Rogue Landlords and Agents to be Fined up to £30,000
Landlords and letting agents that rent out substandard or unsafe homes will face fines of up to £30,000 under new laws to be revealed this week.
The Housing Minister, Brandon Lewis, will announce the new measures, designed to force rouge landlords and agents out of the sector.
Council officers will be able to serve a new civil penalty notice on offenders, providing an instant deterrent for criminal landlords.
Fines will be increased if the landlord or agent does not take action on overcrowding, hazardous conditions, poor sanitation, electrical faults, damp and vermin infestation.
The laws, under the Housing and Planning Bill, will also ban repeat offenders for at least 12 months.
A database of rogue landlords and agents will also be made available to council staff.
At present, civil penalties can be up to £5,000, but the average is just £1,500.
There are 4.4m private rental homes in England. Lewis says: “The private rental sector is still afflicted by too many rogues who rent dangerous, dirty and overcrowded properties without a thought for the welfare of their tenants. We are determined to crack down.”1