The landlord of a rental property in Cromer town centre has been hit with a fine of £16,000 due to “hazardous” living conditions.
The tenant first raised problems with the managing agent in September 2020 and then with North Norfolk District Council in December 2020.
In January 2021, with Covid restrictions in place, a desktop assessment of photographic and documentary evidence was carried out by an environmental protection officer, who confirmed the existence of hazards including excess cold and electrical disrepair.
A letter was then sent to the managing agent advising that remedial action was required to address the problems. A follow-up visit to the property was carried out by an environmental protection officer in August 2021 to assess whether the remedial works had been completed.
However, the inspection confirmed the work had not been carried out and an improvement notice was served, followed by a final notice to issue a fine.
The landlord appealed against the penalty but the original decision was upheld by the Residential Properties Tribunal.
Tim Adams, leader of NNDC, said: “If you are a private landlord, it is your responsibility to make sure that the property you are letting out is safe for tenants and is in good condition as to not present a hazard to the health of those tenants.
“I am pleased that the Residential Property Tribunal has upheld the financial penalty notice and that the landlord has been held accountable to their privately rented property.”
Without knowing the details of the work, I am glad that a Landlord allowing the Tenant to live in unsafe conditions was fined. I have properties I manage where I want things to be changed and updated, but I know the Landlord’s cannot afford it. Safety work is prioritised, and I keep an eye out for grants in the hope we can get the Landlord to get work done in the future. The Tenants seem accepting of it, especially as I point out to the Landlord that they can’t expect top price for a property that is not in tip-top condition.
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“A letter was then sent to the managing agent advising that remedial action was required to address the problems.” At that point the agent should either have insisted the work was carried out or disinstructed themselves, advising the council accordingly.
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