Unlawful eviction and harassment is a

criminal offence In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definitions of", in Can ...

in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

under the

Protection from Eviction Act 1977 The Protection from Eviction Act 1977c 43 is an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom protecting people renting accommodation from losing their homes without the involvement of a court. Contents The Act's aim is to protect tenants from being eje ...

. It is the crime of a landlord or agent unlawfully

evicting Eviction is the removal of a tenant from rental property by the landlord. In some jurisdictions it may also involve the removal of persons from premises that were foreclosed by a mortgagee (often, the prior owners who defaulted on a mortgage ...

harassing Harassment covers a wide range of behaviors of offensive nature. It is commonly understood as behavior that demeans, humiliates or embarrasses a person, and it is characteristically identified by its unlikelihood in terms of social and moral ...

his or her tenant.{{Citation needed, date=February 2010 Unlawful eviction is the deprivation of occupation of a residential occupier of any premises of his occupation or any part of it or attempts to do so :s1(2) of 1977 Act. Actions such as changing the locks ''R v Yuthiwattana'' (1984) 16 HLR 49, CA or locking a lavatory door ''R v Burke'' (1991) 22 HLR 433, HL all constitute unlawful eviction. Conduct that could amount to harassment under the Act includes; interfering with the peace and comfort of a residential occupier or members of his household or persistently withdrawing or withholding services that are needed for the occupation of the premises used as residence: section 1(3A).

External links

Protection from Eviction Act 1977
full legislation on legislation.gov.uk, with part 1 addressing Unlawful eviction and harassment Law of the United Kingdom