Forfeiture occurs when the landlord exercises their right to regain peaceable possession against the wishes of the tenant.

This is usually where the tenant has breached a condition of the lease or has breached a covenant. The forfeiture is usually undertaken by a Bailiff (Certificated Enforcement Agent) who enters the property peaceably and takes vacant possession of the property.

Forfeiture is a contractual right under the lease which is a right preserved under Section 24 (2) of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954.

Peaceable possession under the terms of most lease’s is gained by the landlord’s bailiff entering peaceably on ANY part of the land, which includes any outside compound.

Forfeiture of Lease is a good tool if you can’t execute Commercial Rent Arrears Recovery (CRAR) because the Bailiff (Certificated Enforcement Agent) can’t gain entry to the property. It can also be used where there are little or no goods to seize, or the goods on the site all belong to third parties.

At present, a landlord can forfeit a tenancy on several grounds depending upon the wording in the lease. The most common is none payment of rent. Other reasons include:

• Where the tenant breaches the terms of the tenancy.
• Insolvency where the tenant is made bankrupt, goes into liquidation or there is an insolvency arrangement such as an administration or the appointment of a receiver.
• Improper use of the property.
• Change of use without permission.
• Sub Letting.
• Nuisance behaviour or excessive noise.

The landlord can make a claim for damages for these breaches, but the landlord may also wish to regain possession of his property.

The landlord can only take action to forfeit the tenancy if the tenancy contains a “forfeiture clause”.

The forfeiture clause allows the landlord’s Bailiff (Certificated Enforcement Agent) to “re-enter” the premises following a breach.

The forfeiture clause in the lease would normally say something like “if the rent remains unpaid for a period of 21 days then the landlord may peaceably re-enter and forfeit the lease”.

Depending upon what the breach is for the landlord may or may not have to first serve the appropriate notice under Section 146 of the Law of Property Act 1925.

The costs of forfeiting a commercial lease, also known as evicting a tenant or a “lock-out”, are payable by the commercial landlord and the commercial tenant.  
Below is a break down costs required for this service and details of which party is liable to pay.

Cost:  £495 (+VAT) plus the Locksmiths’ fee.
The average Locksmith cost is £150, but the price can depend on volume and the type of locks needing to be replaced. Upon request, we can provide a quote for the locksmith. Please note the cost will depend on the types of locks used and the number of locks on the property. 

 Cost: FREE

 Free service when done at the same time as the Forfeiture of Lease: If there are items of the previous tenant left in the property then for free we can put up ‘Tort Notices’, giving the owner reasonable time to arrange collection of the goods or they will be classified as abandoned and you the landlord can dispose of them.  Reasonable time to give the owner to collect to goods is chosen by the landlord, some landlords give 7, 14 or 21 days.  Unless told otherwise we will put 14 days on the Tort Notices. .   

Supervision of the Tenant’s re-entry to the property whilst they remove their goods. (optional service)

Cost: £185 (+VAT) for the first hour & then £35 (+VAT)  for each hour after - this is for 1 enforcement agent.