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Property Offences for SQE1

Part of our SQE1 Criminal Law guide → View the full SQE1 Criminal Law guide

30 Apr 2026

Property offences cover a wide range of crimes from shoplifting to complex fraud. SQE1 focuses on the core offences under the Theft Act 1968, Fraud Act 2006, and Criminal Damage Act 1971.

Property Offences

Criminal Law > Property Offences

What Are Property Offences?

Candidates often lose marks on SQE1 by failing to distinguish between theft and fraud, or between sections 9(1)(a) and 9(1)(b) burglary — the difference often hinges on a single temporal detail (when the intent arose or when the property was acquired), and examiners test this precision repeatedly. Property offences are crimes involving the dishonest interference with another person's property. The principal statute is the Theft Act 1968, which defines theft, robbery, burglary, handling stolen goods, and related offences. The Fraud Act 2006 created a general offence of fraud, and the Criminal Damage Act 1971 covers the destruction or damage of property.

SQE1 expects you to break each offence down into its elements and apply them to factual scenarios.

Each property offence has distinct actus reus and mens rea requirements that candidates must know precisely.

Key Principles for SQE1

  • Theft (Theft Act 1968, s.1): Dishonestly appropriating property belonging to another with the intention of permanently depriving the other of it. Five elements:

(1) Appropriation — any assumption of the rights of an owner (2) Property — includes money, real and personal property, things in action, and other intangible property (3) Belonging to another — includes possession, control, or any proprietary right (4) Dishonesty — the Ivey v Genting Casinos test: was the defendant's conduct dishonest by the standards of ordinary decent people? (5) Intention to permanently deprive — includes treating the thing as their own to dispose of regardless of the owner's rights

  • Robbery (s.8): Theft accompanied by the use or threat of force immediately before or at the time of stealing and in order to steal. Force must be more than trivial.

  • Burglary (s.9): - s.9(1)(a): entering a building or part of a building as a trespasser with intent to steal, inflict GBH, or do unlawful damage - s.9(1)(b): having entered as a trespasser, stealing or attempting to steal, or inflicting or attempting to inflict GBH

For a thorough understanding of how burglary interacts with other Criminal Law concepts, particularly on the actus reus side, see the complete guide.

  • Fraud (Fraud Act 2006, s.1): Three ways to commit fraud: - Fraud by false representation (s.2) - Fraud by failing to disclose information (s.3) - Fraud by abuse of position (s.4)

All require dishonesty and intent to make a gain or cause a loss.

  • Handling stolen goods (Theft Act 1968, s.22): Dishonestly receiving stolen goods, or dishonestly undertaking or assisting in their retention, removal, disposal, or realisation, for the benefit of another person, knowing or believing them to be stolen.

  • Criminal damage (Criminal Damage Act 1971, s.1(1)): Destroying or damaging property belonging to another without lawful excuse, intending to do so or being reckless as to whether it would be destroyed or damaged. Aggravated criminal damage (s.1(2)): destroying or damaging property intending to endanger life or being reckless as to whether life would be endangered.

  • Making off without payment (Theft Act 1978, s.3): Dishonestly making off without paying for goods or services where payment on the spot is required or expected.

Exam tip

Always identify the property offence by working through the five elements of theft (or the relevant alternative elements). Don't assume a fact pattern is theft — check each element. For robbery, confirm the force was used or threatened 'in order to steal.' For burglary, identify whether it's s.9(1)(a) (intent on entry) or s.9(1)(b) (conduct after entry).

How This Appears in SQE1 Questions

This is a classic SQE1 trap — candidates frequently confuse the mens rea requirements for theft, robbery, and burglary. SQE1 questions test whether you can identify the correct property offence and whether all elements are satisfied. This is a classic SQE1 assessment area, testing precision in applying multi-element offences to fact patterns. The most common trap is applying the wrong dishonesty test — after Ivey v Genting Casinos, the Ghosh two-stage test no longer applies.

