HMO Landlords

[pinkpapaya]

Hello,
can anyone tell me what is likely to happen to a person renting out a shared house/HMO house who:

a) isn't a registered landlord
b) hasn't been telling the taxman
c) has been renting to a person no right to rent
d) hasn't been providing gas checks
e) committed meter tampering and electricity abstraction
f) harassed tenants in a mild way
g) has no fire safety in the house
h) does no electrical checks
i) hasn't protected tenant deposits

Will they get into trouble or does nothing happen usually?

I rented a house from a bona fide lettings agent years ago which they did not properly maintain. After part of the roof fell in, the council told them if it wasn’t fixed within 24 hours the house would be declared uninhabitable.

From that experience I believe a council would most certainly be taking action in the circumstances you describe! Contact them.

Yes the council would definitely take action. Please report to your environmental health team.

Will they throw the book at them as it is multiple counts of civil and criminal infringements?

Does the landlord/owner live there Too?

@pinkpapaya

Hello, can anyone tell me what is likely to happen to a person renting out a shared house/HMO house who:

a) isn't a registered landlord
b) hasn't been telling the taxman
c) has been renting to a person no right to rent
d) hasn't been providing gas checks
e) committed meter tampering and electricity abstraction
f) harassed tenants in a mild way
g) has no fire safety in the house
h) does no electrical checks
i) hasn't protected tenant deposits

Will they get into trouble or does nothing happen usually?

What is the situation here? Where is the property (Borough / Council - and in particular what are their Private Sector licencing requirements?) Is it a mandatory HMO or a selective one?

It sounds to me like the landlord is guilty of a criminal offence re: tax evasion and another re:renting to a person with no right to rent. Whether HMRC or police care, who knows.

The mild harrassment is probably he said she said and nothing will come of it.

The key thing here is if the council and property licencing. They will probably come down hard if they are informed.

The other thing is why are you asking? Is the landlord trying to evict the tenants? If the deposit isn't protected he can't evict you as far as I know - if he tries to take you to court to get you out they'll want to see the evidence of deposit protection and he'll have to 'fess up to being a criminal who hasn't got it.

Please report this. The tenants could be in real danger living in a potentially unsafe property.

@Comefromaway

Please report this. The tenants could be in real danger living in a potentially unsafe property.

Yes. Ticking every single regulatory box relating to HMOs is hard, and I'd never criticize a landlord for not being perfect. But no gas safety, no protecting deposits, no electrical safety - proper disgusting and dangerous behaviour.

Perhaps OP is landlord?

@20questions

Does the landlord/owner live there Too?

No they don't

Jedi because I am thinking of reporting

Quite a hefty fine of about £30k for running an unlicensed HMO and councils are pretty hot on it now with the relatively now legislative now in place.

No not the landlord but the tenant is my younger cousin in an HMO in London and all sorts of things are coming to light abut this property and the landlord. I just don't think these scumbags should get away with any of it and I am hoping that custodial sentences might be handed out given the absolute shopping list of things wrong! Putting people's lives at risk so they can pocket a few extra quid - it makes my blood boil! My cousin went through an estate agent and thought that this way it would all be above board and instead she has been landed with a rogue landlord.

I wondered if anyone here had any experience of prosecutions of this sort of thing and could tell me if they are probably just going to get fines or (hopefully) a sentence, even f it is just a suspended one or a ban from running an HMO again. We are working on the reports and evidence to present to the various agencies involved.

No gas safety certificate can result in a jail sentence. You can report it here extranet.hse.gov.uk/lfserver/external/lgsr1

Electricity abstraction and tampering with the supply can lead to a prison sentence of up to 5 years as a standalone offence.

HMRC aren't known for being soft on tax evasion that can't be repaid, prison is always an option for them...but not always carried out.

That's aside from the other stuff mentioned that the council would happily fine them for.

Please report. What they're doing is illegal for a reason. They deserve to have the book thrown at them in every imaginable way.

@WTFisNext

Electricity abstraction and tampering with the supply can lead to a prison sentence of up to 5 years as a standalone offence.

HMRC aren't known for being soft on tax evasion that can't be repaid, prison is always an option for them...but not always carried out.

That's aside from the other stuff mentioned that the council would happily fine them for.

Please report. What they're doing is illegal for a reason. They deserve to have the book thrown at them in every imaginable way.

Absolutely agree! I can't tell you how appalled I am and this is why I was asking because I am hoping that when the various agencies make a move, that they go all out and that because these aren't one off or isolated offences that it might get a bit more than a fine.

Councils vary wildly in their approaches and how far they will go to prosecute but there are certainly many laws being broken here.

They don't do much in some council areas like London ones. Maybe a fine but small money after all the earn from the rent if reported most of the tenants suffer badly. They in serious trouble if it's reported cos small fine for landlord but the tenants homeless. Bad dangerous HMO places often only places who take disability benefits so nowhere else to go. Big reason why women like me have to go back to violent partners cos in London disability benefits tenants have to live in bad place with no reporting cos homelessness if it's reported. Maybe different if not London maybe safer to report but still landlord gets just small fine compares to money made.

