Eviction from allotment - help needed, please!

[digger111]

Firstly, I wasn’t sure where to post this thread, so apologies if it’s in the wrong place.

This is a long and increasingly nasty story, but I’ll try and keep things brief.

I’ve had an allotment for several years on a site which is owned by the local council but managed under leasehold by a volunteer committee.

The membership of the committee changed earlier this year and with that came some undemocratic practices including decisions being taken unilaterally and the prioritising of members’’ friends for plots. I queried these practices with the council, and the committee retaliated by evicting me. They first issued a supposed ‘final warning’ for a non-existent problem, followed by a notice to quit alleging my queries about their management amounted to a formal ‘nuisance’ and therefore justified my eviction under the terms of my tenancy agreement.

i was given no warning about this alleged (and fallacious) breach of contract, no chance to remedy it, and no right of reply. The committee gave me two weeks’ notice but locked me out immediately (by changing the locks). They have refused to allow me to appeal and have also refused mediation. In addition, they’ve circulated defamatory claims about my behaviour which I can disprove categorically. This has been ongoing for more than three months now, and to say I feel bullied and harassed is an understatement, to the point where I’’ve needed to take sick leave from work. I have hundreds of pounds worth of equipment on the site, not to mention most of my food for the coming year which is now going to waste.

My question is, is the eviction illegal under section 146 of the Law of Property Act 1925? It has been suggested to me that it is, but I am unclear as to whether this act relates only to residential and business property. Also, my understanding of the Allotments Acts 1922 & 1950 suggests I should have been given a month’s notice. The site’s own rules within my tenancy agreement also stipulate a month. Does this alone make the Notice to Quit invalid?

Is the committee’s failure to allow me an appeal or any right of rely illegal under human rights law or any other legislation?

The council is doing its best to avoid any responsibility at all, on the grounds that it is not my direct landlord, but the committee is clearly breaching both the council’s own general allotment rules and the terms of its leasehold contract (for example, by unfairly distributing plots and by indulging in harassment). What are the council’s obligations, and do they still have a duty of care to me as a tenant?

i would be very grateful indeed for any thoughts, or any advice on how to address this and overturn the eviction.

If the association didn't give you a s146 Notice to Quit, then the eviction is unlawful, as simple as that.

I took legal action against my allotment association for unlawful eviction and won damages and court costs.

It is quite easy through the small claims court.

You have up to 6 years after the eviction to make your claim and then it lapses.

[digger111]

Hi Cherokkee, I’m so very sorry to hear you’re facing a similar predicament. I can tell you the outcome but it wasn’t good news for me, I’m afraid. I nailed down all the areas where the allotment association had broken the law. I gathered proof, including from the police who refuted the lies that were being told about me by the association. The National Allotments Federation and the local federation backed me completely, and were so appalled by the behaviour of the allotments association they threw them out. However, even though I had lost literally thousands of pounds worth of plants and equipment on my allotment I was advised not to take it to court by each of the lawyers I approached for advice. They said even if I won, it would still end up costing me considerably more than I lost. I kept battling with the local council, who lease the land to the allotment association, to intervene as the association was clearly in breach of several clauses of its tenancy agreement. Again, I was fully backed by the national and local allotment federations but the council flatly refused any responsibility. I then went to the Ombudsman, which was a complete waste of time as they produced a useless report showing absolutely no grasp of the issues and said the council had done nothing wrong. I appealed, and their conclusion was an ill-informed rerun of the first. The council provided a huge amount of inaccurate information and the Ombudsman merely took their word over mine. I cannot overstate what a pointless exercise it was. So eventually, after many months, I gave up. It’s the worst example of injustice and democratic failure I’ve ever personally come across, and it left a very bitter taste in my mouth. In essence, the council and ombudsman decreed that the council had no jurisdiction and the allotment association were free to do anything they liked. So I’m very sorry not to have better news for you, and I really hope you find a solution. For me, I’ll never go near an allotment again.

If a s146 notice to quit wasn't issued then the eviction is unlawful.
I took legal action against my allotment association for unlawful eviction and won damages and court costs.
Read the Law of property Act s146, and then make a claim throught the small claims court .. it is easy.
You have up to 6 years after the eviction to take legal action and then it lapses.