Adverse Possession

Adverse possession entails the occupation of land belonging to another party without permission.

Under specific conditions, adverse possession can confer on the occupant the right to be registered as the owner of the land. This arises from the challenge of verifying legal title when purchasing unregistered land. The ‘twelve-year rule’ dictates that if an individual possesses unregistered land for 12 years, they can legally acquire ownership. This rule provides certainty for subsequent purchasers regarding their title, necessitating that landowners inspect their land at least every 12 years.

While the ‘rule’ ensures title certainty, it can also be exploited by squatters, granting them the chance to claim apparently vacant property. Before the Land Registration Act 2002, squatters could acquire ownership of registered land through adverse possession after 12 years.

However, the justification for this concerning registered land was questionable. Consequently, amendments introduced by the Land Registration Act simplified the process for registered land proprietors to thwart successful adverse possession applications.

The revised procedure is as follows:

1. After 10 years, a squatter may apply to be registered as the land’s proprietor.
2. The registered proprietor is notified of the application.
3. If unopposed, the squatter is registered as proprietor.
4. If opposed, the application is rejected, with exceptions such as if the squatter, being an adjacent landowner, mistakenly believes they own the land they are occupying. Refer to Land Registry Practice Guide 4: Adverse Possession of Registered Land for details.
5. If the application is rejected but the squatter remains in adverse possession for an additional two years, they may reapply and will be registered as the owner regardless of opposition. This provides the registered owner with a two-year window to initiate proceedings to remove the squatter from the land.

Note: Since September 1st, 2012, squatting in residential premises has been a criminal offence punishable by imprisonment for up to six months or a fine of up to £5,000 under Section 144 of the Legal Aid, Sentencing, and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012. Commercial premises owners cannot utilise this legislation against squatters on their premises and must rely on existing civil procedures unless a criminal offence is committed.

In the Heaney v. Kirkby case, an elderly woman established ownership of a grass verge located outside her residence, which she had diligently tended as an extension of her garden over many years.

Upon purchasing her home in 1999, the woman took measures to enhance the appearance of the verge by creating two car parking spaces. She brought in 12 tonnes of topsoil, seeded the verge with grass, and installed a coping stone bearing the name of her home. However, in 2012, her neighbour successfully obtained the paper title to the verge, which had never been previously registered to any owner. The neighbour then sought to prohibit her from further utilising the space, whether for parking or other purposes.

The woman effectively argued before the First-Tier and Upper Tribunals that she had possessed the verge unchallenged for numerous years, thus establishing a right to it. Consequently, she contended that the registered title should be transferred to her. The Court of Appeal upheld her position, rejecting the neighbour’s challenge. It affirmed that she had maintained adverse possession of the verge for the requisite 12-year period, entitling her to claim ownership.