Residential Mobile Homes in Scotland - Scottish Government

licensing in situations where agricultural land is used as a caravan site to accommodate
workers on the land (or in forestry or on a building site), for a particular season (but not
throughout the year).
1.9 The situation with regard to tenants who rent their homes from private landlords is
complex. The Department of Communities and Local Government (2007) refer to the
situation in Scotland and suggest that if the tenant has a letting agreement after 2 January
1989, then they may be covered by the Housing (Scotland) Act 1988. A tenant with a letting
agreement prior to 2 January 1989 may have a Regulated Tenancy under the Rent Acts, if
they fulfil the necessary criteria. However, Shelter (2005) has drawn attention to the issue
that not all mobile homes may necessarily be classed as dwellings, because they may count as
movable structures, thus limiting the rights that a tenant can enjoy. Ultimately, each case
may be different and the question would have to be settled by the Courts. Alexander (1992)
noted that there was a seasonal dimension to this issue, with the proportion of households
who rent mobile homes rising in the summer, as people move out of winter lets and into
mobile homes. Gentleman and Wilkinson (1977) also found that levels of dissatisfaction
with mobile homes were highest amongst those households who rented their mobile homes.
Aims and Objectives
1.10 The aims of the research were to:
• Identify the number, location and composition (including number of units, tenure and
service provision) of licensed mobile homes sites throughout Scotland;
• Where possible, identify unlicensed sites and quantify the extent of isolated single
units, which may be exempt from licensing;
• Explore the reasons why people are living in mobile homes and their length of
residence, looking at factors that have led them into the sector, their previous housing
history and their aspirations for the future, particularly their ability to access
affordable housing;
• Explore the nature and extent of any issues and problems experienced by residents of
mobile homes in connection with their occupation and use of the home, with specific
reference to the following sub-groups:
- Residents who own their mobile homes and let the stance from the site owner;
- Residents who are tenants of people in the above group;
- Residents who let their property directly from the site owner.
• Consider the extent to which any problems identified are addressed by the existing
and recently implemented legislation.
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