Posts with tag: rogue landlords London

Landlord Billed Over £400,000 After Renting Out Illegal Flats

Published On: October 13, 2015 at 9:34 am

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A landlord has been billed over £400,000 after illegally converting a property into flats and letting them out.

Landlord Billed Over £400,000 After Renting Out Illegal Flats

Landlord Billed Over £400,000 After Renting Out Illegal Flats

Gilbert Garrick rented the flats in West Norwood, London, despite being informed that he was breaching planning rules and breaking Lambeth’s planning policies.

He has now pleaded guilty in court and fined £30,000. He was also ordered to pay the council’s costs of £15,000 and issued with a confiscation order of £382,000 – the sum he had received in rental income from the illegal flats.

If he does not pay the charge within three months, he faces jail.

Councillor Matthew Bennett, Lambeth Council’s Cabinet Member for Housing, comments on the case: “Lambeth takes a hard line against rogue landlords who try to make a quick buck out of the housing crisis.

“This landlord will have to pay over £400,000 in fines and could face prison after ignoring the council’s early warning.

“Let this be a lesson to anyone else who thinks they can cheat their way to a profit – Lambeth will always pursue rogue landlords through the courts to protect our residents from exploitation.”1 

Garrick was originally served a notice demanding that he cease letting out the property as flats. He appealed against the notice, but after a lengthy public inquiry, the planning inspectorate dismissed the appeal.

However, the landlord continued to ignore the notice, causing council officers to seek a prosecution order for non-compliance. After several court hearings, Garrick eventually pleaded guilty and the case was referred to Croydon Crown Court for confiscation proceedings.

Once the sum is paid, around a third of the £382,000 will be given to Lambeth Council to fund further work in this area, and the rest will go to the Home Office and the courts.

1 http://www.propertyindustryeye.com/landlord-hit-with-bill-of-over-400000-after-letting-out-illegal-flats/

Landlord Fined £75,000 for Unlicensed HMOs

Published On: August 21, 2015 at 11:34 am

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A landlord has been fined a total of £75,215 for several offences, including failing to license four Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs).

Gunapalan Vamathevan was prosecuted for nine offences at Ealing Magistrates’ Court on 6th August 2015.

Landlord Fined £75,000 for Unlicensed HMOs

Landlord Fined £75,000 for Unlicensed HMOs

The prosecution followed an investigation after reports last year that Vamathevan was managing a number of unlicensed HMOs.

Ealing Council’s regulatory services also discovered breaches regarding the management of the properties, including dangerous staircases and other hazards.

Several HMO licensing application forms and warning letters were sent to Vamathevan, but he did not submit any applications.

Further inspections revealed that the required works relating to a number of improvement notices had not been conducted and prohibition orders had been breached.

Ealing Council says it has a strict approach regarding this type of offence and therefore prosecuted Vamathevan for failing to manage his properties and failing to comply with the notices served.

The landlord did submit HMO license applications for his properties, but after the prosecution had begun.

Councillor Ranjit Dheer, Cabinet Member for Safety, Culture and Community Services, says: “This case is a significant result against an unscrupulous landlord who has previously been prosecuted by the council for his disregard of licensing regulations.

“We make every effort to ensure residents in our borough are well protected and have decent living standards. We take a tough line against anyone who deliberately flouts the law and Mr. Vamathevan has quite rightly been given a very heavy penalty for his prolonged and intentional illegal behaviour.”1 

1 https://www.lettingagenttoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2015/8/landlord-fined-over-70-000-for-unlicensed-hmos