Badgers have made a sett under my son's property - what can we do?

• e-mail

My son has an upstairs flat that's half of a house. The freeholder lives downstairs. 

At the back of the house there are two garages, one for each flat. The house next door is the same, except that at the back there is a garden. 

Badgers have made their sett under my son's garage, digging out several tonnes of soil into his neighbour's garden. 

My son lives in Tokyo and was made aware of the problem and has paid £400 for the removal of the soil as a gesture of goodwill. However, we are worried that the garage will become unstable. 

Where does the law stand in this case and what do you think our next steps should be?

The neighbour who has the garden wants to sell their flat. My son's freeholder doesn't want to do anything with it all and is burying her head in the sand.

Settling in: A This is Money reader's son has a badger sett under his garage 

Jane Denton, of This is Money, replies: Thank you for sending me a detailed diagram showing the location of the badger sett under your son's garage. 

Part of me think it's brilliant that badgers have made themselves at home and are thriving under your son's garage.

However, the presence of badgers can be problematic, as is clear from your son's plight - they can cause extreme damage to buildings.

The first thing to be aware of is that badgers and their setts are protected by law. 

Whether done with malicious intent or by accident, it is against the law to disturb, damage or destroy a badger's sett. 

In some instances, badgers can be discouraged from entering gardens or other spaces by solid, effective fencing, locked gates and the use of ultrasonic deterrent devices. 

It is possible to obtain a licence to evict a badger sett, but only under strict conditions via an application to Natural England. In your case, it would be a better idea to get an expert involved who already has a licence. 

I've spoken to a badger ecologist to get his views on your query.  

A man who knows about setts: Badger ecologist Tris Pearce 

Tris Pearce, a badger ecologist from the Midlands, says: Badgers are a nocturnal mustelid member of the weasel family and are a protected species with their own species specific legislation, the Protection of Badgers Act 1992.

This legislation protects not only the badger, but its underground home, known as a sett.  

The protection afforded badgers under the legislation deals with deliberate human persecution. 

However, there are scenarios where licenses to interfere with badger setts and evict animals from their underground home is lawfully permitted. 

Badgers are not just rural dwelling mammals. They also do well in urban environments. As our population increases, more conflict or issues between humans and badgers is arising.    

Badgers can cause damage to land and property as a result of either their foraging or by excavating the underground tunnels and chambers that form their setts.

In some scenarios, this is not an issue and is often quite welcomed by the landowner involved. 

However, not all badgers residing in residential gardens or under garages or sheds are welcome.

Sometimes, for the safety of the animals it is better that they are excluded from their underground home, even if temporarily while while work to repair any damage or to strengthen or support the land is undertaken.

In many cases badges can be welcomed back with preventative measures to ensure that the badges can continue to be urban dwellers without causing further damage to the property or injury to themselves.

This is done by what is known as licensed exclusion and has been around for over three decades. 

To do this, you need to obtain a license from the licensing authority or by using a badger consultant or ecologist, who is already licenced.   

Exclusion of the badgers takes place as per the licensing conditions, which will include the safe use of one-way gates which resemble a large cat flap that allow the badgers to exit safely but not re-enter. 

These one-way gates are often fitted using a galvanised metal welded mesh or chain-link. This is to prevent badgers from trying to re-enter the sett by digging. However, it's best not to underestimate the might of a badger wishing to re-enter its underground tunnel system!

Monitoring of the one-way gates and exclusion measures needs to take place for a minimum of 21 days following the last sign of activity by the badgers. 

Checks must be made regularly to ensure that there is no entry and also that the gates are functioning and remain free from obstruction.

After the required monitoring period has ended, measures to rectify any damage or repairs that need to take place can go ahead. 

This may require excavation of the tunnel system to strengthen the ground or it may require concrete or grout to fill any voids left underground.

The next step would then be to try to prevent badgers returning. This is often overlooked and in some cases badgers can get back in and the process would need to start all over again.

Consequently, good preventative measures like an underground chain link or welded mash barrier or suitable badger resistant fencing should be considered.

In some cases, there is a suitable middle ground to be achieved, whereby the badgers can continue to live in the sett and the damage can be repaired and mitigated against for the future. 

There is an alternative to a one-way gate exclusion which is known as live sett licenses. Parts of the sett can, under the expert supervision of a licence holder, be very carefully excavated with badgers still present. 

This ensures there is minimal disturbance to the badgers and the work can be completed in a much shorter timeframe. This can be a good option for everyone concerned. 

Alternatively, a new purpose-built artificial badger sett could be created nearby. 

In nearly all circumstances, work under a badger licence can only take place between July and November. This is to ensure that there are no dependent baby badger cubs underground that would be unable to safely exit the site using one-way gates.

The first step to take if you are experiencing badgers digging in your garden or land is to contact an ecologist, local badger group or specialist organisation or charity dealing with badgers. Ideally, you'd have done this before getting the soil removed.

An expert will have the relevant experience to come and survey the site and give practical advice about what to do next. 

In some cases, getting in touch with your insurance company and a structural engineer early on can also prove very useful.