Who is entitled to possession?
Ownership, leasehold rights, management authority and the scope of any instruction should be checked. An enforcement agent's certificate does not create the underlying right to possession.
Legal guidance · unauthorised occupation of land
Traveller & Trespasser Eviction Law: England & Wales
This guide explains the legal framework that may apply when travellers or other trespassers occupy private or commercial land in England and Wales. It covers common-law possession principles, court proceedings under CPR Part 55, relevant police powers and the separate statutory powers available to local authorities.
This is a legal and procedural guide.
The guidance below explains the principal legal routes. UK Bailiffs separately provides operational traveller and trespasser removal services across England and Wales for private and commercial landowners.
Travellers on site now?
Need immediate operational assistance rather than legal guidance?
Operationally reviewed by:
Craig Whinray
Role:
Director & Certificated Enforcement Agent
Experience:
20+ years frontline enforcement
Last reviewed:
4 October 2026
Direct answer
When can a landowner remove trespassers without a court order?
A court order is not automatically required in every case involving genuine trespassers on open private land. A landowner or other person entitled to possession may, depending on the facts, be able to rely on common-law rights to recover possession.
That does not mean every occupation should be treated as a simple common-law eviction. The person's legal status, how they entered or remained, whether buildings or residential accommodation are involved, any licence or consent, the authority of the person instructing, welfare issues and the risk of confrontation can materially change the position.
Where the position is disputed or unsuitable for non-court recovery, a possession claim against trespassers under CPR Part 55 may be required or preferred.
This page provides general information about the legal and procedural framework. It does not determine the legal status of an individual occupation or replace advice from a suitably qualified solicitor.
Need operational assistance rather than legal guidance?
UK Bailiffs provides operational traveller and trespasser removal services across England and Wales for unauthorised occupation of private and commercial land. The dedicated service page explains attendance, assessment, mobilisation and how to instruct us.
Related operational service
Traveller & trespasser removal across England and Wales
This page explains the legal framework. For an active unauthorised encampment or trespasser occupation, the UK Bailiffs service page explains the operational process, information required, attendance approach and how to instruct our team.
Practical resource
Traveller & Trespasser Evictions Guide 2026
Our 16-page practical guide brings together the main legal routes, operational considerations and information landowners should prepare before instructing enforcement. It is available from the main Traveller & Trespasser Removal service page.
Different powers · different decision makers
The four principal routes for unauthorised occupation
“Traveller eviction” is a convenient description, but it is not one legal procedure. The appropriate route depends on who controls the land, the status of the people present, the type of occupation and whether statutory conditions for public-authority action are met.
| Route | When it may be relevant | Who controls it | Important distinction |
|---|---|---|---|
| Common-law recovery | Genuine trespassers are occupying open private land and no continuing right to remain has been identified. | The person entitled to possession, acting personally or through authorised representatives. | It is not a universal shortcut. Status, buildings, consent, residential occupation and risk must be assessed. |
| CPR Part 55 possession claim | The landowner requires or prefers a court order, including cases involving named defendants or persons unknown. | The court determines the possession claim. | Court issue, service, evidence and subsequent enforcement requirements apply. |
| Police statutory powers | The conditions within the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 are satisfied. | The police decide whether their statutory powers are available and whether to use them. | A private landowner or enforcement company cannot require the police to exercise those powers. |
| Local-authority powers | The circumstances fall within the statutory unauthorised-camper provisions. | The relevant local authority and, for a section 78 order, the magistrates' court. | These are public-law powers and are not powers transferred to private landowners. |
Private land
Common-law recovery starts with status and authority
Before considering recovery without a possession order, the landholder needs to establish that the people present are genuinely occupying without a continuing right to remain and that the person seeking possession has authority to recover the land.
How did the occupation arise?
Someone who entered without permission may present a different legal position from a tenant, licensee, employee, former permitted occupier or person claiming another right to remain.
What is actually being occupied?
Open land, car parks, yards, fields and compounds do not necessarily raise the same issues as occupied buildings or residential accommodation.
Has the position been made clear?
Occupants should understand who is acting, the landholder's position and that they are required to leave. The appropriate opportunity to depart depends on the circumstances.
Are there reasons to alter the route?
Children, medical issues, animals, damaged vehicles, aggressive behaviour, site hazards and traffic risks can materially affect how possession should be approached.
Is the right to possession contested?
