Coventry landlord fined for electrical safety breach in landmark case

[dutchman]

The council is taking a 'proactive approach' to clamping down on 'rogue' landlords in the city



A Coventry landlord has been fined for failing to comply with electrical safety standards in what is thought to be the first prosecution of its kind. Coventry City Council issued a £1,600 fine after the landlord failed to provide an Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) in respect of their property in Stoney Stanton Road, Foleshill.

The report should have been completed on or around April 1, 2020 by a competent and suitably qualified electrician to show that the electrical installation in the property was safe, and a copy provided to the tenant. The council will also be serving a remedial notice requiring further action to be taken.

Regulations were introduced across the country last year giving local authorities powers to issue fines to landlords who fail to follow Electrical Safety Standards. Adrian Chowns, the council's property licensing and housing enforcement manager, said: "We believe this is the first time these powers have been used by a local authority in England. It highlights how Coventry City Council are taking a proactive approach to enforcement and clamping down on rogue landlords in its city.

"The landlord has committed multiple offences both recently and in the past, all of which are serious in their nature, and has put multiple tenants at risk of harm. We’ve provided lots of advice to the landlord, but he has continued to contravene the law and there are no signs of improvement."

The council works with landlords to provide education and advice as part of its landlord accreditation scheme and landlord forum. The authority has also applied for its first banning order against a landlord who failed to comply with Houses in Multiple Occupancy (HMO) management regulations.

The landlord in question has also been added to the Rogue Landlord Database. If the landlord is placed under a banning order, they will be barred from letting out a house or being involved in any aspect of property management.

When a banning order is breached, penalties can include imprisonment for up to 51 weeks, a court fine or a civil penalty of up to £30,000. The council says it adopts 'a robust approach to enforcement' and when serious offences are committed 'it does not shy away from taking enforcement action'.

Davina Blackburn, strategic lead for regulation in the city, said: "Most landlords are decent law-abiding people. However, there is still a minority who continue to show a flagrant disregard for the law, who put their tenants at risk and, as such, the council will target its enforcement activity against them."

[dutchman]

HOGWASH!

The council turn a blind eye to breaches of safety rules by housing associations, they only ever criticise private landlords. My own electrical installation was condemned several times before it was eventually (and only partially) fixed.

It was later condemned again when a private contractor was hired to install an electric cooker and ordered the housing association to redo the work.