Posts with tag: fire safety

Rogue landlord in Birmingham jailed for neglect

Published On: April 7, 2016 at 9:15 am

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A rogue landlord from Birmingham has been jailed for a whole host of safety breaches in a four-floor property in Edgbaston.

Cyrus Bassiri was sent to prison for 19 months and told to pay £13,820 following his disregard for health and safety in his rental property.

Greedy

During sentencing at Birmingham Crown Court, Mr Bassiri was described as ‘greedy and cynical’ and was told he put, ‘profit before the safety of tenants’ by Judge Mary Stacey.

The Court heard that two fire alarms in the property did not work and that a fire escape was blocked by a washing machine and display cabinet. What’s more, emergency lighting was fitted incorrectly and a fire door was found to be damaged.

When firefighters raised their concerns with Mr Bassiri, he responded in an ‘aggressive and bullying’ manner.

Exploitation

Judge Mary Stacey told Mr Bassiri, ‘you have been greedy, you have been cynical and you have been exploitative of the occupants of this property in your control. Having failed to address the matters raised by the fire brigade you responded to their attempts to get you to comply with your legal obligations by being aggressive, by bullying behavior, by threatening to take them to court and expose them to the press.’[1]

Previously, 59 year old Bassiri had admitted three counts of failing to adhere to general fire precautions and two of failing to comply with an enforcement notice.

Rogue landlord in Birmingham jailed for neglect

Rogue landlord in Birmingham jailed for neglect

Disregard

Mark Jackson, prosecuting, noted Mr Bassiri had already been handed a six-month suspended sentence for breaches of fire safety regulations in another property in 2012. In addition, a member of the public complained over further disregard to fire safety rules in the property during 2013.

Mohammed Afzal, defending, argued Bassiri had wrongly believed he was the victim of a plot to force him out of the property and there were ‘only three tenants.’ He also claimed Mr Bassiri was, ‘distracted by a business dispute and was under severe pressure.’[1]

Buy-to-let investors should utilise advice for landlords on fire safety before making a purchase.

[1] https://www.landlordtoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2016/4/birmingham-landlord-jailed

 

 

 

Bolton landlord fined after fatal fire

Published On: February 26, 2016 at 12:56 pm

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A landlord from Bolton has been fined £1,500 after a fatal fire in one of his rental properties.

Andrew Turnstall was given the hefty fine following the blaze which tragically killed a 49 year-old father of two.

Breaches

Following the fire, inspectors and the local council went to the property and found there had been a number of fire safety breaches.

The smoke alarm had been switched off by a previous tenant, in order for them to be able to smoke in the property without incident. During the investigation, the court heard that there was no suggestion that Turnstall had turned the alarm off himself.

Mr Turnstall did however admit to not servicing a fire extinguisher and having no fire blanket in the property.

Bolton landlord fined after fatal fire

Bolton landlord fined after fatal fire

Contraventions

Catherine Waudby, prosecuting for Bolton Council, said, ‘during the inspection a number of contravention of the regulations were noted in both the common parts and the flats.’[1]

‘Whilst it is appreciated that some of these will have been caused by tenants or visitors, the number of issues identified at the property, particularly those relating to fire safety, clearly suggests that the level of management was not to a satisfactory standard and had resulted in a number of contraventions,’ Waudby added.[1]

[1] https://www.landlordtoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2016/2/lancashire-landlord-fined-after-fatal-blaze

 

Rogue landlord in Cambridge fined £15,080

Published On: January 22, 2016 at 2:15 pm

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A landlord has been charged and fined for not adhering to regulations for HMOs, following an early morning raid involving immigration enforcement officers.

Selvakumar Francis, a London-based landlord, appeared in court on charges related to the condition and overcrowding of his property in Cambridge.

Disregard

Evidence was uncovered that Mr Francis had show disregard to the property, allowing its condition to deteriorate substantially. The property was found to have no basic fire safety precautions.

Officers noted that many defects amounted to nine breaches of the Management of Houses in Multiple Occupation (England) Regulations 2006.

Mr Francis pleaded guilty to the charges and was fined a total of £13,500. In addition, he was told to pay the council’s costs of £1,460, plus a victim surcharge of £120.

Rogue landlord in Cambridge fined £15,080

Rogue landlord in Cambridge fined £15,080

Lack of safety

As part of the inspection, Cambridge council officers noted that there was no fire detection system. A fire door had been removed or simply not installed and this, combined with no dire detection system in the downstairs area, meant that tenants would have been unaware of any fire and thus would have been trapped.

The hallway, the main route of escape, was found to be blocked with three bikes, a mattress and unopened packs of laminate flooring.

There were eight beds located within the three-bedroom property, with only one toilet for all occupants. One of these rooms was only 5.5 sq metres in size. In two of the bedrooms, three-beds were crammed in, with only one electrical socket for use between the three occupants of each. This led to multiple extension sockets being used and an increased risk of fire.

On sentencing, magistrates said Mr Francis was negligent and has actions, ‘had a significant effect on human health and quality of life.’[1]

[1] https://www.landlordtoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2016/1/early-morning-immigration-raid-leads-to-15-080-bill-for-landlord

 

 

Fireman landlord jailed after fatal blaze

Published On: November 23, 2015 at 11:49 am

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A landlord who was an operational fireman at the time an arson attack killed five members of a family in one of his properties has been put behind bars.

Mr Jay Liptrot, one of the firefighters called to the scene of the blaze, tried in vain to save members of the young family.

Heartbreaking

In a harrowing case, the fire was proved to have been started by a neighbour, who was jailed for life for the murder of the five people. Melanie Smith, ordered to serve a minimum of 30 years, was found guilty of deliberating setting fire to a pram in the communal hallway of the accommodation.

