ao link
Twitter
Facebook
Linked In
Twitter
Facebook
Linked In

You are viewing 1 of your 1 free articles

Release of criminal landlord stats leads to licensing call

A London council has urged more local authorities to introduce selective licensing for the private rented sector after the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) was forced to release a database of prosecuted landlords.

Linked InTwitterFacebookeCard

Data outlining the details of Housing Act prosecutions by English and Welsh councils between 2006 and 2014 indicates Newham Council, which introduced borough-wide licensing in January 2013, leads the field by quite some margin.

The figures show that in the east London local justice area, which includes Hackney and Tower Hamlets, Newham and Waltham Forest, 256 were prosecuted. The majority of cases are thought to be down to Newham.

Although the MoJ acknowledges the data is incomplete, it is the first time the extent of legal action against private landlords has been indicated.

Newham said that since borough-wide licensing was introduced, it has carried out 593 housing prosecutions against 482 landlords.

Private housing operations manager Russell Moffatt said: ‘Licensing allows us to identify rental properties, inspect them and crack down on negligent landlords forcing them to make improvements or move on. More councils need to introduce licensing to protect their residents from landlords who are leaving Newham and are looking to make a quick buck elsewhere.’

Earlier this year housing minister Brandon Lewis restricted local authorities from licensing more than 20% of the local private rented sector or 20% of its geographical area.

The MoJ figures also reveal more than 50 prosecutions in Oxfordshire, compared with nearly half that number in Birmingham and Solihull. Oxford City Council implemented additional licensing on houses in multiple occupation in 2012, whereas Birmingham City Council is currently consulting on setting up additional licensing. In 11 local justice areas only one prosecution was undertaken.

Betsy Dillner, director of Generation Rent, said: ‘The reality is that it is very resource-intensive for local authorities to bring cases against landlords. Councils certainly need the resources to enforce the law effectively, but licensing creates an efficient framework to assist this.’

The MoJ was ordered to release its prosecution database by an information tribunal after an appeal on public interest grounds lodged by magazine Environmental Health News.

The data reveals 2,006 individuals and companies were fined a total of nearly £3m for housing offences under the Housing Act 2004 between 2006 and 2014.


READ MORE

Generation Rent faces 'oblivion' after funding cutGeneration Rent faces 'oblivion' after funding cut

Linked InTwitterFacebookeCard
Add New Comment
You must be logged in to comment.