Letting agency working for rogue landlord under the spotlight

A Leamington Spa letting agent has been thrown under the spotlight after one of its rogue landlords was fined £31,000 by Warwick District Council.

Grzegorz Surminski had rented a 6-bedroom property in St Brides Close, Sydenham, Leamington Spa through Golden Key Letting Agents and was subletting the property to eight sub-tenants when the property was inspected by Warwick District Council Housing Officers in February 2022.

DISREPAIR

The property was reported to the Council for disrepair by one of the sub-tenants.

Surminski had not applied for a House of Multiple Occupation (HMO) licence for letting the property to so many tenants and had not provided safe or adequate measures for his tenants.

As well as the lack of fire safety provisions, there were numerous repair issues also found including unsafe electrics, lack of a working shower and broken floor tiles in the bathroom. A tenant was provided with a mouldy mattress to sleep on, and there were large accumulations of rubbish in the rear garden as well as insufficient wheelie bins for the size of the household.

This landlord has flouted the laws which are there to protect the most vulnerable members of society.”

Surminski was found guilty last month by a District Judge at Coventry Magistrates Court and fined a total of £31,300: £10,000 for failing to apply for a HMO license; £10,000 for failing to comply with an Improvement Notice for the fire safety provisions and £10,000 for failing to comply with the HMO Management Regulations

FAILURE

Mr Surminski also received a £1,000 fine for failure to provide written information to the Council regarding the ownership and occupation details of the property.

He was also ordered to pay a £150 victim surcharge and £150 costs.

The property has since been vacated and is now empty.

Councillor Jan Matecki (pictured) Portfolio Holder for Housing Services at Warwick District Council, says: “This landlord has flouted the laws which are there to protect the most vulnerable members of society who were placed at serious risks to their health and safety.”

Golden Key Letting Agents have been approached for comment.