Mr Liptrot faced 5 charges of manslaughter at the beginning of his trial. However, these charges were subsequently dropped after he pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of failing to take the necessary fire safety precautions.

Caernarfon Crown Court heard that a simple fire door, costing around £250, would have restricted the flow of the fire for roughly 30 minutes. The firefighters arrived on the scene within 6 minutes of the 999 call.

Inadequate

The court also heard that a, ‘woefully inadequate,’ door made from glass and thin wood failed to form a sufficient barrier to protect the family, made up of a couple aged 23 and 20, and three small children, aged 4, 2 and 1.

Mr Lipton had been a firefighter for 15 years at the time of the fire but his since lost his job. He was sentenced to 15 months in prison, alongside costs of £4,299 and a £100 victim surcharge.

Fireman landlord jailed after fatal blaze

Fireman landlord jailed after fatal blaze

Despite this, he still owns a further 11 properties in the Prestatyn are. Following the case, North Wales Fire and Rescue said that it is introducing a new policy, which will require staff to declare any conflict of interest.

Safety

Passing sentence, Mrs Justice McGowan noted, ‘Jay Liptrot has generally been a good and conscientious landlord. However, his culpability must be categorised as high.’[1]

Simon Smith, chief fire officer of North Wales Fire and Rescue Service, added that Mr Liptrot would be the subject of an internal investigation. ‘As a responsible employer whose priority is the safety of the public, it is of course of deep concern to us that an employee, as a landlord, failed to take precautions to ensure this property was safe which not only goes against legislation but also against the core values of our service,’ he stated. {!}

[1] http://www.propertyindustryeye.com/landlord-who-was-a-fireman-is-jailed-after-blaze-killed-tenants/

 

 

Landlord Fined £30,000 for Cramming 12 Tenants into Five-Person Home

Published On: November 5, 2015 at 1:59 pm

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A landlord in Watford who earned around £27,000 a year in rent has been fined £30,000 after pleading guilty to cramming 12 tenants into a five-person flat. Some of the renters slept in storerooms.

Landlord Fined £30,000 for Cramming 12 Tenants into Five-Person Home

Landlord Fined £30,000 for Cramming 12 Tenants into Five-Person Home

Zuo Jun He pleaded guilty to 11 offences against the Housing Act when he appeared at Watford Magistrates’ Court on Monday (2nd November 2015), including two of allowing more people to live in the property than were covered by his House in Multiple Occupation (HMO) license.

Officers from Watford Borough Council found 12 people living in the flat, situated above a Chinese restaurant. Some of the tenants were sleeping in rooms that were listed as storerooms on the HMO license.

The council reported that because there was no communal living space, tenants were in their rooms all of the time, despite there being no space to walk around. A family, including a seven-year-old child, shared one room.

The landlord was fined a total of £30,000 plus £5,326.54 in costs to the council, court costs of £150 and victim surcharge of £120. However, the maximum fines for the separate offences could have totalled £70,000.

The tenants only had one small kitchen, which was in a filthy state when inspected by the council, and the property’s fire exit was obstructed.

Zuo Jun He stated that he accepted £515 per week in rent for the property, equivalent to £26,780 a year.

The overcrowding was discovered when a tenant complained.

Dorothy Thornhill, the Mayor of Watford, comments: “Most landlords are excellent and we’ll always do our best to work with them, not against them. Those few landlords who flout the law and take advantage of vulnerable tenants out of greed will be targeted and we will take action against them.

“To help tackle this issue, I hope that magistrates will continue to make the penalties reflective of the money rogue landlords make out of abusing their position. As housing demand continues to increase, we’re going to see more of this across the UK – we need to act swiftly and decisively.”1

Recent data from the Environmental Health News reveals that between 2006-14, just 2,006 rogue landlords were convicted, resulting in total fines of £3m. However, many of those convicted were still operating as landlords.

The council ruled that Zuo Jun He can still work as a landlord, but will not receive a future HMO license. He has since evicted all of the tenants.

1 http://www.theguardian.com/society/2015/nov/04/watford-landlord-fined-12-tenants-five-person-flat

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

More criticism for upcoming fire legislations

Published On: September 23, 2015 at 12:56 pm

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Yet more criticism has been levelled at the upcoming Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (England) Regulations 2015, which are scheduled to come into force on October 1st.

Charity Electrical Safety First said that the upcoming legislations are flawed, as they do not provide information on electrical safety for tenants.

Safety

The regulations will see landlords permitted to install smoke detectors and carbon monoxide alarms in all of their rental properties. Phil Buckle, director general of Electrical Safety First said, ‘while we applaud any safety improvements for the PRS, we have been extremely disappointed that electrical safety has not included in these new regulations.’[1]

Electrical Safety First believe that electricity is responsible for almost half of all domestic fires in the UK, which cost around £1bn each year. The charity states that electricity-related incidents in Britain kill one person per week and seriously injure an average of 350,000 people per year.

‘Given the huge expansion in the PRS, where a third of properties fail to meet basic standards, concerns around electrical safety can only increase. So we were deeply concerned when our call for regular electrical checks in privately rented accommodation was omitted from these new regulations,’ Buckle added.[1]

More criticism for upcoming fire legislations

More criticism for upcoming fire legislations

Checks

The charity has called for mandatory, five year electrical checks of the installation of electrical equipment in all privately rented accommodation. In addition, it has called for the introduction of Residual Current Devices, which help to prevent a fatal electric-shock to be installed in all private rented sector homes.

Previously, the charity campaigned successfully for mandatory electrical safety checks in PRS homes to be included in the Scottish Housing Bill. It says it is now looking to extend this protection to tenants in Wales and England.

[1] https://www.landlordtoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2015/9/charity-criticises-incoming-fire-safety-regulations