A landlord has described how she was forced to live with family and in a camper van for months as she could not get a tenant to leave her property.

Victoria Mountain, who got her Surrey home back after allegedly not receiving rent for 10 months, said she cleared 15 bags of rubbish in a day because it was so messy.

"When I first came in here, it was just such a shock. I was in tears," the mother-of-two said.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) said the Renters' Right Act ensured landlords had "robust grounds for possession if there is good reason to take it back, including a tenant damaging the property or falling into rent arrears".

Mountain said she gave the tenant more than a year's notice that she wanted to move back into the house in Guildford with her two young daughters.

But when she returned from Devon she said the tenant would not leave.

Guildford Borough Council told her they could not provide emergency housing as she owned a home, Mountain added.

Because of this, she said she stayed with friends and family for six months before deciding at the end of 2025 to rent somewhere.

Guildford Borough Council said it did not comment on individual cases.

However, it added that all requests for housing assistance were "considered based on a household's individual circumstances, eligibility and housing need."

Mountain said legal back-and-forths went on for most of 2026 before bailiffs went in and she got the keys back at the start of September.

She claimed she was £20,000 down because of what happened.

"It has caused so much stress," she said.

"I feel like I have missed a lot of my children's childhood and enjoying my motherhood because it's been really horrible to have to deal with all of this."

Chris Norris, from the National Residential Landlords Association, told the BBC the "vast majority of tenancies run to everyone's satisfaction and there are not major disputes".

But he added, when things go wrong, landlords are at the mercy of the courts.

"There can be very, very long waits... and that's where landlords tend to find themselves out of pocket.

"There's also likely to be some trashing of the property when you've had those kind of disputes," he said.

But renters have previously told the BBC about significant difficulties they have faced too, including paying "70% of their salaries" in rent, and having to move multiple times.

Mountain said her experience had put a strain on her family relationships.

"I feel like I've lost a lot of people in my life," she said. "I have taken on a huge amount of the pressure.

"I just want to give my girls back some of their mum."

The mother-of-two said she believed the system was "completely broken".

She explained: "I do believe there has to be protection for tenants, but I also think there has to be protection for the landlords.

"There are some very good-hearted landlords out there who are looking after their tenants and doing exactly what they need to be doing, making sure the house is livable".

The MHCLG spokeseperson said: "Landlords should not have to accept tenants keeping their properties in poor condition."

Follow BBC Surrey on Facebook, X, and Instagram and listen to BBC Radio Surrey on Sounds. Send your story ideas to southeasttoday@bbc.co.uk or WhatsApp us on 08081 002250.