Returning keys and confirming the property exit are different tasks

Identify what the recipient is expected to receive. Depending on the site, that may include physical keys, access cards, gate devices and information handled through an approved security process. Ask the responsible people how sensitive access information should be transferred; do not put it in a general circulation closure note.

Record the location, date, items, recipient and the capacity in which that person receives them. Mark anything outstanding accurately. A duplicate key still held by a contractor should be recorded as unresolved, with a person responsible for dealing with it under the agreed arrangements.

Agree how the site contacts report a problem after the appointment. This could be a missing item or uncertainty about an access device. Keep the factual record separate from any language accepting property condition or settling claims, unless the advisers have approved that wording.

Ask the solicitor or other appropriate property adviser to confirm:

• Which documents establish the exit arrangement?
• What event or conditions must be confirmed before the agreed legal position takes effect?
• What wording should the operational handover record use?
• Which matters remain open after the handover?
• Who receives later property correspondence?

Keep the chosen exit route and its confirmed instructions available. A site employee should not have to interpret a legal agreement while someone waits at the door for the keys.

In a fictional closure, the office manager returns the keys while a records contractor still expects to attend the following week. The practical handover needs to disclose that unresolved visit. It cannot create permission for it.

The owner must arrange any post-exit access through the appropriate parties and advisers. If the visit changes or cannot be agreed, the business needs another authorised way to resolve the outstanding task. Retaining a spare key is not a substitute for an agreed arrangement.

Store the handover record with the property agreement, relevant correspondence and condition evidence. If a later property claim arrives, the adviser can then distinguish what was observed and transferred from what was legally agreed.

If equipment remains part of a closure sale enquiry, give UK Auction Group the actual access position and confirmed availability. Do not continue offering visits on the basis that the business once held the keys.

See Leaving business premises for related exit decisions.