Brother acquired bog purchase of hse. Someone else is cutting turf: Squatters Rights?

M

marzo

Guest
Anyone ever heard of a person claiming squatters rights on a bog.

My brother acquired a bog with a house he purchased. He had no need to cut the bog until now as there was enough cut to do him till now.

When he went along to have a look at it someone had cut the turf and had it stacked and drying out. Then they took away what they had cut.

My brother contacted the gardai and was told it was a civil matter. The person who cut the bog is claiming squatters rights.

Anyone have any ideas?
 
Re: Squatters rights to bog

Hi Marzo - Please put a more suitable title in future as it will help get proper attention.
 
Re: Squatters rights to bog

Good sense of humour. Thanks for the laugh.
 
Re: Squatters rights to bog

Your brother may want to consult his purchase documents and ask his solicitor about S.I. No. 40/1951 — Turbary Rights Order, 1951.
 
Re: Squatters rights to bog

Even if they are squatting on the land where your brother has the turbary right, they would likely only establish a title to that piece of land subject to your brothers right to take turf - it is extremely difficult, if not impossible ( I am hesitant to say anything is impossible) to establish a squatters title on a profit a prendre, such as a turbary right.

Talk to a country solicitor on the Western seaboard (Kerry, Clare, Mayo, Galway, Donegal - good turbary areas) - they'll have a good idea of what's what.
 
Re: Squatters rights to bog

Find the Gardai attitude strange. Surely this can be reported as the theft of turf?
 
Re: Squatters rights to bog

Cant you put a fence around it ? Its private property. I dont understand the Garda attitude either. Is the person claiming the squatters rights living there and receiving mail at this bog ? Residential squatting the only type of squatting I knew about before this.
 
Re: Squatters rights to bog

When he went along to have a look at it someone had cut the turf and had it stacked and drying out. Then they took away what they had cut.
Click to expand...

Why didnt he do anything at this stage? Why did he allow them to take it away - should have taken it himself as its his property. The "squatters" would then be relunctant to come back and cut his turf if they thought they'd get no benefit to their hard work.

I suspect that the "squatters" are just a bunch of chancers who go around the bogs and cut and take whatever turf they think they can get away with.
 
Re: Squatters rights to bog

I'm reminded of "the Field".

I think mathepac and j26 have the right of it.

Fencing in the tract of bogland may not be an appropriate or economical solution.
Now that he knows people are on his land, I strongly advise your brother to get a local solicitor involved.
I think he should seek ot discover any rights that may have accrued to any third parties over the years, or any assertions, founded or unfounded that may have been made in that regard.

I think your brother should also talk to his insurers.
Taking turf one day may become a personal injuries claim the next day.

Also, given the nature of land disputes in Ireland he should find out who the trespassers are and where they live.

Its always nice to know if the people you're running off have friends with shotguns.



HTH

ONQ
 
Re: Squatters rights to bog

onq said:
...
Fencing in the tract of bogland may not be an appropriate or economical solution.
Now that he knows people are on his land, I strongly advise your brother to get a local solicitor involved.
...

ONQ
Click to expand...

Fencing it off is probably not appropriate as it is more likely the OP's brother only has a right over the land (i.e. the right to cut turf for home consumption), not ownership of the land itself.
 
Hi Marzo,

This is an interesting thread which mirrors a problem I have been experiencing with bog-land in Roscommon. What action, if any, did your brother take and what happened?
 
let them cut the tuft this yr again and save it then when its ready to be brought home bring the gardai with ya showing wher it was cut.they cant bring it home then and you will have turf to keep your This post will be deleted if not edited to remove bad language warm next winter
 
Are you 100% certain that the bank which they are cutting on is yours?
It's sometimes very difficult to be certain and I speak from experience. We cut turf for a number of years on a bank which we were sure was ours. It was idle for decades prior. We constructed a bridge across the drain to access it and cleaned it up and then began cutting. It was only years later that someone said they thought we might be cutting in the wrong place. Turned out they were right and we had cut turf on someone elses property for years.

Don't go in all guns blazing just yet, you could be wrong or they may have made an honest mistake.
 
Pique has a point. Maps from PRA showing turbary rights are often on a small scale, making it difficult to know what bank you are on. Some landmarks and reference points may have been cut away already.

turbary rights are complicated matters. See a solicitor.
 
Recall having to explain to a German client how large mountain commonages and turbary rights worked. Nearly ended up writing a book.

When he described what I considered to be at most a minor infringement or mistake about turbary I told him not to take legal action just to wave to the person involved and say "god bless the work" and to later buy that person a drink in the pub and talk it over. At the time he thought that advice was silly and weak. About ten years later he agreed the advice was right.

IN a rural area careful thought has to be given to "putting the law" on a neighbour. People have long memories - think generations in time and fifth or sixth cousins in breadth of relationship
 
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