Landlords Avoid Huge Fines & Tribunal Cases

A property tribunal judge threw out a rent repayment order claim that could have cost an innocent landlord thousands of pounds in compensation.

Tenants backed by Southwark Council, London, and the campaign group Justice for Tenants claimed the landlord failed to obtain a shared house in multiple occupation (HMO) licence while they lived in the property and that their living conditions were poor.

The three tenants claimed the landlord was guilty of housing offences, alleging fire safety offences, and demanded some £29,000 in rent refunds as compensation.

However, the First-Tier Property Tribunal ruled their complaints were trivial and that Southwark Council had overlooked the landlord had been granted an HMO licence due to administration errors for the four-bedroom flat in Goldsmith Road, Peckham, South London.

The tribunal was told that the council had changed computer systems and, during the upgrade, had lost many records and other data - including the landlord's licence application and payment details.

The landlord provided copies of the licence and bank statements proving payment of the licensing fee at the tribunal.

The tribunal accepted the landlord's evidence, which rejected the rent repayment claim.

HMO scheme legal challenge

North Lincolnshire Council has halted a planned roll-out of a selective licensing scheme due to a legal challenge.

Crosby Landlords Association claims the scheme did not follow licensing rules and should be returned to the drawing board.

A North Lincolnshire Council online notice said the scheme's launch date had been delayed, and applications had not been accepted.

The notice said further updates regarding the licence application processes, fees, and deadlines will be available on their website as soon as possible.

Double trouble for landlord

An HMO landlord faced double trouble for ignoring an order to provide a local council with tenancy agreements and other tenant information.

Failing to hand over the information led to fines and costs totalling £942 imposed by Nottingham magistrates.

The offences then prompted a housing officer at Broxtowe Council to inspect the property, which uncovered several health and safety defects.

The remedial work needed included repairing water leaks, fixing door handles, installing additional fire alarms, replacing door locks, and repairing faulty electrical sockets.

The landlord failed to carry out the repairs, so the council ordered him to pay more fines and costs, totalling £4,016.

Penalty reduced on appeal

Separate landlord appeals against fines imposed by Crawley Council were thrown out by the First-Tier Property Tribunal.

Nasser Butt appealed an order to pay £2,750 in fines and costs for letting two overcrowded HMOs, but the tribunal upheld the penalty.

The tribunal also considered an appeal by landlord Martin New against a £5,100 penalty for failing to carry out repairs demanded in an improvement notice, including replacing a defective gas boiler and dealing with mould in the home.

Other repairs included replacing a missing fence panel and clearing a dilapidated back garden shed.

New's penalty was reduced to £3,000.