Where authority, consent or occupation rights are genuinely disputed, court proceedings may provide the safer and more appropriate route.
There is no universal common-law “24-hour rule”.
The appropriate time and method depend on the legal
route and the circumstances. A fixed period should
not be presented as though it automatically applies
to every private-land trespass case.
Court possession
CPR Part 55 provides the court procedure for possession claims against trespassers
Civil Procedure Rule 55.1 defines a possession claim against trespassers as a claim for recovery of land alleged to be occupied only by people who entered or remained without the consent of the person entitled to possession. It expressly excludes claims against tenants or sub-tenants.
Establish entitlement and identify the land
The claimant must be able to show the basis on which possession is sought and identify the land concerned.
Identify defendants
Where a claimant does not know the name of somebody occupying the land, Rule 55.3 provides for a claim against “persons unknown” in addition to any named defendants.
Issue and serve the claim
Part 55 contains specific timing and service requirements. Rule 55.6 provides particular methods of serving claims against persons unknown on the land itself.
Obtain and enforce possession
Obtaining a possession order and physically recovering possession are separate stages. The appropriate enforcement process must follow.
Important distinction:
CPR Part 55 itself distinguishes trespassers from
tenants and sub-tenants. A tenancy dispute should not
be re-labelled as a trespasser claim merely because
possession is wanted quickly.
Primary source: Civil Procedure Rules Part 55.
Police powers
Police powers are statutory, conditional and separate from private possession rights
The Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 contains police powers concerning people trespassing on land with a common purpose of residing there. Those powers should not be confused with a private landowner's civil right to possession.
Police direction to leave
Section 61 can permit a senior police officer present at the scene to direct people to leave where the statutory conditions are satisfied. Those conditions include the nature of the trespass, prior steps asking people to leave and specified conduct or vehicle circumstances.
Alternative-site provisions
Section 62A provides a separate power in circumstances where its statutory conditions are met, including requirements relating to the availability of a suitable pitch on an appropriate caravan site.
Unauthorised residence with a vehicle: offence, seizure and forfeiture
Sections 60C to 60E create a separate criminal-law route where a person aged 18 or over is residing, or intending to reside, on land without consent in or with a vehicle and the statutory conditions are met. Those conditions include a request to leave and specified significant damage, disruption or distress, or a likelihood of such harm.
Section 60D gives police an associated power to seize and remove relevant vehicles or other property where a constable reasonably suspects a section 60C offence. Section 60E allows a court, after conviction, to order forfeiture of qualifying property seized and retained under section 60D.
These are police and court powers, not powers exercisable by UK Bailiffs or a private landowner.
Police decide whether the statutory threshold is met
Home Office statutory guidance explains that the section 60C offence applies only where the specific statutory conditions are satisfied and the significant-harm threshold is met. It also explains the separate relationship between sections 60C–60E and the existing police powers in sections 61 to 62E.
The guidance was updated in June 2026 to reflect the Crime and Policing Act 2026, including restoration of the relevant prohibited-return period to three months.
Home Office: unauthorised encampments — summary of available powers
Police attendance is not the same as police eviction.
Officers may attend because of crime, public-order
concerns or breach-of-the-peace risks without taking
over responsibility for the landowner's civil
possession process.
Local-authority powers
Sections 77 and 78 provide a separate statutory route for unauthorised campers
Section 77 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 can permit a local authority to direct people residing in vehicles to leave land in the circumstances specified by the Act. Section 78 allows the authority to apply to a magistrates' court for an order where a section 77 direction has not been complied with.
Local-authority direction
The provision covers specified circumstances involving people residing in vehicles on highway land, other unoccupied land or occupied land without the occupier's consent.
Magistrates' court order
Where people and vehicles remain on land in contravention of a section 77 direction, a magistrates' court can make an order requiring removal where the statutory requirements are met.
These are local-authority powers.
They do not become private enforcement powers simply
because a private contractor attends on behalf of
a landowner or public body.
Legal boundaries
Statements that should not be treated as automatic rules
“You always need a court order.”
Too broad. A properly assessed common-law route may be available for genuine trespassers on open private land.
“The police must remove travellers.”
Incorrect. Police powers depend on statutory conditions and police decision making.
“All trespass is criminal.”
Incorrect as a general proposition. Trespass to land is commonly a civil matter, although particular conduct or statutory conditions can create criminal offences.
