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MPs call for powers to confiscate rogue landlord properties
Councils need powers to confiscate properties from criminal landlords, a cross-party group of MPs has said.
In a report on the private rented sector (PRS) published today, the Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee said vulnerable tenants need greater legal protection from revenge evictions, rent increases and harassment in order to report sub-standard homes freely.
It called on the government to address “a clear power imbalance” in parts of the PRS.
In the most serious cases, landlords who retaliate after tenants complain about repairs and maintenance should face losing their properties, the committee said.
And it recommended a new fund to help councils carry out informal PRS enforcement work.
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Clive Betts, Labour MP for Sheffield South East and chair of the committee, said: “Local authorities need the power to levy more substantial fines against landlords and in the case of the most serious offenders, ultimately be able to confiscate their properties.
“Such powers are however meaningless if they are not enforced and at the same time councils need more resources to carry out effective prosecutions.
“Stronger powers, harsher fines and a new commitment to cracking down on unscrupulous practices will go some way towards rebalancing the sector and protecting the many thousands of vulnerable residents who have been abused and harassed by a landlord.”
The report also said councils should be required to publish their enforcement strategies online and that new ways of telling landlords and tenants about their rights and responsibilities should be introduced.
It also called for PRS legislation to be reviewed to improve clarity.
Enforcement of existing legislation aimed at protecting tenants has been “far too low” in recent years, the committee said, with six out of 10 councils not prosecuting a landlord in 2016.
“Tenants and good landlords are being let down by local authorities unable to properly enforce the powers they already have,” said Alan Ward, chair of the Residential Landlords Association.
“The problem is that over-stretched councils simply do not have the resources to properly use such powers to protect tenants from the minority of landlords who are criminals and have no place in the sector.”
