Reforms aim to ‘empower’ park homes residents

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Specialist low-cost housing tribunals are being proposed to create a ‘level playing field’ between park homes site owners and residents.

The government intends to transfer most of the functions of County Courts under the Mobile Homes Act 1983 to Residential Property Tribunals - a move it says would enable residents to exercise their rights and take action to resolve disputes with site owners, without facing prohibitive legal costs.

In a written statement, housing minister Grant Shapps said he also wants to ‘empower’ residents to allow them more control over management of the sites.

The aim of the switch in jurisdiction is ‘to provide residents of park homes and their site owners with a level playing field in the resolution of disputes, by providing access to a dedicated, low-cost specialist housing tribunal which can deal with cases quickly and effectively, without the parties needing to be legally represented’.

There are more than 2,000 residential sites for park homes - sometimes called mobile homes - in the UK, which are considered an affordable alternative to mainstream housing by approximately 170,000 predominantly elderly people, in mainly rural and seaside locations.

The industry has recently faced some negative publicity, and last week, Annette Brooke, MP for mid Dorset and north Poole, raised the issue of park home owners who ‘suffer at the hands of irresponsible site owners’ during Prime Minister's Questions.

Today’s proposals, which are subject to Parliamentary consent, were welcomed by Ms Brooke who said they would ‘allow justice to those park home owners who can't afford to take their disputes with rogue site owners to the courts’.

Mr Shapps acknowledged: ‘Although many residents appreciate and value the sense of community that park home living engenders, I am aware that many also experience difficulties in exercising their rights and achieving their aspirations.

‘Furthermore, a minority of site owners continue to cause significant problems to residents and the local community in which they operate.’

He also announced plans to work with ‘resident and industry partners’ to develop measures to allow park home owners more control over the management of sites, where there are failings by site owners.

Mr Shapps wants to see jurisdiction for park homes transferred to residential property tribunals by the end of the year.