The Lazio administrative court, in ruling 17312 of 2 November 2026, upheld a mayor's order requiring the owner to stop the "improper use" of a motorhome parked on private land. The court rejected the appeal against the order.
The case began with two inspections in June 2025 by the health authority and the fire brigade. The site had scattered waste, neglected and dangerous makeshift structures, gas cylinders and stacked wood, overgrown vegetation, sewage not connected to the public sewer and a motorhome apparently used as a dwelling. In July 2025 the mayor ordered the holder and co-owner of the land to restore the area within 30 days.
The court said a motorhome remains a vehicle even when it has a kitchen and a bed. But when it becomes a permanent residence, a building permit is required. It cited Article 3 of the consolidated building code (d.P.R. 380/2001), which treats the installation of motorhomes, caravans and mobile homes used as dwellings as new construction unless the need is purely temporary. Signs of permanent use include how long the vehicle has stood still, permanent utility connections, blocks under the wheels and a platform built around it.