Borough council secures £70,000 fine for HMO offences

Luton Borough Council has secured its largest ever fine - £70,000 – for breaches of the law regarding houses in multiple occupation (HMO).

In a separate case the previous month meanwhile a High Court judge rejected a family’s claim that the process Luton had used to issue a planning enforcement notice was flawed.

At a magistrate’s court hearing on 9 January 2018, Alyas Hussain of Dunstable Close, Luton, was ordered to pay, in additon to the fine, costs of £1,148.79 and a surcharge of £170 for the HMO offences.

The court learned that the property was overcrowded and tenants’ lives had been put at risk through a lack of fire doors, a lack of automatic fire detection and heat detection, and obstructions to stairs and exits in the event of fire. Further breaches included unfinished electrical works throughout the property leaving bare wires hanging from ceilings and out of walls.

In sentencing, the chair of the Magistrates Court is reported to have said: "It is clear to us that these offences are motivated by profit without any recourse to regulations or court processes.

"The defendant has two properties not subject to mortgage and received rent from the HMO in excess of £19,000."

Cllr Tom Shaw, portfolio holder for housing at Luton, said: "We will not tolerate landlords who rent properties which fail to meet standards. We have a commitment to ensure that private landlords in Luton don't take financial advantage of vulnerable tenants and put their lives at risk.

In the enforcement notice case Luton said the High Court judge, reported to be Mr Justice Holgate, had found no fault with the way that it issued the notice and dismissed the appeal.

Luton had served an enforcement notice in 2013 on Nafeena Beg, Muzzafer Beg, Neelam Beg and Mohammed Nasser of Chester Street in Luton, requiring them to cease the use of an outbuilding at an address in Mill Street as a residential dwelling. 
 
The council said that despite continued attempts to negotiate with the owners they did not comply with the notice.

In February 2017 they were found guilty and fined a total of £1,957 at Luton Magistrates’ Court. They were also ordered to pay the council’s costs of £5,430.60 and a victim surcharge of £197.
 
Following their failed High Court appeal, the family were also ordered to pay Luton’s defence costs of £2,100.
 
Cllr Paul Castleman, portfolio holder for Strategic Planning at Luton, said: “We hope that this prosecution sends a very strong message that we will always take robust enforcement action in cases such as these and seeing this particular one through to the end meant a successful outcome without cost to the public purse”.