Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Related legal acts

Key definition

Handling stolen goods definition

What does Handling stolen goods mean? Handling stolen goods describes post-theft dealing with stolen property—such as receiving, keeping, moving, disposing of, realising, or arranging to do so—when the person knows or believes the goods are stolen, and acts dishonestly. It does not cover conduct during the theft itself; the offence typically arises after the stealing is complete, with “receiving” the most common mode. In England and Wales it is the statutory offence in section 22 of the Theft Act 1968; in Northern Ireland, section 21 of the Theft Act (Northern Ireland) 1969. In Ireland, a closely aligned statutory offence (often termed handling stolen property) is found...

Handling stolen goods under the Theft Act 1968: elements, knowledge, evidence, search warrants and sentencing (England and Wales)

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Practice notes

The ‘handling’ offence

Arising under section 22 of the Theft Act 1968 (TA 1968), this offence is Triable either way. Its constituent elements are:

dishonestly receiving the Goods; or
dishonestly undertaking, assisting with, or arranging their Retention, removal, disposal or realisation, by or for another’s benefit; or
knowing or believing the goods to be stolen; and
the goods in fact having been stolen.

The offence is made out when the defendant acts other than in the course of stealing, that is, when not engaged in the theft itself. Because theft can be continuing, it is sometimes hard to show whether a person in possession of stolen goods is the thief or a handler of property already stolen, creating genuine uncertainty. In such situations, and to reflect that potential ambiguity, prosecutors will charge Handling stolen goods in the alternative. The goods must have been stolen, but proof of a conviction for the underlying theft is unnecessary; nor need the individual who stole them be named at all. If the indictment specifies who stole the goods, evidence must be called by the prosecution to prove that element of the offence. Goods that have not yet been stolen in any way whatsoever cannot...

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Web page updated on 21/05/2026

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