Scotland v Soloman
Mr Scotland was evicted by court bailiffs executing a possession order obtained by Mr Soloman. In breach of his obligation to give "vacant possession", Mr Scotland had not cleared out his belongings. The bailiffs gave him access to remove items.

Mr Soloman did not go back to court for a further order to require the house to be cleared. Instead, he sold the house with its contents.

Served with a claim for compensation, Mr Soloman applied to have it dismissed because any loss had been caused by Mr Scotland's own failure to clear the house.

The judge rejected that application. He decided that taking possession of a home does not transfer ownership of the goods it contains. Nor is the person gaining possession entitled to detain those goods. It was arguable that the goods were held under "a gratuitous or involuntary bailment". That would impose a duty to act reasonably. The claim would have to be fully tried.

Source

Housing Today

Reference

Landlords recovering possession are not free to simply dispose of goods left behind. The bailiff's duty to take reasonable care applies to social and public landlords and was the reason special provision was made for council landlords by legislation in 1982. Other social landlords should proceed with care.