Councils keen on licensing are ‘rogue landlords’ themselves!
Local authorities which have introduced selective licensing scheems for private landlords, have paid out huge compensation for their own poor management.
Local councils which crack down on private landlords are themselves racking up huge fines for failing to deal with poor living conditions in their own properties, it has emerged.
An investigation by The Daily Telegraph reveals that local authorities in England were ordered to pay £1.7 million in compensation to tenants last year. The amount was nearly four times more than they paid the previous year.
Mould and damp
Compensation payouts by councils for mould and damp problems alone were three times higher, according to the Housing Ombudsman.
Lambeth Council in London (main picture) paid out more than any other local authority in England, at £120,615, with Hammersmith and Fulham liable for only a slightly smaller amount.
Yet both councils introduced selective licensing schemes, with the cost to landlords in Lambeth of £923 per property, and £597 in Hammersmith.
Highest bill
Birmingham City Council faced the highest bill outside London, worth £79,170. And at the same time, the council launched a selective licensing scheme, charging landlords £700 per property.
As the Government seeks to crack down on poor quality private rented housing, the same focus is needed in the social rented sector.”
Chris Norris, Director of Policy and Campaigns at the NRLA, said problems with damp and mould can affect homes for social rent “every bit as much” as those in the private sector.
“As the Government seeks to crack down on poor quality private rented housing, the same focus is needed in the social rented sector,” he said.
Richard Blakeway, of the Housing Ombudsman which deals with social housing, told the Telegraph: “The increase in complaints is partly a reflection of the housing emergency in this country, and whilst [social] landlords will handle many requests very effectively, there are clear themes that we see in our casework where complaints are not handled well.
“Landlords should reflect on this and, whilst facing undeniable financial pressures, in some of our cases we are seeing very low offers of compensation, including £150 for five years of damp and mould in multiple rooms.”
Typical! If private landlords are fined that comes out of their own pocket, if councils are fined that comes out of their funds which are paid by the tax payer! No meaningful consequences for councils – staff in these failing councils who fail to do their job correctly should not receive any pay increases.