Taking something useful from a neighbour's skip might seem like a harmless way to keep it out of landfill, but the law does not always see it that way. Barrister Daniel Barnett, of Outer Temple Chambers and host of LBC's Legal Hour, has explained on his YouTube channel when doing so could amount to theft.
When does taking from a skip amount to theft?
Mr Barnett said: “There are no hard and fast rules on whether it’s legal to take items from a skip. It could amount to theft, which the Theft Act 1968 defines as the dishonest appropriation of property belonging to another with the intention of permanently depriving the other of it.”
He added: “Taking something out of a skip, intending to keep it, means you’ve appropriated property belonging to another, intending to permanently deprive.”
Many people assume rubbish placed in a skip no longer belongs to anyone, but that is not how the law generally views it. “You might think rubbish left to be collected by a waste company doesn’t belong to anyone, but that’s not how the law sees it. If a person who leaves it out intends for it to be collected, it generally belongs to them until collection,” he explained.
The key test: dishonesty
According to Mr Barnett, the deciding factor is whether taking the item would be considered dishonest. He said: “This means the key question is whether taking the items is dishonest, as judged by the standards of ordinary, reasonable and honest people.”
There is, however, an important exception. “Under the Act, it’s not possible to be dishonest if you genuinely believed that the owner would consent to you taking the items if they knew of the circumstances,” he said.
What this means in practice
The comments highlight that while taking items from a skip is not automatically illegal, it is not always permitted either. Anyone considering it should be aware that ownership of the contents may remain with the person who placed them there until they are collected.
The advice follows his previous comments on what homeowners can do if a neighbour’s tree or hedge blocks their light and affects their enjoyment of their property. Mr Barnett said people should try to resolve disputes with neighbours before taking legal action, with a “respectful letter” potentially helping prevent matters from becoming “ugly”.
Right to light explained
Explaining the rules on YouTube, Mr Barnett said a homeowner may have a right to light if their property has received light through its windows for 20 years or more. He said: “If your home has received light through its windows for 20 years or more, it probably has an easement of a right to light under the Prescription Act 1832.”
He also explained that courts would consider whether an obstruction makes a property “less fit” than it was before, based on “the ordinary ideas of ordinary people”.
