Man 'forced to live in van' amid Landmark Mortgages dispute

Damien Nugent claimed he has been using his benefits to pay towards his mortgage and that he has been unfairly evicted.

But this is disputed by Landmark Mortgages, who said he has accumulated arrears of around £75,000 since 2010.

Mr Nugent is now fighting to retrieve his personal belongings from his house in Merryoak, which was boarded up while he was in hospital.

'The stress has hospitalised me'

The 59-year-old father-of-four was told to leave his family home of 20 years in Magnolia Road in December.

He said he previously paid £700 a month towards his mortgage, which was then reduced to £300 from 2015 when he could no longer work. 

He has described the eviction as “mental torture” and said it led him to attempting to take his own life in January this year.

Mr Nugent said: “I am sure this has happened to thousands of other people like me, and the stress of it all has landed me in hospital several times.

“I was in the hospital for my amputated foot when it all started, and I could not get into my house.

"Now, people have fly-tipped on my driveway."

Damien Nugent outside his home in Merryoak, Southampton (Image: Newsquest)

Nine years ago, Mr Nugent was injured while working as a lorry driver.

His left foot was impaled with a rusty nail and needed to be amputated.

He was unable to work as a lorry driver and could not undertake office-based jobs due to his strong medication.

“All of this was explained to Landmark when it happened, through Citizens Advice”, he said.

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Mr Nugent disputes the claim that he has not paid £75,000 for 14 years, saying that his payments were "kept up to date until my accident".

He said: "I have tried several times to try and get a better payment plan.

"I’ve tried over the phone and nothing has ever been done about it, but Landmark has been aware of the situation."

Mr Nugent added: “At the moment I am sleeping in a transit van which does not help my limited mobility.

“My friend has been kind enough to lend me use of his garage, so that is where my possessions will eventually go."

No payment made 

Damien Nugent's home in Merryoak, Southampton (Image: Newsquest)

In 2019, a court of law ordered that the property could be repossessed if Damien failed to make his monthly payments in full. But since that time, no payment has been made, according to Landmark.

“Despite extensive engagement with this customer, however, at no point have we ever received an offer to pay anything like the monthly sum required”, a spokesperson from the company said.

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They added that situations like this are “extremely rare”.

The spokesperson said: “Earlier this year a court agreed that Landmark had shown sufficient forbearance, and it made an order for repossession.

“The court bailiffs gave ample notification in advance of the repossession on April 11, so that Damien could source alternative accommodation and remove his personal property.

“He made no arrangements to remove his belongings and since then we have provided multiple opportunities for Damien to revisit the property to collect his belongings, both on his own and with associates.

“Eviction is always and only ever a matter of last resort.”