A council’s private rented sector enforcement team currently has almost 500 separate investigations going on.

The Royal Borough of Greenwich created the hit squad to crack down on unsafe, badly managed and/or illegal properties.

The team is working with local fire and police services as well as HMRC and the UK Border Agency.

As well as undertaking almost 500 separate investigations, 300 health and safety assessments have been completed and an additional 500 properties assessed.

More than 50 improvement notices have been served, as well as notices for a range of offences such as hazards and over-crowding.

One property has been closed down completely, and legal action is taking place against the owners of a number of others.

A major concern so far, says the council, has been the number of properties lacking basic fire safety measures including smoke alarms and working fire doors.

Cllr Maureen O’Mara, Greenwich cabinet member for community safety, said: “I want to congratulate the team on the crucial work they are doing to tackle head-on those private landlords who put their profits and greed before the safety and well-being of their tenants.

“From looking at some of the cases discovered so far, it is clear that some rogue landlords are operating without any sense of professionalism or duty of care.

“They are also collecting rents or benefit payments for properties they would never dream of living in themselves.

“We will take the strongest action against those landlords who do not improve their properties and practices.

“To those landlords who recognise they need to improve, we will provide the support and expertise to help their businesses grow in a responsible and professional manner.”