Residential caravan site rules

We are required under the Mobile Homes Act 1983 (as amended by the Mobile Homes Act 2013) to keep and publish an up-to-date register of park home rules.

What is the Mobile Homes Act 2013?

The Mobile Homes (Site Rules) (England) Regulations 2014 came into force on 4 February 2014 and apply to ‘protected sites’ as defined under the Mobile Homes Act 1983. From 4 February 2015 all existing site rules ceased to have effect. There is no requirement under the legislation for any site to have site rules.

However, where a licence holder proposes to introduce site rules, those proposals must be subject to a period of consultation with the site occupiers and any qualifying residents association. Schedule 5 to the Regulations specifies the matters that cannot form part of any site rule.

What happens next?

Following the completion of the consultation procedure, the Regulations require that the definitive copy of the site rules is deposited with the local authority. The local authority is required to hold the definitive copy and publish a register online for which a fee can be charged in accordance with the authority’s fees policy.

If you live on a residential park home site (Protected Site) and have a dispute with the owner about the site rules then you may be able to take the matter to the Residential Property Tribunal. It may also be advisable to take independent legal advice, for example from a solicitor.

More information on legal advice:

Full details of the regulations can be found on Legislation.gov.

The following sites have submitted their site rules:

Buying a park home - DCLG fact sheet

This fact sheet gives some basic guidance to anyone who intends on buying a park home on a protected site in England.

A separate fact sheet on selling or gifting a park home has been prepared for existing residents of park homes who wish to sell or gift their homes.

This fact sheet does not apply to homes on local authority traveller sites because the provisions in the Mobile Homes Act 1983 relating to selling a home do not apply to these sites.

This fact sheet is not a full or definitive statement of the law and does not cover all cases. Ultimately, interpretation of the law is a matter for the courts and tribunals based on the individual facts of any particular case. The key legislation governing the selling and gifting of park homes is contained in Chapter 2 of Part 1 of Schedule 1 to the Mobile Homes Act (as amended) and in the Mobile Homes (Selling and Gifting) (England) Regulations 2013.