Pensioner Evicted from £420k Home Still Faces £163 Monthly Council Tax Bill
A 77-year-old pensioner, evicted from her £420,000 bungalow following a bitter court battle over a 12-inch strip of land, has been dealt what she calls a 'final insult' after discovering she remains legally required to pay £163 a month in council tax for the home she can no longer enter.
Costly Boundary Dispute Leads to Repossession
Jenny Field lost her three-bedroom detached property in a smart cul-de-sac in Hamworthy, Poole, Dorset, after failing to pay neighbour Pauline Clark's £113,000 legal bill. The dispute originated in 2020 when Mrs Clark erected a boundary fence, which Ms Field claimed was positioned 12 inches onto her land. After contractors removed and relocated the fence, the matter escalated to court, with Ms Field repeatedly challenging rulings and accruing significant costs.
Initially, Ms Field's legal bill was approximately £21,000, but it ballooned to a six-figure sum due to her persistent appeals. A county court judge issued a repossession order, granting Mrs Clark, 64, the authority to sell her neighbour's property to recover the debt. Once the sale concludes, Mrs Clark will receive what she is owed, and Ms Field will get any remainder.
Council Tax Obligation Persists Despite Eviction
Despite being unable to enter her home as the locks have been changed, Ms Field has been informed by BCP Council that she must pay £163 a month in council tax because she still owns the freehold. 'I phoned BCP Council and they said unless my freehold has been sold I am still responsible for council tax as nobody has bought my freehold from me as the legal freeholder,' she explained. 'I feel bullied and harassed. This is another insult to me losing my home.'
From April, Ms Field must pay £163.70 initially, followed by £162.00 over a period of 10 months. Her bungalow has been listed for sale at what she describes as a knocked-down price of £325,000, far less than expected, leaving her concerned about insufficient funds to secure a new home.
Court Proceedings and Homelessness
In December, Ms Field made a final attempt to overturn the ruling by alleging fraud, but Judge Ross Fentem dismissed it as 'totally without merit.' He described the repossession order as a 'draconian' last resort, noting Ms Field had ample opportunity to pay. 'This is a very long-running boundary dispute. The defendant has, in various ways, sought to relitigate the original case,' Judge Fentem stated during proceedings at Bournemouth County Court last September.
On January 26, bailiffs evicted Ms Field from the usually peaceful Dean Close, forcing her to leave with only a few bags of belongings and her mobile phone. Lawyers acting for Mrs Clark gave her until mid-February to remove her possessions or face them being dumped. After becoming homeless, Ms Field initially stayed in a nearby hostel and now resides in a friend's flat, with her belongings stored in a garage.
Emotional Toll and Future Plans
Ms Field previously claimed her former neighbour was 'jealous' and revealed her children urged her to leave the 'toxic' area. 'I should have taken the chance to move out ages ago, but I stayed in the area and modernised my property. I made it really nice,' she said. 'I want to move right out of the area completely. My children have told me to get out of the area as it's toxic.'
Mrs Clark's solicitor, Anna Curtis, asserted there was ample equity in Ms Field's property to cover the debt and that the pensioner could still purchase a comfortable retirement home mortgage-free with cash leftover. BCP Council has been contacted for comment on the ongoing council tax issue.
