What happens if I do not apply
HMO prosecutions round-up - October 2009
Barrow Borough Council, 2009
A successful prosecution under management regulations for failure to provide electrical certification. A former pub was converted into five flats without planning or building regulations approval. Electrical installations were found to be dangerous. Hometrader North East Limited, operating from Manchester, was fined £2,250 plus £850 costs and £15 victim surcharge.
Basildon Council, August 2009
A successful prosecution for operating an HMO without a licence. Landlord Kirsty Frost was ordered by Basildon Magistrates Court to pay £3,750 plus £1,624 costs and a £15 victim surcharge for failing to licence her property at 31 Wickhay, Basildon. She had been given the opportunity to licence the property in September 2008 by Basildon Council but failed to do so. EHOs subsequently found the property had no smoke detectors, no fire doors, no emergency lighting. In addition, internal construction did not require the required standard of fire resistance; there was no heating, and hot water was available only to an electric shower. The landlord claimed the property was let through agents and that she did not know it was being used as an HMO.
Birmingham City Council, 16 July 2009
Mr. Mohammed Javaid was successfully prosecuted for failing to obtain an HMO license from the Council. He was fined £6,000 plus costs of £3,279 for renting his property in College Road, Moseley without a licence despite many reminders from the council that he needed one.
Blackpool City Council, May 2009
London-based landlord Umer Usman Amin and his managing agent Ismail Derek were both convicted of operating properties without licence and allowing tenants to live in dangerous conditions. They were each fined £3,672 plus £847 costs and £15 victim surcharge, and have been banned from managing similar properties in the future. Electrics at 33 and 43 Tyldesley Road were in such a poor state a fire could have broken out at any time. Council and fire fficers found 21 people in total living at the two properties, with category one hazards present.
Brentwood Borough Council, 28 May 2009
Mr K Choudhary of Zafran Indian Restaurant, Mountnessing, Brentwood was convicted for breaching of a Prohibition Notice in force on the first floor accommodation above his restaurant. He was fined £3,000 plus £985 costs. Six members of restaurant staff were found to be sleeping at the premises with a category one hazard present. There had been a long history of non-compliance on Mr. Choudhary's part, despite the council having advised him of how to remedy the situation.
Cardiff Council, 10 August 2009
Landlord Sabiha Almas Siddique was successfully prosecuted by Cardiff Council for failing to license her property at 1 Mafeking Road, Penylan, Cardiff. The council had sent her a license application pack in 2007 but she had failed to return it, and did not provide any of the required safety documents. She was fined £1,500 and £150 costs. Former tenants of the property could now apply for a Rent Repayment Order. The estimated rent paid over the year by the six former tenants is £15,500, meaning the landlord could potentially lose yet more money. The property has not yet been licensed as current electrical, gas and fire alarm certificates have still not been provided.
Cardiff Council, 7 April 2008
24 Llantrisant Street, Cathays, Cardiff had been identified as licensable in January 2007 and a licensing application pack was sent to the owner, Mr. Zacariah Chowdhury. Despite numerous requests for documents related to the application, it remained substantially incomplete by February 2008, and Mr. Chowdhury was prosecuted for operating an HMO without the required licence. He was fined £2,500 and ordered to pay the council's costs of £260 and a victim surcharge of £15. The former tenants made an RRO application to the Residential Property Tribunal for Wales which was heard on 14 October 2008. Mr. Chowdhury was ordered to repay 70% of the rent received from these tenants, being a total of £7,392.00 (£1,760 for each tenant). The property has since been licensed.
LFEPA, 20 October 2008
Fatal fire at 23 Ruskin Road, London N17. A prosecution taken under the RRO 2005. Mr. Parlak, director of Watchacre Ltd which owned the property was handed a 4 month custodial sentence - the first custodial sentence given under the RRO. Watchacre Ltd was fined £21,000 plus £8,800 costs notwithstanding an early guilty plea.
London Borough of Haringey, 12 March 2008
Fatal fire at 23 Ruskin Road, London N17. Watchacre Ltd, the registered owner of the house, was prosecuted for failures under HMO Management Regulations - disconnection of fire alarm system from electrical supply; defective fire doors wedged open; defective and dangerous electrical systems; no contact details for manager on display. Watchacre was fined £8,000 plus £1,606.06 costs and £15 victim supplement. (See also the related LFEPA prosecution, below).
