Property Offences: Burglary, Fraud, and Criminal Damage

This lesson covers three further property offences: burglary (Theft Act 1968, s.9), fraud (Fraud Act 2006), and criminal damage (Criminal Damage Act 1971). Each has distinct elements and raises important issues of interpretation.

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Key Terms

Term	Definition
Burglary	Entering a building or part of a building as a trespasser with intent to commit theft, GBH, or criminal damage (s.9(1)(a)), or having entered as a trespasser, stealing or attempting to steal, or inflicting or attempting to inflict GBH (s.9(1)(b))
Trespasser	A person who enters a building without the express or implied permission of the occupier, or who exceeds the scope of any permission given
Building	Includes inhabited vehicles or vessels, and any structure of sufficient permanence
Fraud	An offence under the Fraud Act 2006, committed by false representation, failure to disclose information, or abuse of position
Criminal damage	Destroying or damaging property belonging to another without lawful excuse (Criminal Damage Act 1971, s.1)

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Burglary — s.9 Theft Act 1968

Burglary has two forms under s.9:

s.9(1)(a) — Entry with Intent

A person is guilty of burglary if they enter any building or part of a building as a trespasser with intent to commit one of the following offences:

• Theft
• Grievous bodily harm (s.18 or s.20 OAPA 1861)
• Criminal damage

The offence is complete upon entry — D does not need to actually commit the intended offence.

s.9(1)(b) — Commission After Entry

A person is guilty of burglary if, having entered any building or part of a building as a trespasser, they:

• Steal or attempt to steal anything in the building, or
• Inflict or attempt to inflict GBH on any person in the building

Key Elements Analysed

Entry

There is no statutory definition of "entry." The case law has moved from requiring "effective and substantial" entry (R v Collins [1973]) to requiring merely "effective" entry:

In R v Brown [1985], the defendant was found leaning through a broken shop window with the top half of his body inside. The Court of Appeal held that this was a sufficient "entry" — it need not be substantial, just effective.

Building or Part of a Building

"Building" is widely interpreted to include any structure of sufficient permanence and size. This includes houses, offices, shops, warehouses, and even inhabited vehicles or vessels (e.g., a caravan that someone lives in).

"Part of a building" is relevant where D has permission to be in one part but trespasses into another:

In R v Walkington [1979], D entered a department store (lawfully) but went behind a till counter (a "part of a building" he was not permitted to enter). He was convicted of burglary under s.9(1)(a).

Trespasser

D must enter as a trespasser — without the consent or permission of the occupier, or exceeding the scope of any permission granted.

R v Collins [1973]

Collins climbed a ladder to a woman's bedroom window, intending to have sexual intercourse. The woman, believing Collins was her boyfriend, invited him in. Collins entered and they had intercourse. The Court of Appeal quashed the burglary conviction because there was doubt about whether Collins was a trespasser at the moment of entry — the woman had (mistakenly) invited him in. The court held that D must know or be reckless as to whether they are trespassing.

Principle: The defendant must enter as a trespasser and must know or be reckless as to the fact that they are trespassing.

R v Jones and Smith [1976]

Smith entered his father's house (where he had general permission to enter) and stole two television sets. The Court of Appeal held that he was a trespasser because he had exceeded the permission granted to him. His father's permission to enter did not extend to entry for the purpose of stealing.

Principle: A person can be a trespasser even if they have general permission to be in the building, if they enter for a purpose that goes beyond the scope of that permission.

Maximum Sentences

Type	Maximum Sentence
Burglary of a dwelling	14 years imprisonment
Burglary of a non-dwelling	10 years imprisonment

Burglary Flowchart

flowchart TD
    A[Did D enter a building or part of a building?] -->|No| Z[Not burglary]
    A -->|Yes| B{Was D a trespasser at the point of entry?}
    B -->|No| Z
    B -->|Yes| C{Did D know or was D reckless as to trespassing?}
    C -->|No| Z
    C -->|Yes| D{Which type of burglary?}
    D -->|s.9-1-a: D entered WITH intent to steal, cause GBH, or damage| E[Burglary s.9-1-a — offence complete on entry]
    D -->|s.9-1-b: D entered and THEN stole/attempted to steal or inflicted/attempted to inflict GBH| F[Burglary s.9-1-b — offence requires further act]

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Fraud — Fraud Act 2006

The Fraud Act 2006 replaced the old deception offences under the Theft Act 1968 and Theft Act 1978. It created a single offence of fraud (s.1), which can be committed in three ways:

s.2 — Fraud by False Representation

A person commits fraud if they dishonestly make a false representation with the intention of:

• Making a gain for themselves or another, or
• Causing a loss to another or exposing another to a risk of loss

A representation is false if it is untrue or misleading, and D knows or might be that it is untrue or misleading (s.2(2)).

Key points:

• The representation can be express or implied (s.2(4))
• It can be made to a machine (e.g., entering false details into a computer) (s.2(5))
• There is no requirement that the representation actually deceives anyone or that any gain or loss actually occurs — the offence is committed when the false representation is made with the requisite intent
• Includes conduct such as using a stolen credit card, phishing emails, false insurance claims

s.3 — Fraud by Failing to Disclose Information