Commercial property owners who leave their buildings vacant have been warned that they should have the correct level of legal expenses cover to protect against squatters occupying their premises.

According to financial services provider Aviva, there could be as many as 20,000 squatters in the UK and it is notoriously difficult to remove them from properties.

Mike Colmans, underwriting manager at the group, commented that it is the role of brokers to warn property owners of the growing problem, which can affect commercial as well as residential property owners.

"We have seen squatters taking over commercial properties, for example, seasonal businesses occupying empty shop units for periods of time," he added.

Mr Colmans went on to say that it can take a long time and cost a great deal to obtain interim possession orders from the courts to remove the unwelcome residents.

Earlier this week, figures released by Paragon Mortgages showed that as many as 58 per cent of landlords are worried about how regulations will impact on them in 2010.
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