28 Oct, 2016 @ 09:15
1 min read

British expats forced to hand over holiday home after Spanish neighbour buys it at ‘secret’ auction

Secret auction  e
secret-auction-1
Photo: The Olive Press

AN expat couple have been given 30 days to vacate their dream holiday home after the town hall sold it at auction without them knowing.

British pensioners Adrian and Margo Campbell have been ordered to hand their two-bed home over to their Spanish neighbour in Tozar, Granada, after she bought it at auction.

The €50,000 property was sold off after neighbour Adoracion Gonzales submitted a complaint about damp in her house, resulting from works carried out at the Campbell’s adjoining property.

It led to a Granada Court ruling that they had to pay Gonzales €43,000 in damages.

However, as they were back in the UK and did not know about the ruling, they were unable to defend themselves and did not know about the result.

The first time they heard about the auction was in June this year and after a failed appeal in Granada’s courts, they have no choice but to hand over the keys.

“It is an absolute travesty,” Glaswegian Adrian, 65, told the Olive Press. “We didn’t know about it until it was too late to do anything.

“It is so sad, we have so many memories here, bringing our kids here when they were young, we even spent Christmases and New Years here.”

Photo: The Olive Press
Photo: The Olive Press

The former IT technician added: “It is quite clear the courts did not try sufficiently hard to contact us when they knew it was a holiday home we rarely visited.

“But the court didn’t agree which is devastating.”

Despite now appealing to the High Court in Madrid, they are still being told to hand over the keys while they await a hearing.

Rob Horgan

DO YOU HAVE NEWS FOR US at Spain’s most popular English newspaper - the Olive Press? Contact us now via email: newsdesk@theolivepress.es or call 951 273 575. To contact the newsdesk out of regular office hours please call +34 665 798 618.

8 Comments

  1. If this kind of corruption had been dealt with decades ago by a strong British government (yes I know a contradiction in terms) then this couple would’nt have lost their home – is May going to make real sanctions against Spain – no of course not, this couple are’nt important.

  2. And did these neighbours actually prove that these foreigners were to blame. I have experienced the sick joke that is Spanish justice in both Galicia and Andalucia. Did this couple receive a copy of what was ‘proved’ in court?

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

andalucian cycling experience
Previous Story

Cycling with the pros in Andalucia

mediterranean sea e
Next Story

Southern Spain will turn into a desert if global warming continues, experts warn

Latest from Crime & Law

Go toTop

More From The Olive Press

2 bedroom Apartment for sale in Almunecar with pool garage - € 270

2 bedroom Apartment for sale in Almunecar with pool garage – € 270,000

Apartment Almuñécar, Granada   2 beds   1 baths €

Where can I legally build a prefabricated home in Spain?

PREFABRICATED homes are surging in popularity in Spain amid a