A LANDLORD has been judged to be ‘not good enough’ for operating an unlicensed property and ignoring Liverpool City Council’s requests for information.
79th Luxury Living (Lilley) Limited, based in Southport, was charged with failing to license 12 Cromarty Road in Old Swan in contravention of the 2004 Housing Act. The company was also charged with failing to comply with two notices requiring certain documents to be produced.
Having initially pleaded not guilty last October, it changed its plea to guilty at a hearing at Liverpool Magistrates Court on Monday 6 January.
The city’s Landlord Licensing scheme is aimed at setting minimum standards in terms of gas, fire and electrical safety, and the conditions attached to the licences are designed to drive up standards of property management.
District Judge Jack McGarver said there had been a “complete failure” by the company to comply with Liverpool City Council’s Selective Licensing Scheme, which he deemed “vital” in ensuring the safety of tenants and the proper regulation of the sector, and that it was “not good enough” that the company had failed its obligations.
The company was fined £5,100, plus costs of £1,131.79 and a victim surcharge of £170, bringing its total bill to just over £6,400.
Landlord Licensing began in 2015, and so far, 49,000 licences have been issued; there have been around 20,000 compliance actions; more than 2,000 legal and fixed penalty notices have been issued and over 150 landlords prosecuted.
Tenants and members of the public can check if a property has the required Landlord Licence at https://liverpool.gov.uk/landlordlicensing and report unlicensed properties to unlicensed.landlord@Liverpool.gov.uk.
A bid to renew the scheme for another five years from April 2020 has been submitted to the Government.
Liverpool City Council’s Deputy Mayor and Cabinet member for
housing, Cllr Lynnie Hinnigan, said: “Landlord Licensing is delivering
better conditions for tenants in privately rented properties and making sure
they are not at risk from things such as dangerous electrics, faulty gas
appliances or a lack of fire doors.
“This case is yet another example which shows that where landlords do ignore the law they face a hefty fine when we take them to court.”