“There is always a 24-hour notice period.”
Incorrect. The relevant notice, request or opportunity to leave depends on the legal route and the circumstances.
“A bailiff certificate creates an eviction power.”
Incorrect. The underlying authority comes from the person entitled to possession and the legal route being used, not from certification alone.
“Vehicles can simply be treated as abandoned.”
Incorrect. A vehicle remaining on land does not automatically become abandoned. Removal, storage and disposal require separate consideration.
Primary-source register
Legislation, court procedure and official guidance
The links below lead to the official publishers of the legislation and court rules discussed in this guide. Current versions should always be checked before relying on a statutory provision.
- Civil Procedure Rules Part 55 Possession claims, including possession claims against trespassers
- Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 — sections 60C to 60E Offence concerning unauthorised residence with a vehicle, associated seizure powers and forfeiture
- Home Office statutory guidance — unauthorised encampments Current police guidance covering sections 60C to 62E
- Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 — section 61 Police power to remove trespassers on land
- Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 — section 62A Alternative-site police power
- Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 — section 77 Local-authority direction concerning unauthorised campers
- Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 — section 78 Magistrates' court order for removal
- Criminal Law Act 1977 — section 6 Violence for securing entry
- Equality Act 2010 — section 149 Public-sector equality duty
- Welsh Government guidance Managing unauthorised encampments
Source-control note:
Legislation can be amended, and provisions may be
commenced or modified at different times. The live
legislation and current Civil Procedure Rules should
be checked when dealing with an individual case.
Direct legal questions
Traveller and trespasser eviction law FAQs
Do I always need a court order to remove travellers from private land?
No. A court order is not automatically required
in every case involving genuine trespassers on
open private land. A common-law recovery route
may be available depending on the facts.
A possession claim may nevertheless be required
or preferable where rights are disputed,
buildings or residential occupation are involved,
or the circumstances make court control appropriate.
Can private bailiffs order the police to remove travellers?
No. A private enforcement company cannot direct
the police to exercise statutory powers.
The police decide whether their statutory
conditions are satisfied and whether use of
those powers is appropriate.
What is CPR Part 55?
Civil Procedure Rule Part 55 contains the court
procedure for possession claims, including
possession claims against trespassers.
It defines that type of claim and includes
provisions concerning issue, service,
defendants and hearings.
Can a possession claim be brought against “persons unknown”?
Yes. CPR 55.3 provides that where the claimant
does not know the name of a person occupying
or possessing the land, the claim must include
“persons unknown” in addition to any named
defendants.
Is there a fixed 24-hour notice period for traveller eviction?
No universal 24-hour rule applies to every
private-land trespass case. The relevant
request, notice or opportunity to leave
depends on the route used and the
circumstances.
Is trespass always a criminal offence?
No. Trespass to land is commonly dealt with
as a civil matter. Criminal offences can arise
from particular conduct or where the conditions
of a statutory offence are satisfied.
Does police attendance make a private eviction lawful?
No. Police attendance and the landowner's
civil authority are separate matters.
The landowner or contractor must have their
own lawful basis for what they do, while the
police act within their own statutory powers
and responsibilities.
Can caravans or vehicles simply be towed away?
No automatic power to remove or dispose of
a vehicle arises merely because the land is
occupied without consent. The legal basis,
ownership, storage, notice and disposal
arrangements require separate consideration.
What are sections 77 and 78 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994?
Section 77 provides a local-authority power
to direct unauthorised campers to leave land
in the circumstances specified by the Act.
Section 78 provides for a magistrates' court
removal order where a section 77 direction
has not been complied with and the statutory
conditions are met.
CW
Operational review
Reviewed by Craig Whinray
Craig Whinray is Director of UK Bailiff Services Ltd and a Certificated Enforcement Agent with more than 20 years' frontline enforcement experience, including senior national enforcement operations.
This guide is informed by operational experience and primary public sources. It is not a substitute for legal advice where possession, title, occupation status or another material issue is disputed or uncertain.
Editorial owner: UK Bailiff Services Ltd · Last reviewed 4 October 2026 · Review following material legal change and at least annually.Need operational assistance?
Traveller or trespasser occupation requiring assessment?
This page explains the legal framework. If travellers or trespassers are occupying private or commercial land now, the dedicated UK Bailiffs service page explains the operational response, attendance process and how to instruct us.
