The Mobile Homes Act 2013 does not significantly change the law on succession and inheritance.
The relevant law is contained in section 3 of Mobile Homes Act 1983 (“MHA 1983”) as amended by the Civil Partnership Act 2004. This deals with “successors in title”.
A successor may include a person who takes over the legal rights of the occupier in the event of his/her death.
There are several situations which we consider below.
Inheritance rules
Where the park home owner dies at a time when occupying the mobile home as their only or main residence, the agreement will be binding on the husband or wife or civil partner provided that they were living with the park home owner at the time of death.
In the event that there is no husband, wife or civil partner living with the person, the agreement would be binding upon any family member* living with the person at the time of death.
If there is no member of family residing with the park home owner at the time of death, the agreement would be binding upon any family member entitled to the mobile home by virtue of the will or under the laws of intestacy.
In the event of a person inheriting the property under the terms of the will or intestacy rules, the consent of the site owner is required to take up residence, otherwise the home would have to be sold.
* Family member is defined under section 5(3) MHA 1983 as amended by Civil Partnership Act 2004, schedule 27, paragraphs 87 & 88):
A person is a member of another’s family within the meaning of this Act if he is his spouse, civil partner, parent, grandparent, child, grandchild, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, nephew or niece; treating
- any relationship by marriage or civil partnership as a relationship by blood, any relationship of the half blood as a relationship of the whole blood and the stepchild of any person as his child; and
- an illegitimate person as the legitimate child of his mother and reputed father; or if they live together as husband and wife or as if they were civil partners
or if they live together as husband and wife or as if they were civil partners.