Landlord prosecuted over 'disgraceful, rat-infested' properties
23 Jul 2010
A councillor landlord has been fined and prosecuted after
properties in Liverpool were found to be rat-infested and
inadequately protected from fire.
Premier Housing of Bradford - directed by councillor Rizwan Malik -
had been renting out houses in Laburnum Road and Holt Road,
Liverpool to mostly Eastern European immigrants, the Liverpool Echo
reports.
However, investigations found them to be full of vermin, daubed
with graffiti and in a state of disrepair, with fire alarms out of
order and windows nailed shut.
Penalties of GBP 39,180 were issued to Premier Housing under Houses
of Multiple Occupancy (HMO) legislation and councillor Malik has
since resigned from his position of chairman of Bradford's housing
committee.
He is also under investigation from the Labour party.
"I've been advised by the leadership team that I'm still under
further investigation and questioning so I can't really make any
comment at this stage," he said.
Liberal Democrat leader councillor Warren Bradley said his party
has since introduced a landlord accreditation scheme which should
prevent such incidents from happening again.
In June 2010, Camden Council investigated safety failings at a
property in London owned by Alexander Begun of BP Associates and
Blix.
According to Residential Landlord, the three-storey property had no
fire detection and no fire doors, resulting in prosecution by the
council and fines of GBP 32,400.
Under the 2004 Housing Act, landlords must provide an adequate
means of escape in case of emergency and should also provide
adequate fire extinguishing equipment for the size of the
property.
Satvir Sahota, a housing law solicitor at Hodge Jones &
Allen LLP, comments: "This is a very good result for all tenants
but in particular for those tenants who have little knowledge of
the standards they can expect for rented accommodation.
"The fact that this case involved a councillor who was chairman of
a local authority's housing committee is beyond belief.
Unfortunately a landlord accreditation scheme cannot guarantee that
incidents like this will not happen again. Local authorities must
do everything within their powers to ensure landlords are complying
with the law and not putting their tenants in danger."
Ian Greenidge, a partner at Hodge Jones & Allen LLP and
head of the housing law team, adds: "It is encouraging to see local
authorities using their powers to prosecute bad landlords and that
the courts are handing out substantial fines. Tenants living in
sub-standard accommodation should contact their council's
Environmental Health Dept, which may result in similar sanctions
being taken against their landlord in the criminal courts.
"Tenants can also obtain independent legal advice about bringing a
claim in the County Court for damages for the inconvenience and
distress caused as a result of poor living conditions."
