Landlords - Make Sure You Are Compliant!

A landlord has been fined in one of the first cases in England, for failing to comply with Electrical Safety Standards.

Regulations that were introduced across the country last year give local authorities powers to issue fines to landlords who fail to follow Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Sector (England) Regulations 2020.

These powers provide councils with, among other things, the ability to request reports following inspections of properties to understand the condition of the electrical installation and confirm that the landlord is complying with the Regulations.

A recent case led to Coventry council fining a landlord £1,600.

Despite requesting that the landlord of the property provide an Electrical Installation Condition Report to the council within seven days – as required under the regulations – the landlord failed to do so.

The council will now also be serving a remedial notice requiring further action to be taken.

The EICR 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.

Adrian Chowns, Property Licensing and Housing Enforcement Manager for Coventry council, says: “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.”

Separately the same council has also applied for its first banning order against a Coventry landlord following a successful prosecution in which he was found guilty of failing to comply with HMO management regulations.

Chowns adds: “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.”

If successful in obtaining a banning order, the landlord will be barred from letting out a house or being involved in any aspect of property management. Also, if the 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.

This landlord has also been added to the Rogue Landlord Database.