legal way to remove someone from property

pp122

my mother in law passed away 3 weeks ago, her property and items have been left to her 2 sons - but have to be sold as there are lots of debts at the property
There is an elderly gentleman at the house , he has lived there a while, but has never paid anything to do with the property no bills or rent - he does not have a bank account
since her passing he has refused to pay anything saying its her house she paid everything etc , we have explained now she has passed all her money stops and as he is running up the bills gas/elc etc he has to pay but refuses
he along with a family member has removed and thrown out items of mother in laws which don't belong to him and we have contacted the police as class this as theft, the police did say to go to property and change the locks and remove everything - but is this legal ????
what / who do we have to inform to deal with him as he is elderly but has been threatening us and family , we have contacted adult services and they did say they would house him but he has not been very nice towards them

JGB1955

You need to make the property secure - he appears to be a trespasser. I would change the locks immediately.

[Deleted User]

I suspect that this is going to be one for a solicitor, but a few questions in the meantime;-
Was this elderly gentleman your mother-in-law's partner or just a lodger?
If he was a partner was he financially dependant on her? (Asking because he could potentially make a claim against her estate if he was a partner and financially dependant due to age and/or mental/physical health problems. However, this may not matter if the estate is insolvent due to debts).
I'm not sure whether it was a member of his family or yours who helped him clear your late mother-in-laws effects. Either way i can't help thinking that it might have been better to deal with this person directly rather than getting the police involved.
Reading your post I'm not sure whether this gentleman is just an old devil or whether his aggression and refusal to pay bills etc. (Maybe not grasping that the situation has changed since your mother-in-law died?) is due to some form of dementia.
My advice is to consult a solicitor and make sure that everything you do to get him out is strictly legal and above board.

pp122

problem is we are on benifits and can not afford a solicitor we are already in debt for £5k for funeral and other bills we have had to pay

He is a companion , he is not a very nice man, we have been in contact with 1 of his daughters and she has told us not to give him any notice as when she was little and wife chucked him out the next day they went out , came home to empty house , he had taken everything including the childrens clothes and toys

we have tried to be really nice and help him, but the council / social are slow and not helping the situation

It was my mother in laws funeral yesterday and he was having a go at me and husband asking where he was going, he don't want to stay in the house , hes lonley etc etc and he then mentioned that his family member is on holiday but when back hes coming to see him in his van! it all ties up with what his daughter has told us

He was a plumber by trade and he has told us hes removing the boiler and rads and said your not here what you going to do about it

he is a jekyll and hyde and knows what he is doing even though he is elderly and frail - he has had 2 wifes / 2 partners / 6 children , very violent and has been bancrupt numberous times - his money is his, he can do with it what he likes and hes not dependent on mother in law he has more a month coming in than she did

getmore4less

In these case often the best route is move in change the locks and make sure the place is occupied at all times and don't let them back in.

If you don't live local that can be difficult.

Do not take any money off this person you risk creating a tenancy.

pp122

we are 100 miles away but that option has been thought of - we haven't and won't take any money from him, we can't we are already in debt over this the house has to be sold as there are lots of bills has to be paid

I just really need to know if we need to give him notice or if we can just go down there and change locks while hes out

Just don't want to get into any trouble

Keep_pedalling

You might be better off posting this over on the housing board, there is more expertise there.

D_M_E

Have you informed council (council tax), electric gas and water suppliers of her demise and that, from x date - when she passed away - he is the one who is/would now be liable for those bills?

Have the police been informed that he has stripped the house of its heating system?

Have you checked the gas safe register to see if he is registered there? If not then contact Health and Safety and complain about an unlicensed person working on gas appliances - they should be very interested in this.

As said above, you must visit when he is out and change the locks and also look at insuring the property - thyink that any insurance would have ended when she passed away so you would need to at least arrange buildings insurance.

pp122

Keep_pedalling wrote: »

You might be better off posting this over on the housing board, there is more expertise there.

can it be moved over or do i have to post again

xylophone

You have the will? You are the named executor?

Do you have keys to the property?

You are in the process of obtaining probate?

Do you have death certificates?

Has the executor advised the insurer/ local council/ utilities/ her banks/ pension providers of her death?

The "companion" was never in any sense a partner and never had any form of tenancy/lodging agreement?



https://england.shelter.org.uk/housing_advice/eviction/eviction_of_lodgers_and_other_excluded_occupiers

He has actually maliciously damaged the property and in effect stolen items belonging to your family?

Malthusian

pp122 wrote: »

my mother in law passed away 3 weeks ago, her property and items have been left to her 2 sons - but have to be sold as there are lots of debts at the property

Is the estate insolvent? I.e. nothing is going to be left over for the heirs after the debts are paid?

If so you should have told the creditors that the estate is insolvent and nobody is administering it, and walked away.

This may no longer be an option now that you have done as much as you have.

Whether it's insolvent or not, you should not have paid the estate's debts for it, especially by borrowing money. The estate is liable for its own debts and any other costs. The estate will also pay for you to talk to a solicitor - if there is any money to pay the legal bill.

Why did you get into debt to pay the estate's bills? Did the creditors put pressure on you?