AS VIOLENCE flares in Liverpool, following riots which have spread across England, urgent preventative measures may need to be taken by local property owners to protect their assets.

While Parliament is being recalled to restore order, the riots appear to be continuing.

Shops and buildings in Liverpool are already reported to have suffered, with properties having been damaged and shops looted.

This follows the more peaceful demonstrations which took place earlier in the year in response to the Government’s controversial austerity measures.

As protests become more commonplace, the question of how property owners can protect their property has become increasingly significant.

In respect of rioters who have gained entry to property, early case law established a principle in which the owner of a property may be entitled to use reasonable force in ejecting any person who has gained possession of his property, so long as no injury is caused to the trespasser.

Landlords and occupiers must therefore be careful not to use excessive force, while also ensuring that they are not placing themselves in danger of violence.

Although the police do have powers to remove a trespasser where he has committed an offence or in preventing a breach of the peace, the police have been under extreme pressure during the recent riots.

In any event, the police can only assist if a trespasser poses a risk of violence. The police also have statutory powers to remove trespassers, but only in limited circumstances.

Alternatively, an application to court could be made for a possession order or an interim injunction. However, each of these take time to obtain.

In 2008, E.ON, the energy supplier, obtained a pre-emptive injunction to restrain future trespassers defined as “persons unknown”, from occupying a power station when it had previously been thought that such injunctions could only be granted against named individuals.

This ruling may prove to be a useful tool in protecting a property.

The most cost-effective and efficient methods of protecting premises from trespassers may be preventative measures such as employing private security teams and/or installing and using reinforced shutters to prevent access to the premises, as successfully dealing with protesters involves practical as well as legal measures.