London Borough of Lewisham, 12 May 2009
Lillian Avbara, was successfully prosecuted by Lewisham Council after the house she owned comprising bedsits was found to be in a squalid condition. The house at Sangley Road, Catford, had evidence of significant rat and cockroach infestations. The owner was given notice by the Council to clean up the property. However, when officers returned to check that she had done so, they found tenants living in exactly the same conditions. Avbara was advised that she needed to repair holes in external walls which allowed access for rats; to clear food waste left in the garden; to cease using a dangerous cooker and to replace un-inspected fire extinguishers. She was also required to produce gas and electrical safety certificates but failed to do so. At a hearing on 28 April, Avbara was found guilty of contraventions of the Management Regulations. She was fined a total of £1,200 and ordered to pay £1,000 costs.
London Borough of Merton, 14 August 2009
A prosecution against a Mr Abbas in Wimbledon Magistrates Court for letting a House in Multiple Occupation (49 Hassocks Road , London SW16) without a licence for the premises in contravention of Housing Act 2004 requirements. Officers had sought to support the landlord and encourage him to apply for a licence. Regrettably he ignored these offers of support and requests to apply. Mr Abbas was fined £7,000 - a significant sum - and ordered to pay prosecution costs of £1,045.
London Borough of Newham
Successful prosecution under HMO management regulations of Ms. Kanchan Sawhney for harassment of her tenant following a rental dispute. Ms. Sawhney disconnected the mains water supply, leaving the tenant without water for seven days. She failed to comply with a council Notice requiring the reconnection of the water supply. She also sent threatening email and text messages to the tenant over eight months. The landlord was order to complete 200 hours community service and fined £615 after being found guilty of harassment and breaching the housing management regulations.
London Borough of Newham
A landlord successfully prosecuted for breaches of the Environmental Protection Act 1990, and failure to comply with an enforcement notice in respect of hazards at her property. Ms Connie Jane Poku, failed to provide hot water and heating services for the tenant of her property on Ingestre Road, E7. Ms Poku pleaded guilty and was fined £4,984 (including a fine of £350, and ordered to pay Council's costs of £4,619 and a £15 victim surcharge). The landlord had refused to carry out works on the boiler and the tenant was left without hot water and heating for a number of weeks. Officers inspecting the property discovered the boiler had not been serviced for many years and could prove a health hazard. A gas safety engineer was called out who subsequently condemned the boiler. The council carried out works in default, as Ms. Poku failed to comply with the enforcement notice.
Luton Borough Council, 10 August 2009
Landlord James Westcott, 26, was successfully prosecuted for operating an HMO without a licence at 64 Russell Rise. He was the first person to be prosecuted by Luton Borough Council for this offence. Officers from the Council's Private Sector Housing Team carried out a late night spot check at the property confirming that the property was occupied and that Mr Westcott had not applied to the Council for a licence. Mr Westcott, who is also linked to a local letting agent ‘Student Accommodation Ltd', was found guilty of the offence and ordered to pay £5,000 plus £220 Council costs. The Magistrates considered the offence to be a serious one owing to the health and safety risks and because of Mr. Westcott's involvement in a locally well known property management company.
Norwich City Council
Mr. Law, the manager of the Hong Kong Restaurant in Prince of Wales Road, was prosecuted for breaching an Emergency Prohibition Order. He had allowed the floors above his restaurant to be used for residential accommodation while category one hazards were present. Upon visiting, PSH team officers found nine recently vacated beds and witnessed at least three people fleeing the building over the roof. Mr. Law was fined £2,500 plus £100 costs and £15 victim surcharge. The PRS team had explained many times to Mr. Law what needed to be done to improve the building so people could live there.
Norwich City Council
The landlord of a 3-storey bedsit HMO in Rosary Road was prosecuted for four offences under the Management Regulations and fined £1,000 plus costs and victim surcharge. He had switched off the fire detection system because it was malfunctioning. He had failed to make arrangements for it to be repaired, and a fire occurred whilst the system was not working. Fortunately, none of his tenants were harmed.
Norwich City Council, 29 January 2009
Mr. R. Baily was convicted under management regulations for failure to display his name and contact details prominently at his HMO; for failure to ensure fire extinguishers were in date and good working order; and for failure to keep windows in good repair. Mr. Baily was the manager of several HMOs, and the prosecution therefore served to warn him that his standards of management and maintenance/ upkeep of his properties needed to improve.
Torbay Council, 2008
Torbay prosecuted a local HMO owner under management regulations last year. The offences related to fire precautions and general poor management. Fines totaling £9,000 were imposed in the owner's absence from court and failure to enter a plea. These fines were reduced subsequently to £4,250 on appeal.
This page was last updated on 15 November 2010
