Harmony in Every Space: Elevate Your Communal Areas. Be Compliant.

Removal of Abandoned Storage in Communal Areas

Here at manage mi property; we understand the problems of residents storing their personal belongings in communal areas and the problems of trying to police them.

For the safety of all residents, personal items cannot be stored in communal areas, including hallways, stairwells or entrances.

A property manager is the responsible person for ensuring communal areas are kept free from obstructions, many of which may represent a fire hazard or health and safety risk. Therefore it is strictly prohibited for residents to leave items in communal areas, and any such items will be removed. This includes any items in cupboards and in communal areas, such as in riser cupboards.

1. Day 1:
   
   Place a Torts Notice on the abandoned item for 7 days under the Torts (Interference with Goods) Act 1977. An inventory will be carried out and a report with photos will be issued stating items found stored in the communal areas.
   
   Flammable and combustible materials such as cardboard boxes and sources of ignition such as gas bottles/canisters, petrol cans, electric scooters, petrol cans will be removed immediately.
   
   
2. After day 7:
   
   A further inspection will be conducted with photographic evidence to show items that are still stored in the communal area. Items will be removed into storage. The location of the storage will be confirmed.
   
   
3. Day 7-14:
   
   The goods will be stored for a period of up to 14 days.
   
   
4. After Day 14:
   
   Goods collected will be charged a fee for storage*. Goods not collected will be disposed of.
   
   

End of Tenancy Abandonment

Landlords in the UK must go through the eviction process to remove difficult tenants from their property. But unfortunately, after this some have the headache of having to remove the tenant’s belongings left behind. The question many have for our team at manage mi property is whether they can just dispose of them? The short answer is that a landlord cannot dispose of a tenant’s belongings without their authority. The exception is when a torts notice has been served and the tenant has failed to respond.