The landlord has now decided to send my cousin texts saying that a vase of flowers she has on the worktop near her kitchen cupboard must be removed as it is a 'sign of dominance; in a shared kitchen. My cousin has gone back and asked if other tenant's have been asked to remove their belongings on the counter tops too. The landlord has also asked that rent from next week must be paid monthly. My cousin initially was paying monthly but then lost her job and asked if she could pay weekly and the landlord has been fine with this but since my cousin stood up to the landlord (politely) about her husband letting himself in, all of a sudden the landlord is starting to be difficult - has asked other tenants of my cousin cleans, if she buys bin bags, if she owns houseplants on the windowsill etc etc. Could this be construed as harassment? My cousin was so stressed today she called me in tears. We do know that the landlord is legally within their right to as for the rent to be paid monthly again but it seems a bit strange that this request is coming after what I have described.

How much grief the Landlord gets depends on the borough the property is it. I would contact the Trading Standards department of the council as your first point of call. They'll tackle the licensing and safety issues. Bear in mind that if the council deem a house unsafe and a landlord does not complete their required works order they have the power to remove everyone from the building so you could be causing more problems for your cousin than resolving.
They won't care about the lack of deposit registration or if any of the required admin (prescribed information, how to rent guide etc is done) - that's not their domain. This is dealt with via the courts separately and from my experience rarely anything is done about this.
Unless the vase is obstructing access or use of anything in the kitchen there is generally no breach on the tenants before, asking to remove it is unreasonable.
I would suggest you find your cousin a new home, somewhere safer and a less hostile environment ASAP and raise the safety matters with the council.

Go to local housing authority. They can take action.
You can also make a claim for a rent repayment order if the house should be licensed but isn't. Look at the local authority website u der private sector housing and there will probably be info on there about how to do this.

@MrsW2603

How much grief the Landlord gets depends on the borough the property is it. I would contact the Trading Standards department of the council as your first point of call. They'll tackle the licensing and safety issues. Bear in mind that if the council deem a house unsafe and a landlord does not complete their required works order they have the power to remove everyone from the building so you could be causing more problems for your cousin than resolving. They won't care about the lack of deposit registration or if any of the required admin (prescribed information, how to rent guide etc is done) - that's not their domain. This is dealt with via the courts separately and from my experience rarely anything is done about this. Unless the vase is obstructing access or use of anything in the kitchen there is generally no breach on the tenants before, asking to remove it is unreasonable. I would suggest you find your cousin a new home, somewhere safer and a less hostile environment ASAP and raise the safety matters with the council.

No the vase of flowers was not obstructing anything or access. Apparently her food cupboard is in a corner away from the door and the vase of flowers was on the tiny bit of worktop she has close to the cupboard. Although it isn't illegal to ask her to remove it etc, I think it is fairly obvious that there is a bit of 'cause and effect' going on after she complained about the landlord's partner turning up unannounced , often with an alcoholic 'friend' in tow who has been verbally abusive and threatening in the recent past.

@Stripyhoglets1

Go to local housing authority. They can take action. You can also make a claim for a rent repayment order if the house should be licensed but isn't. Look at the local authority website u der private sector housing and there will probably be info on there about how to do this.

I have got her to report them to the HSE and the council environmental health department but they won't get the email until Monday. She wants to change the lock on her room now as the landlord's husband just lets himself into the shared areas of the house but also into the other's rooms when they are out at work. She knows this from when she was out of work and heard/saw him.

@MrsW2603

How much grief the Landlord gets depends on the borough the property is it. I would contact the Trading Standards department of the council as your first point of call. They'll tackle the licensing and safety issues. Bear in mind that if the council deem a house unsafe and a landlord does not complete their required works order they have the power to remove everyone from the building so you could be causing more problems for your cousin than resolving. They won't care about the lack of deposit registration or if any of the required admin (prescribed information, how to rent guide etc is done) - that's not their domain. This is dealt with via the courts separately and from my experience rarely anything is done about this. Unless the vase is obstructing access or use of anything in the kitchen there is generally no breach on the tenants before, asking to remove it is unreasonable. I would suggest you find your cousin a new home, somewhere safer and a less hostile environment ASAP and raise the safety matters with the council.

That is awful. I hope you are safe now x

I am seriously thinking of telling her to go to her local MP too because slum landlords like this should not be allowed to operate

Sorry I should have been clear that the term 'from my experience' was from a professional capacity - not personal

@MrsW2603

Sorry I should have been clear that the term 'from my experience' was from a professional capacity - not personal

Thank you. I thought that unless the council wants to use it as an 'extra' when they step in. I think though that they can pursue through the small claims court for the non-protection of deposit?

Do the energy companies go after meter cheaters hard?