Kamma Rogue Landlord Roundup: March 2022

This month the government announced that, as a part of its ongoing mission to reform the Private Rented Sector, ministers are now set to ‘name and shame’ failing landlords both on the Government’s website and social media channels. The government will highlight poor practice by landlords and will include published findings by the Housing Ombudsman of severe maladministration and judgements of the Regulator of Social Housing that consumer standards have been breached.

In addition, the Secretary of State will, where appropriate, contact landlords to understand how they are taking steps to address the findings in less severe cases before publishing it on site and social media. For landlords and agents in the UK, this is yet another reason for why keeping on top of regulatory compliance, including licensing requirements, is so important

At Kamma, we understand that property licensing is complex, inconsistent, and ever changing. Our technology and software cuts through that complexity to keep you on top of all the changes with clear and accurate advice. We analyse and sort data to help agents, landlords and surveyors understand the impact of Property Licensing and Planning Permission on their properties and assets. We leverage technology and data to help agents and landlords stay on top of new property licensing schemes and avoid licensing fines.

Contact us or book a demo now to understand how Kamma can solve property licensing for you.

March Top Rogue Landlords 

Rogue landlord couple fined £27,000 for letting out hazardous HMO

The landlord couple were sentenced at Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court in March after admitting to breaching the Housing Act and the Building Act by renting out a property which was not ‘fit for human habitation’. Their property, a four-storey building was a HMO with a shop ground floor containing three flats, failed to meet basic safety requirements. The council served a notice to the landlords to resolve these issues, but the warning was ignored.

The landlords both plead guilty of a total of 30 offences including poor management of the property, lack of adequate waste facilities, lack of fire precautions and failure to provide information. The court was also told that some areas of the building had no lighting, no heating and some doors had no handles. Some of the windows did not open, there was mould, stairs with no handrails and broken smoke alarms.

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Rogue landlord fined for 9 separate safety violations at a single property

A landlord in Scrunthorpe has received hefty fines of over £5,000 after his property was found to have a number of serious health and safety breaches. The landlord has also recently appeared in court in relation to three other Scunthorpe properties where violations meant tenants’ lives were put at risk, for which he was fined £3,607.

The building on Reginald Road was found by investigators to have a number of serious health and safety breaches. These included a cracked light switch, dangerous plug sockets with exposed wires, cracks, mould and damp on walls, a lack of fire doors and fire alarms, fire escape routes blocked with debris and furniture, a broken step and worn floor coverings causing trip hazards and a lack of bins and recycling boxes.This March the landlord pleaded guilty to nine different charges at Grimsby Magistrates Court.

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London landlord has been fined £5,000 for letting an unlicensed HMO

The fine was issued after the landlord ignored repeated warnings from Hackney council to obtain a licence to continue letting the property.  Hackney’s HMO licensing scheme, which requires landlords to obtain a licence to let a property which meets the definition of an HMO, has been in operation since May 2019. Yet, the landlord still failed to obtain a licence.

In addition to the fine, Hackney council has referred the tenants to a tenancy advocacy organisation, who are supporting them to apply for a Rent Repayment Order to get their rent back for the months the property was unlicensed.

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