A rogue landlord who illegally converted a home into five flats has been ordered to pay £282,000 for breaching planning consent and other planning policies.

At Isleworth Crown Court, Krzysztof Pogwizd, 50, of Rasehill Close, Rickmansworth was ordered to pay the £282,000 confiscation order and fine for ignoring warnings by Ealing Council to return the house in Dorchester Road to its former condition.

According to Ealing Council, it issued an enforcement notice in early 20202 on Mr Pogwizd to stop letting the house in Northolt as five self-contained flats and to remove the bathrooms, kitchens and drainage connections from four of the flats as well as all internal locks, doors and partitions. The council said he did not appeal the notice.

Then in July 2022, the landlord submitted applied for planning permission to convert the Northolt house into four self-contained flats but in August 2022 it was refused.

A few months later in October 2022, Ealing Council planning enforcement along with police officers inspected the property where it was discovered that the house was occupied by multiple tenants and in breach of the original 2020 enforcement notice.

In September 2023, Pogwizd was summoned to Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court, where he pleaded guilty and the case was referred to Isleworth Crown Court. On 21 October 2024, he was ordered to pay a confiscation order of £259,920.51, a £12,000 fine, a victim surcharge of £2,000, and costs of £8,994.56.

In March 2023, Pogwizd obtained planning permission for the legal conversion of the property into 3 self-contained flats.

Cllr Shital Manro, the council’s cabinet member for good growth and new housing, commented: “As the demand for housing continues to grow in the borough, it’s more important than ever that we support landlords to provide safe, high-quality homes for their tenants. The overwhelming majority of landlords are law-abiding and play a vital part in the local housing market, but a tiny minority continue to put their tenants at risk by forcing them to live in cramped, sub-standard living conditions.

“Anyone looking to make substantial changes to their homes must seek planning approval before doing so. We will continue to take the strongest possible action to ensure that the borough’s private tenants are protected, and can live in safe, well-maintained homes.”