What is the ratio in R v Hunt (Criminal Damage)?

A person can be convicted of criminal damage to their own property if another person has a charge, lien, or proprietary interest in that property.

What did the court decide in R v Hunt (Criminal Damage)?

The Court of Appeal upheld Hunt's conviction for damaging his mortgaged house, as the building society's charge meant the property 'belonged to another'.

Why is R v Hunt important for criminal damage law?

It establishes that 'belonging to another' includes situations where third parties have proprietary interests, expanding the scope of criminal damage beyond simple ownership.

What is the ratio in R v Hunt (Criminal Damage)?

A person can be convicted of criminal damage to their own property if another person has a charge, lien, or proprietary interest in that property.

What did the court decide in R v Hunt (Criminal Damage)?

The Court of Appeal upheld Hunt's conviction for damaging his mortgaged house, as the building society's charge meant the property 'belonged to another'.

Why is R v Hunt important for criminal damage law?

It establishes that 'belonging to another' includes situations where third parties have proprietary interests, expanding the scope of criminal damage beyond simple ownership.

Criminal1 min read

R v Hunt (Criminal Damage)

(1978) 66 Cr App R 105Court of Appeal1978

Cite this case in OSCOLA →All Criminal cases →

“Criminal damage can apply to your own property when others have legal interests.”

Facts

Hunt set fire to his own house to claim insurance money. The house was subject to a mortgage, giving the building society a legal charge over the property.

Issues

Whether a person could be convicted of criminal damage to their own property when that property was subject to a mortgage or other legal charge.

Held

The Court of Appeal upheld Hunt's conviction for criminal damage, holding that the mortgaged property 'belonged to another' within the meaning of the Act.

Significance

This case clarifies the scope of 'belonging to another' in criminal damage law and shows how property rights can overlap. It's important for understanding when criminal damage can occur despite apparent ownership and has implications for fraud and insurance cases.

Read the full brief — free

You're reading the free summary of R v Hunt (Criminal Damage). Create a free account to unlock the full reasoning, the cited authorities and the verbatim judgment — plus structured briefs for 412,000+ UK judgments.

Create free account Already have one? Sign in

No card required. Free forever.

OSCOLA Citation

R v Hunt (Criminal Damage) (1978) 66 Cr App R 105 (CA)

Criminal LawCriminal DamageProperty RightsMortgages

Read the full judgment elsewhere

Multiple official and mirror sources — pick whichever loads cleanly on your network.

LLB

More Criminal cases

R v Reece Martin Kelly

[2026] EWCA Crim 268

R v Richard Alexander Welsh

[2026] EWCA Crim 466

R v Robert Michael Thomas

[2026] EWCA Crim 305

This case is reproduced verbatim from the public judgment published by The National Archives under the UK Government's Open Government Licence v3.0. If you appear in this case and believe it should not be published — for example because your conviction was quashed on appeal, you have statutory anonymity, or for other privacy reasons — request removal here.