Cheshire holiday park landlord under fire for evicting all tenants with 2 months notice

22 evicted tenants from Delamere holiday park claim they were mis-sold permanent residences

Fishpool Farm holiday park

Builder William Connors opened the park for business in 2008 and allegedly rented out the static caravans to permanent tenants for up to £750 per month (plus a £700 deposit).

The park's licence only allows the 23 static caravans at the park, on Fishpool Road, to be occupied for three weeks consecutively, and the whole site is obligated to close down completely annually between January 15 and February 15 every year. However journalists at the Northwich & Winsford Guardian have been showed tenancy agreements issued by the park which contravene the park's licence as a holiday residence.

Chester West and Chester Council (CWAC) consider the caravans to be holiday homes, which is why they have never billed the residents for council tax.

Conversely, some residents have been claiming housing benefit from CWAC meaning the council also regards the site as the tenant's only residence.

This Schrodinger-esqe anomaly was revealed when all of the households residing at Fishpool Farm were issued 'no fault' eviction notices. They were given until April 21st 2025 to move out permanently. Coincidentally these notices came into effect a few short weeks before the Renter's Reform Bill (RRB) is scheduled to become law in July 2025. The new law will make it far more difficult for landlords to evict tenants for antisocial behaviour or nor-payment of rent..

Unhappy tenants

Fishpool Farm reportedly earned £16,100 per month from these illegal rentals. The tenants believe that the new law has made the landlord nervous about his ability to effectively continue managing this revenue stream. Under the new RRB conditions, if someone decides to simply stop paying rent, it is expected to take a landlord six months to a year to get rid of a problem tenant as the notice period has been increased, a court hearing will be compulsory, and then potentially enforcement proceedings can add to the time a landlord is denied rental income. Many landlords are expected to exit the private rental market because of the increased risk to their investment.

Fishpool Farm tenant spokesperson Amanda Higgins has been living on the site for the past 12 months. "We're all absolutely wounded.... We were told when we moved into this so-called holiday park that we'd be able to stay for the whole 12 months. We must've been because I'm claiming Universal Credit and my rent is paid by housing benefit.

"Now we´ve had this dropped on us. We've been given no-fault eviction notices with the minimum two months to get out. Some of us reckon it's to do with this new law that's coming in. He won't be able to get away with what he's been doing here any more.

"If the police ever have to come here he goes absolutely mad and starts giving out written warnings."

Connors shot back, denying that the caravans were sold as permanent residences. He also denies issuing tenancy agreements. He claims that tenants were all aware they could not live year round at Fishpool. He also denies being aware that some residents were claiming housing benefit to pay their rent.

Mr Connors remarked: "I'm 70 and I'm retiring. It has been sold and that's it. They were always going to have to go sometime, and now it's time for them to move on.

"They all told me they were working. They shouldn't ever have claimed housing benefit. I told them they couldn't from the off."

Amanda Higgins stated: “We’ve made an appointment to see a lawyer at the Citizens Advice Bureau on Friday to see where we stand. But we’re not moving anywhere. The new owner has got a fight on his hands as none of us are going without a fight.”

Expert comment

Greg Wilson, CEO of European Consumer Claims (ECC) notes: "Without presuming to apportion blame in this instance, we are seeing nationwide examples of people being told they can live permanently in a holiday park unit, despite the actual contract stating otherwise.

"We are cataloging an overwhelming body of evidence from people who bought holiday park lodges and static caravans. A significant amount of callers are telling us that the salesperson assured them they could live in their holiday unit full time..

"Many of us do not read long, complex contracts line by line. We often put our trust in the person selling us the product. And for a lot of buyers, the idea of living in a holiday location all year-round is extremely appealing.

"The cost can be tens or even hundreds of thousands of pounds, which is a lot of money of course. But for people who believe they are going to live in their lodge, it can seem worth selling their existing home to make the purchase. Or at least remortgaging heavily.

"Sadly for Amanda and the other tenants, their legal position may not be particularly strong in terms of being able to remain living on the park.

"The silver lining here is that anyone in this circumstance could potentially have solid grounds for a compensation claim if they were misled as described."