No dumping or fly tipping of rubbish sign

Top five tips to combat commercial fly-tipping and squatting

20 April, 2026

Mid-market businesses

Why is fly-tipping a big issue for private land owners?

Fly-tipping often occurs when organised criminals operate waste disposal services for money. It is illegal, damaging to the environment and people and there is also a significant cost to legal disposal. The Environment Agency only clears waste where there is an immediate risk to the environment and human health – they are not funded to clean up all illegally dumped waste on private or public land.

Statistics showed that in 2024/25 there were 1.26m incidents of fly-tipping across England alone, a 9% rise on the previous year. It’s estimated that 38 million tonnes of rubbish are fly-tipped, this would fill Wembley Stadium 35 times.

If a commercial property has been the subject of unauthorised access which has resulted in fly-tipping on private land or by accessing commercial premises to remove metal or in the worst case scenario, the storage of waste has resulted in a fire – the responsibility for removal, along with the cost, falls to the land owner. Not to mention the damage to their property, which can run in to seven figures.

Worryingly, Zurich UK has also seen an increase in occupied premises experiencing fly-tipping and squatting. Costs incurred as a result of damage and clean-up by these groups illegally occupying commercial premises and disposing of waste regularly hit six figures, often due to the fact that the waste includes asbestos, chemicals, oils, flammable materials, or biological waste which presents a serious environmental hazard and has to be removed by specialist contractors.

The process of evicting squatters using the civil courts also incurs substantial legal costs and, even where a criminal offence has occurred, this may be difficult to prove, and police often do not have the power to evict the trespassers. Evicting unlawful occupants can, therefore, be an expensive and time-consuming process for law-abiding property owners and landlords.

Paul Redington, Regional Major Loss Property Claims Manager, Zurich, says:

"Squatters or criminal gangs accessing commercial properties and illegally dumping waste can be hugely disruptive to business as usual and have a knock-on effect to important projects and contracts for many months – not to mention the serious challenges the waste may pose to human health. Add to this the substantial cost of removal, potentially impacting a company’s revenue".

Tips to combat fly tipping and squatting

Here is some useful guidance, to help prevent commercial fly tipping and squatting:

Check your insurance cover. Levels of cover for fly-tipping can vary. Brokers remain best placed to help customers understand what is and isn’t covered under their policy. Customers should also advise their broker if a commercial property becomes vacant or is to be occupied by a tenant specialising in recycling, waste management or aligned trades
Check that all door and window locks and external site gates are secure. Temporary shutters and additional heavy-duty locks are also effective security measures
Consider whether access to the site can be prevented or restricted to one way in, one way out. For example, does the customer need to erect fences and gates or put hight restricting barriers in place to stop access? To prevent vehicle access in open spaces, think natural barriers such as trees, banks of earth etc as well as bollards or concrete blocks to restrict entry
Carry out regular inspections. We recommend customers carry out regular inspections both internally and externally. Larger companies can benefit from on-site or mobile security but this should be sourced from approved suppliers
Ensure CCTV, intruder alarms and external lighting remain in good working order. These act as a deterrent to fly-tippers and squatters. Business should have a public space surveillance (CCTV) licence

Organisations must make sure that any waste collected is being disposed of legally, especially when it is potentially hazardous. All businesses that transport and dispose of waste in England have to be licensed with the Environment Agency. Anyone can check a waste carrier is licensed with the Environment Agency.

To report any issues like the ones raised in this article, below are some contact details: