Terres Mises à L’Amende – A longstanding and unusual aspect of Guernsey law
3 Min Read
What is Terres Mises à L’Amende?
The term ‘Terres Mises à L’Amende’ (meaning ‘penalty land’) will be known to many islanders and is a way that an owner or occupier of land can enforce against those who trespass on the land.
If a piece of land has been determined as ‘Terres Mises à L’Amende’ this allows the landowner to enforce a fine of £50.00 against those who trespass (i.e. park their vehicle) on their land.
How may I benefit from this?
For land to benefit from the protection of ‘Terres Mises à L’Amende’ an application must be made by the landowner, occupier or tenant to the Royal Court seeking an order that any trespasser be liable to prosecution. The application will need to identify the area of land they wish to be protected by the order (typically by referencing a plan).
Whilst a tenant of the land in question can make the application, the landowner must provide their consent to it. As a tenant it is therefore important that you engage with your landlord at an early stage to obtain their consent so that you can progress the application as swiftly as possible.
If convinced to do so, the Royal Court will grant the application and make the relevant order.
What happens once an order is made?
Once an order has been made, notices expressing that the land has been determined as ‘Terres Mises à L’Amende’ must be published twice in the La Gazette Officielle. Another required step is to erect a sign on the land stating that the land is now determined as ‘Les Terres Mises à L’Amende’.
What is the process if someone trespasses over the land and an order is in place?
The fine of £50.00 can be recovered as a civil debt. Should the fine remain outstanding then a claim can be issued in the Petty Debts Court.
In the event where unauthorised parking has occurred on the land, the landowner can obtain details of the vehicle registration from the Vehicle Licensing Authority.
Duration and limitations
If an order is made then it will only be valid for ten years, after which the landowner will lose its right to enforce unless they make an application to renew the order.
It is also worth noting that if the original applicant sold the land, then the order will cease. It is therefore wise that the new owner of the land makes an application to extend the order to benefit them as the new owner. In the event of a sale, the order will automatically expire six months after completion of the sale (unless an application to extend is made).
A further consideration is that where land is jointly owned and not all owners agree to the proposal to determine the land as ‘Terres Mises à L’Amende’, then the application may fail.
Should you wish to make an application or extend a current order, please get in touch with the team at Babbé who would be happy to advise.
This article originally appeared in Issue 43 of Aurigny’s En Voyage magazine.