Landlord fined £17,500 for renting out unlicensed properties

Ashfield District Council has successfully fined a Southwell-based landlord £17,500 for failing to license two of his properties in Sutton in Ashfield.

The properties in Sutton are in the Council’s Selective Licensing Scheme which means that all landlords with any privately rented properties in the selected area will need a licence for these properties. Selective licensing was extended in place in these two areas in 2022, and has helped to bring about change and improvement to homes and the wider community.

Despite a number of attempts to secure an application from the landlord and agency, including a final warning advising of the consequences of failing to licence the two properties, the landlord still did not submit any application or paperwork required for the properties.

As part of the investigation, officers visited the two properties and identified that they were occupied and there were concerns relating to the safety of the properties, which is being dealt with separately to the licencing offences.

John Bennett, Executive Director of Place, said

“It is a criminal offence to let a privately rented property in a designated area without a Selective Licence in place. Penalties include prosecution and an unlimited fine or a financial penalty up to £30,000. Enforcement action is always a last result, we will always try to engage with, and support landlords to apply for their license first.

“Selective Licensing has brought real positive changes to the designated areas, it allows the Council to regulate the housing for the safety of both the tenants and the landlords.”

The landlord penalised this month cannot be identified as an agreed condition of them accepting the penalty.

A total of six financial penalties have been served on landlords who have failed to licence their property or breached their duties totalling over £56,500 since the start of the current selective licensing scheme, with an additional 10 ongoing investigations for similar offences.

The Environmental Health Residential Team want to work with Landlords and tenants to ensure the homes in Ashfield are safe.

If you require support with your rental property either as a tenant or landlord please contact the Environmental Health Residential Team: 01623457345 (option1) or email PRSsupport@ashfield.gov.uk.