Questions on burglary often test the distinction between s.9(1)(a) (intent on entry) and s.9(1)(b) (offence committed after entry). Watch for robbery questions that test whether the force used was connected to the theft.

Common Mistakes Students Make

  • Applying the old Ghosh dishonesty test instead of the Ivey test — Ivey is the current law
  • Confusing s.9(1)(a) burglary (intent on entry) with s.9(1)(b) burglary (offence committed after trespassing entry)
  • Forgetting that appropriation can occur even with the owner's consent
  • Treating robbery as theft plus any violence — the force must be used or threatened immediately before or at the time of stealing, and in order to steal

Quick Summary

  • Theft requires appropriation with intent to permanently deprive.
  • Robbery is theft plus force.
  • Burglary is entry as a trespasser plus intent (s.9(1)(a)) or conduct (s.9(1)(b)).
  • Fraud has three routes — all require dishonesty and intent to gain/cause loss.
  • Ivey, not Ghosh, is the dishonesty test.

Want to test this now? Try a few SQE1-style questions below before moving on.

Test Yourself

Test yourself

Quick check questions based on this article.

Question 1

Scenario

A financial adviser is employed by an investment firm. As part of her role, she manages portfolios for several high-net-worth clients. One of her clients, an elderly man, has a portfolio worth approximately £2 million. The financial adviser has been given full discretionary authority over the client's investment decisions. The financial adviser's brother runs a small technology start-up company that is in urgent need of investment. The financial adviser uses £150,000 of the elderly client's funds to purchase shares in her brother's company. She does not inform the client about this investment. The shares are purchased at their market value, which the financial adviser genuinely believes is a fair price. The financial adviser records the transaction in the client's portfolio statements, describing it only as a 'technology sector equity investment'. She does not disclose her family connection to the company. Two months later, the brother's company becomes insolvent and the shares become worthless. The client discovers the loss and contacts the firm. The financial adviser tells the firm that she believed the investment was sound and in the client's best interests, and that she intended to disclose the family connection at the next portfolio review meeting.

Which type of fraud under the Fraud Act 2006 has the financial adviser most likely committed?

Question 2

Scenario

A man enters a bank wearing a motorcycle helmet with the visor down, covering his face. He approaches the counter and hands the bank teller a handwritten note. The note reads: 'I have a weapon. Put all the cash from your till into this bag. Do not press any alarm buttons.' The bank teller is frightened and places approximately £5,000 in cash into the bag provided by the man. The man takes the bag and walks out of the bank. He is arrested fifteen minutes later at a nearby bus stop. Upon arrest, no weapon is found on the man or in the surrounding area. The man tells police that he did not have a weapon and had written the note to frighten the teller into handing over the money. The bank teller states that she believed the man had a weapon because of the threatening note. The man has one previous conviction for common assault, committed five years ago. The motorcycle helmet the man was wearing belongs to his flatmate and was taken without permission. CCTV footage shows the man entering and leaving the bank calmly.

Has the man committed robbery under s.8 of the Theft Act 1968?

Question 3

Scenario

A woman works as a financial adviser for a small investment firm. She manages several client accounts and has access to the firm's online banking system. Over a period of two months, the woman transfers a total of £15,000 from three separate client accounts into her own personal bank account. She uses the money to pay off credit card debts. The woman's employment contract states that she is in a position of trust and must safeguard client assets at all times. The woman tells police that she was under extreme financial pressure and always intended to repay the money once she received her annual bonus. The firm's compliance officer discovers the transfers during a routine audit. The woman had been employed by the firm for eight years and had received consistently positive performance reviews. The firm's IT security system flagged one of the transfers as unusual, but the alert was not investigated due to understaffing. The woman's annual bonus was due to be paid approximately six weeks after the last transfer was made. None of the three affected clients were aware of the transfers at the time of discovery. The woman has no previous criminal convictions. The investment firm is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

Which of the following charges most accurately reflects the woman's criminal conduct?

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