How Can I Claim an Abandoned small lock up/garage?

[MothBall88]

I found an Abandoned lock up and its invested with rats behind my house , I stuffed some thing in the lock and left for a year never been touched , so I clipped the old rusty padlock on it and replaced with my own again left for another couple of years.. Still there never opened the doors because the hinges are well rusty .. The real reason I wanted this lockup because my land lord banned my push bike from the house where I live.. he said " why don’t you use one of those lockups round the back of the house.. "he been in this district for 20 years no one knows whats going more than he.. any way he said funny thing about those lock ups no one knows who they belong too ..

That was three years ago .. never had the nerve to open the doors because its at a back of a couple of kebab shops and their cars are parked near they are always run to each other premises ..

Now a big iron gate is about to be erected and blocking my access to the lock up so how do I claim the key to the gate too and again this at the back of the house i also received an Planning Application from the Council about the gate.. also if i make a fuss my fear the council snatch it away... so now I’m running out of timebecause of the gate .. if I don’t claim it Someone else will !..

Edited July 17, 2011 by MothBall88

[rebel11]

Hi moth

 

Welcome to CAG

 

The guys will be happy to advise as soon as they are available.

 

Thread moved.

[Steve__M]

I am definitely not a lawyer.

 

Off top of head I think you are talking 10 or 12 years (depending on whether the land is registered) before you can even think about this. If the land is registered, the owner still gets a chance to object.

 

Suggest you read up on "adverse possession".

[rebel11]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adverse_possession

[cerberusalert]

If gates are being erected I assume it is at the entrance to the garages? If so I would assume it is being done by the owner so you should be able to get details from the Planning Department as to who has lodged for permission.

 

Of course, someone else may have had the same idea as you but are thinking bigger because AFAIK if land is enclosed for 12 years without objection you can lay claim to possession.

[MrShed]

Am I the only one who finds this behaviour abhorrent?

 

There is a potential the OP has committed criminal damage and trespass with his actions, regardless of the intentions.

 

The law may or may not allow such claiming of property (and I believe, by the way, that the law on this was tightened up not too long ago - you must give formal notification to the existing owner IIRC), but we are not talking about some empty plot of grassland here, we are talking about a structure which the OP has begun the process of, and is talking about, breaking in to.

 

I do not feel that we should advise on this situation.

[Ed999]

The law is clear. The poster has no claim whatever to the lock-up garage in question.

 

A person must occupy premises for a minimum period of 12 years in order to dispossess the rightful owner. The o/p is ten years short, on even the most optimistic view of these events, if he only padlocked the garage two years ago.

[cerberusalert]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2016346/Howlands-lose-legal-fight-neighbour-built-car-park-THEIR-garden.html