Landlord Prosecution Story

clutton_2

ring up the local environmental health department and as for the HMO officer

TJ27

[quote=clutton;10038219
the HMO license is granted to the person managing (as opposed to owning) the property [/quote]

No it's not.

TJ27

PasturesNew wrote: »

How would people know or find out if the HMO they are in is licensed?

Councils are legally obliged to keep a register of licensed HMOs. You should be able to call into the offices and see it, or as Clutton says just ring them.

I believe that some councils have put their HMO registers online too.

clutton_2

TJ27

It is possible that the criteria for the license bought by a HMO operator is different to the license bought by a Landlord in a Selective License Area, which application i have recently had to complete - (all 50 odd pages of it, plus endless back-up documentation for Manchester City council).

But it was the same form and for all the substantive questions, the questions were identical for both Selectively licensed LLs and HMO operators.

on the other hand since there are as many different interpretations of the 2004 Housing act as there are local authorities, some may do it differently ....

god help us all........

it was the day-to-day manager of the property who was investigated and who had to be police checked etc - if the owner is the manager then it is the owner/manager who is checked.

if the owner is not the manager the owner does not hav e to be checked out. They do have to sign the form, as owner, and say that the property is insured/mortgaged etc etc = but it is defo the manager who is the main focus of attention.

TJ27

We police check and do F&P checks on both the landlord and the manager. But we always insist that it is an owner of the property who holds the licence.

If there is a problem, for example the licence conditions are not complied with, then it is the licence holder who is prosecuted. Take an example where the agent/manager was allowed to be licence holder and, say, the landlord refused to pay for a fire alarm. We would have to prosecute the agent for the landlord's failure to pay. Firstly it complicates things but secondly I don't know of any agents/managers who are daft enough to take on that sort of responsibility.

I think that Brookside bloke who was prosecuted was manager rather than owner though, so I'm sure you're right that some councils allow it. We don't.

clutton_2

TJ - it certainly is a license to print money as far as Manchester is concerned - they have already been wrapped over the knuckles by Westminster several times since 2004 Act came into being re their "overzealous" approach - but it does not appear to have stopped them.

they started with 4 wards for Selective licensing, and have now added another 8 i think - it would not surprise me if in 10 years the whole of Manchester is "Selectively" licensed..........

which council do you work for ? PM if you would rather

TJ27

OK here's the official story of the LL who failed to licence:

http://www.cardiff.gov.uk/content.asp?nav=&parent_directory_id=2865&id=6392&Language=

The fine was £2,500 of a max £20,000. That sort of money might not bother him too much but he now has a criminal record, which might cause problems.

Of greater significance, and something that the article doesn't mention, is that his tenants intend to go for a rental repayment order. They may be able to claim back up to a full years rent form the LL. i.e. The landlord may be ordered to repay up to one years rent directly back to the tenants. Consider how much money that might be for, say, an eight let house in London and you realise that the rental repayment is far more than the fine.

I don't know what happens if the LL simply can't get his hands on that sort of money. Perhaps he has to pay on a drip? Perhaps he has to allow his tenants to live in the house rent free for a year? If I find out anything more I'll let you know.

fluffymuffy

And in Hereford - http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/west_midlands/black_country/7955736.stm

DawnW

seems that just leaving properties empty might be the preferable option for these LLs. Seems a lot more hassle than it is worth. My son once lived in one of these places where the LL was a right scumbag though.