Beach hut owners on Hayling Island have erupted in fury after Havant Borough Council doubled their annual fees as local accuse authorities of trying to force them out of their seaside retreats.
The council, led by a Labour, Liberal Democrat and Green Party coalition, has increased licence fees from £600 to over £1,000 for local residents, while non-residents saw just a 1.7 per cent rise.
Owners have slammed the council for assuming they must be "really rich" for having the wooden structures.
Many claim they have inherited their huts or owned them for years, with some having family connections to the beach huts dating back to the 1950s.
People relax in the autumn sun on the beach in Hayling Island, Hampshire.
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The 50 per cent increase has left many questioning whether they can afford to keep their huts. Jayne Dalley, 68, who purchased her hut with her husband Robert and friends in 2009, received a letter this week informing her of the new £1,036 annual fee.
"It's been a real shock that it's gone up that much," she said. "I don't understand the reasoning – we get nothing for that money."
The Dalleys originally bought their hut for around £5,000. Jayne added: "We have to pay for all the maintenance on the huts, we pay for parking."
The increase only affects local residents, with out-of-town hut owners seeing their fees rise by just 1.7 per cent.
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Hayling Island beach huts
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The council said the aim was "to move towards greater alignment of the beach hut licence fee between residents and non-residents of the borough".
"We don't know if they just think because we have got a beach hut we're really rich. Hayling Island is one of the cheapest places to buy a beach hut," Jayne continued.
"A lot of people have had them a long time, a lot of people have inherited them. It doesn't mean to say we are rich."
She contrasted their modest huts with those in Mudeford and Bournemouth, which can cost over £400,000. The Hayling Island huts are "not glamorous", she insisted.
Havant Borough Council
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Cheryl Arnold, 67, who has owned her hut for four years, described the increase as a "hell of a hike" and "pretty shocking".
A spokesman from Havant Borough Council told The Telegraph: "The council has increased the licence fee for borough residents of privately owned and council-owned beach huts by 50 per cent this financial year.
"The aim is to move towards greater alignment of the beach hut licence fee between residents and non-residents of the borough. The charges apply from April 1 2025."
