The declining population of bats is protected by law and anyone convicted of offences could be fined up to £5,000 or even imprisoned for up to six months.

The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 protects all 17 species of bats and their roosts in England, Scotland and Wales. Some parts have been amended by the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 (CRoW) which applies only in England and Wales

Bats may also be protected by site safeguard measures, for example by virtue of their roost site or feeding grounds being notified as a Special Area of Conservation (SAC) or a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).

It is an offence for any person to:

• Intentionally kill, injure or capture a bat.
• Possess or control a live or dead bat, any part of a bat, or anything derived from a bat. An offence is not committed if the bat was not killed, taken, or sold to them or anyone else illegally.
• Intentionally or recklessly damage, destroy or obstruct access to any place that a bat uses for shelter or protection (reckless applies in England and Wales only). This is taken to mean all bat roosts whether bats are present or not. There is a defence that this is not illegal in a dwelling house, but the defence can only be relied on (other than in the living area of a dwelling house) if the Statutory Nature Conservation Organisation (SNCO), i.e. English Nature, the Countryside Council for Wales, or Scottish Natural Heritage was notified about the proposed action and allowed reasonable time to advise as to whether it should be carried out, and if so, how. Under the Habitats Regulations it is an offence to damage or destroy a breeding site or resting place of any bat.
• Intentionally or recklessly disturb a bat while it is occupying a structure or place that it uses for shelter or protection (reckless applies in England and Wales only). There is a defence that this is not illegal in a dwelling house, but the defence can only be relied on (other than in the living area of a dwelling house) if the Statutory Nature Conservation Organisation (SNCO), ie English Nature, the Countryside Council for Wales, or Scottish Natural Heritage was notified about the proposed action and allowed reasonable time to advise as to whether it should be carried out, and if so, how. Under the Habitats Regulations it is an offence to deliberately disturb a bat (this applies anywhere, not just at its roost).
• Sell, offer or expose for sale, or possess or transport for the purpose of sale, any live or dead bat, any part of a bat, or anything derived from a bat. It is also an offence to publish, or cause to be published, any advertisement likely to be understood as conveying that they buy or sell, or intend to buy or sell, any live or dead bat, part of a bat or anything derived from a bat. Sale includes hire, barter and exchange.
• Set and use articles capable of catching, injuring or killing a bat (for example a trap or poison), or knowingly cause or permit such an action. This includes sticky traps intended for animals other than bats.
• Make a false statement in order to obtain a licence for bat work.
• Possess articles capable of being used to commit an offence, or to attempt to commit an offence. These are punishable in a like manner as for the actual offence.

It is not illegal:

• To take a disabled bat for the sole purpose of tending it and releasing it when no longer disabled, as long as that person can show that it was not disabled unlawfully by them.
• To kill a bat, as long as that person can show that the bat was so seriously disabled, other than by their own unlawful act, that there was no reasonable chance of it recovering.
• If the otherwise illegal act was the incidental result of a lawful operation and could not reasonably have been avoided. However this defence can only be relied on (other than in the living area of a dwelling house) if the Statutory Nature Conservation Organisation (SNCO), i.e. English Nature, the Countryside Council for Wales, or Scottish Natural Heritage was notified about the proposed action and allowed reasonable time to advise as to whether it should be carried out, and if so, how.

For more information log on to The Bat Conservation Trust.

If you know of someone who has committed an offence against a bat or a colony of bats, call 0845 456 4567 and ask to speak to a Wildlife Crime Officer in your local area.