gas, electricity or water.
- Removing doors, windows or appliances, or starting works designed to make the property unpleasant.
- Repeated unannounced visits, letting yourself in, or entering without the notice the tenancy requires.
- Threats — including implied ones about immigration status, or about telling an employer.
None of that becomes lawful because the tenant is in arrears. The arrears process is the answer to arrears.
Only a bailiff evicts
The sequence is fixed and there is no shortcut:
- A ground and a valid Form 3A notice.
- The notice period expires.
- A possession claim, and a possession order — the court process end to end.
- If the tenant still does not leave, a warrant, executed by a county court bailiff or High Court enforcement officer.
A landlord who acts at any earlier step has committed the offence, however good their ground was.
What it costs
- Criminal conviction — unlimited fine, and imprisonment is available.
- Civil damages to the tenant, which for unlawful eviction can be substantial and are assessed to remove the benefit the landlord gained.
- A banning order and entry on the rogue landlord database.
- A rent repayment order — unlawful eviction and harassment are among the offences that ground one.
Councils have dedicated tenancy relations officers for exactly this, and it is one of the few areas where prosecutions are routine.
The situations that catch honest landlords
The tenant has "abandoned" the property. Almost never as clear as it looks. Taking possession of a property whose tenant has gone quiet is the single commonest route into this offence — see tenant abandonment for the lawful process.
The tenancy has ended. A tenancy ending on paper does not end the occupier's protection.
It is your own house and you live there. Genuine lodgers sharing your living accommodation are excluded occupiers with far weaker protection — but the exclusion is narrow, and it turns on sharing, not on the label.
You are doing them a favour. Storing possessions, changing a lock "for security", turning off the water to prevent a leak. Intent is judged on the effect.
If you want the property back
Use the process. It is slower than it was and that is the design. The court process sets out the forms, the fees and the realistic timescales.
Check your tenancy agreement free — and if you are considering acting outside the process, take advice first. This is the one area on this site where the downside is a criminal record.
Try the tool. This is the offence where the printed statutory maximum is most often wrong. The fine calculator carries the corrected figures and never sums an unlimited fine into a total.
Common questions
Can I change the locks if my tenant will not leave?
No. Depriving a residential occupier of occupation without lawful process is a criminal offence under the Protection from Eviction Act 1977, carrying an unlimited fine and imprisonment. A tenant whose notice has expired and who has simply not left is still lawfully in occupation until a court order is executed by a bailiff — notice expiring is not permission to act.
What counts as harassment of a tenant?
Acts likely to interfere with the peace or comfort of the occupier or their household, or persistently withdrawing services, done with intent to make them give up occupation. Cutting off utilities, removing doors or appliances, starting works designed to make the property unpleasant, repeated unannounced visits or letting yourself in, and threats — including implied ones about immigration status — all reach it. None of it becomes lawful because the tenant is in arrears.
My tenant seems to have abandoned the property — can I take it back?
Not without following the process, and this is the single commonest route into an unlawful eviction. Abandonment is almost never as clear as it looks, and a landlord who takes possession of a property whose tenant has merely gone quiet has committed a criminal offence however reasonable their belief was.
What are the penalties for illegal eviction?
A criminal conviction with an unlimited fine and imprisonment available; civil damages to the tenant, which can be substantial and are assessed to strip the benefit the landlord gained; a banning order with entry on the rogue landlord database; and a rent repayment order, because unlawful eviction and harassment are among the offences that ground one.
Do lodgers have the same protection?
No — a genuine lodger sharing your living accommodation is an excluded occupier with far weaker protection. But the exclusion is narrow and turns on whether accommodation is genuinely shared with you, not on what the agreement is called. Getting that judgement wrong turns a lawful repossession into a criminal offence.