A landlord in Plymouth has been fined over £20,000 for renting out substandard properties to 30 tenants, without obtaining a House in Multiple Occupation (HMO) license.
John Mayer pleaded guilty to four cases of failing to apply for a license to operate an HMO, as required by the Housing Act 2004. He also failed to comply with improvement notices that were served under the Housing Act, meaning that around 12 renters did not have adequate heating in their homes.
Mayer was fined a total of £23,000 and ordered to pay court costs of £1,554.38, to be paid at a rate of £2,000 per calendar month. Mayer pleaded guilty on 16th October 2015, but was sentenced on 30th October.
He was prosecuted by Plymouth City Council, as part of its ongoing campaign to combat rogue landlords in the city.
Councillor Chris Penberthy, Cabinet Member for Co-operatives and Housing at Plymouth City Council, comments: “We welcome this large fine, which sends a clear message that we will not tolerate rogue landlords here in Plymouth.
“We have some excellent landlords in Plymouth, but cases like this bring landlords into disrepute.”
He concludes: “Our plan for private rented housing aims to drive up standards in rented housing in the city, and this type of court case is just one of the tools we intend to use.”1
1 https://www.landlordtoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2015/11/plymouth-hmo-landlord-fined-20-000