Welsh Parks: Your Site Rules
On 1 October 2014 the Mobile Homes (Site Rules) (Wales) Regulations 2014 came into force (“the Regulations”). The Regulations (which mirror the Mobile Homes (Site Rules) (England) Regulations 2014) outline the procedure residential Park Owners in Wales are required to follow if their site rules are to remain effective after 30 September 2015 and can be summarised as follows:
1. Any new park rules must be necessary to:
a) Ensure acceptable standards are maintained on the site which will be of general benefit to the occupiers; or
b) Promote and maintain community cohesion on the site.
2. Site rules which attempt to make provision in relation to any matters that are prescribed in Schedule 5 of the Regulations will be of no effect. For example any rule preventing an occupier from using an Estate Agent to sell their mobile home would be prohibited.
3. A Park Owner must consult with every occupier on the site and any Qualifying Residents Association (“QRA”). This requires a Park Owner to send a draft of the proposed rules to all residents and any QRA together with a Proposal Notice the content of which is prescribed by the Regulations.
4. The consultation process is required to last 28 days during which the residents and the QRA will be able to provide the Park Owner with any comments they may have on the proposed rules. This is commonly done by the QRA/residents sending a letter to the Park Owner. The 28th day is known as the ‘last consultation day’.
5. At the conclusion of the consultation the Park Owner has 21 days to take into account any responses received from the residents/QRA and to decide whether or not any amendments to the proposed site rules are necessary.
6. The conclusions reached by the Park Owner should be recorded on the Consultation Response Document Response Document which should be sent to all residents and any QRA within 21 days of the last consultation day.
7. A resident and/or the QRA may appeal to the First Tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) within 21 days of receipt of the Consultation Response Document if any of the grounds outlined in Regulation 10 of the Regulations are satisfied. Commonly appeals to the Tribunal are on the basis that the Park Owner’s decision was unreasonable having regard to the size, layout and character of the Park and the responses received. A Tribunal must provide a ruling on the challenged site rules before a Park Owner can proceed to the next step.
8. If no appeal is lodged a Park Owner must deposit the agreed site rules with the Local Authority no sooner than 28 days and no later than 42 days after serving the Consultation Response Document. If an appeal is lodged the deposit to the Local Authority must take place no later than 14 days after the date of the Tribunal’s decision. Local authorities are entitled to charge a fee and our experience dictates that most do but the level of the fee can differ and it would be best to make enquiries with the Licensing Department of the Local Authority before lodging the site rules.
9. Within 7 days of depositing the site rules with the Local Authority a Park Owner is required to send a Notification of Deposit to the residents and any QRA. This form confirms the date on which the site rules come into force which will be 21 days after the form is sent.
Failure to follow the above procedure will mean that your Park’s rules will be unenforceable. It is therefore best to commence the consultation process as soon as possible to provide your Park with sufficient time to complete all the necessary steps.
Partner
Commercial Dispute Resolution
AHutchinson@LawBlacks.com
0113 227 9203
@AimeeLawBlacks
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