Recover use of your land when someone is living or sleeping in a van, campervan or motorhome without consent. UK Bailiffs provides occupied-vehicle and stealth camper removal support for private landowners, businesses and councils across England and Wales.
Experienced agents assess authority, occupation and risk, then plan notice, engagement and the appropriate removal process. The legal basis for moving a vehicle is checked separately.
A van, campervan or motorhome may be parked on private land while also being used as someone’s home. The issue can arise on an industrial estate, retail park, private car park, development site, farm, vacant plot, private road or council-owned land.
UK Bailiffs provides van dweller removal and occupied vehicle removal support for landowners, managing agents, businesses and public bodies across England and Wales. We establish who controls the land, whether consent exists, whether the vehicle is occupied and which lawful route is available.
Communication and voluntary departure are prioritised where appropriate. If attendance is authorised, experienced enforcement agents operate to a documented plan supported by a site-specific risk assessment.
Different descriptions may refer to the same underlying property-management problem. Each report still requires its own legal and operational assessment.
The operational work can look similar, but a private landowner and a public authority do not necessarily rely on the same powers, process or decision-making.
For private landowners, PLCs, landlords, managing agents, retail parks, industrial estates, developers, farms, vacant sites and private car parks.
Operational support under the authority’s selected legal power, policy, delegated decision and public-law responsibilities.
There is no single “van dweller law” or automatic bailiff power. Trespass, parking, highways, residential occupation, public-law responsibilities and vehicle removal must be distinguished.
Read our traveller and trespasser legislation guide for the distinction between common-law recovery, possession proceedings and public-authority powers.
This service concerns England and Wales. Scotland and Northern Ireland have different legal frameworks and require separate assessment. This page gives general information, not legal advice.
A practical overview for landowners, managing agents, businesses and public bodies dealing with unauthorised van dwellers, stealth campers and occupied vehicles.
The brochure explains the key information we need, the distinction between occupied and abandoned vehicles, and the safeguards that influence planning and attendance.
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General information, not legal advice. Applies to England and Wales only. Each occupied-vehicle case must be assessed on its individual facts.
The quickest sustainable outcome is often achieved through clear authority, early communication and a realistic departure arrangement.
We check the client’s authority, land, known history, vehicle status, access and intended outcome.
We assess apparent occupation, access, immediate hazards, vulnerabilities and the resources required.
We explain the authority and proposed process, serve notice where appropriate and work towards a controlled departure. The time allowed depends on the legal route and circumstances.
Authorised attendance is planned, evidenced and followed by a written outcome and recommended next steps.
Some occupied vans are obvious. Others retain commercial markings, covered windows or an ordinary panel-van exterior. “Stealth camping” generally describes sleeping or living in a vehicle while keeping that use discreet.
Neither disguise nor discretion creates permission to remain. Equally, an unusual-looking van is not proof of trespass. The assessment must be based on evidence: where the vehicle is positioned, who controls the land, whether consent exists and which restrictions or powers apply.
That evidence-led distinction protects the client as well as the vehicle occupant.
Experienced enforcement agents work to a site-specific operational plan. Known access issues, behaviour, hazards and required support are considered before attendance.
An occupied vehicle may be a home. Children, disability, health needs, pregnancy, age and other vulnerabilities must be identified and escalated appropriately.
Instructions, risk decisions, notices, attendance activity and outcomes are recorded for the client’s operational and governance file.
These situations can overlap, but they should not be forced into the wrong legal or operational category.
The applicable framework depends on the land and facts. These official sources provide wider statutory and procedural context.
Craig Whinray is Director of UK Bailiff Services Ltd and a Certificated Enforcement Agent with more than 20 years' frontline enforcement experience.
This occupied-vehicle service page is reviewed against UK Bailiffs' private-land possession, risk, vulnerability and attendance procedures. It does not replace legal advice where consent, occupation status, public-law duties, highway restrictions or authority to move the vehicle is disputed or uncertain.
Editorial owner: UK Bailiff Services Ltd · Last reviewed 3 October 2026 · Review following material legal or operational change and at least annually.Provide the site, your authority, any previous permission or agreement, and the vehicle and occupation details already known to you. Tell us about any known access, welfare or safety concerns.
Submitting the form does not mean an instruction has been accepted or attendance arranged. We review the legal route, risks and resources and confirm the proposed response with you before deployment.
For private landowners, managing agents, PLCs, councils and authorised professional clients.
We will establish what information is needed to assess the land, authority, occupation, risk and appropriate next step.
