Eviction business

If a landlord finds that a tenant is in default of their obligations, the landlord has the option to carry out an eviction process with the help of the bailiff.

In our experience, the vast majority of evictions in Denmark are due to payment default. However, evictions can also occur for other reasons, such as non-compliance with house rules. In this article, we focus primarily on evictions due to non-payment.

An eviction hearing deals with the forced eviction of a tenancy if, for example, a landlord has not received payment for rent.

If a tenant doesn't pay their rent, the landlord can terminate the lease and ask the tenant to vacate voluntarily - or get the bailiff's help to enforce the eviction.

If the tenant does not choose to vacate voluntarily, they will be summoned to a meeting in the bailiff court with the aim of evicting the tenant.

The process of an eviction hearing

If a tenant fails to pay rent, the landlord must send a demand for payment. If the demand is not paid within 14 days of receipt, the landlord can terminate the tenancy.

If the tenant pays within the 14-day deadline, the tenant has the right to stay.

If the payment is not received on time, the landlord can terminate the tenancy on the grounds of non-payment. If the tenant still does not vacate, the landlord must submit an eviction petition to the bailiff court.

The bailiff court then assesses the validity of the termination and typically summons the tenant to a meeting. In some cases, the bailiff court chooses to conduct a mobile bailiff's hearing, where the eviction takes place without a meeting in court.

There is an increasing tendency for eviction cases based on non-payment to be carried out as mobile enforcement proceedings. However, in evictions for other reasons, we see that the bailiff court more often summons the tenant to a court hearing.

The eviction business in practice

The eviction is carried out by the bailiff appearing at the property together with the tenant's lawyer, a locksmith and the police.

If the door does not open, the locksmith will provide access to the property. Once access is granted, an inspection of the property and an assessment of the contents will be carried out.

Often the contents are of limited value and it is rarely possible to seize significant possessions.

Legally, the rental property can be emptied by a removalist, after which the estate is stored with the police. In practice, however, it is often agreed that the tenant will empty the property themselves within a given timeframe.

It is recommended that the landlord changes the locks immediately so that the tenant no longer has access to the property and cannot stay illegally.

What does an eviction service cost?

An eviction order involves a fee to the bailiff court.

Initially, the landlord bears this cost, but the amount is later charged to the tenant as part of the total cost.

In addition to the bailiff fee, the tenant usually has to pay rent for up to three months after the eviction.

In practice, however, it is often the case that the tenant is unable to pay, which can result in the landlord having to initiate a subsequent debt collection process to recover the debt.

Both lawyers and debt collection companies can help with this process.

Debt collection in connection with eviction proceedings

An eviction hearing often results in the landlord having a financial claim against the tenant - typically missing rent and expenses related to the eviction.

To recover these amounts, the landlord can use either a debt collection agency or a lawyer to provide this service.