A landlord in oxford has received fines of £4500 for renting out a House of Multiple Occupation (HMO) that was found to be in a state of disrepair and unlicensed.
After being prosecuted for running the HMO Jeffeth Junior Latchman appeared before the oxford magistrate’s court. Concerns over the living conditions at and the maintenance of the property were raised when one of the tenants contacted the city council which in turn became an official complaint.
Environmental health officers from the city councils HMO enforcement team were instructed to visit the property to investigate the conditions following the tenants complaint, After further investigation the officers in place determined that the property was not only in a state of disrepair but was also found to be unlicensed. To make matters worse the property was also found to be infested with Cockroaches.
Whilst in court Mr Latcham pleaded guilty and was fined £2000 for failing to obtain the licence required needed to be in control of an HMO. A further 5 breaches of the Management of houses of multiple occupation (England) regulations 2006 were brought against Mr Latcham which he pleaded guilty to and was ordered to pay £500 in fines per offence. Three of the offences were failing to ensure that the adequate safety measures were taken at the property this included a lack of fire resisting doors, a broken fire alarm system and an obstructed means of escape in case of a fire, the two remaining charges were in relation to disrepair.
Mr Latcham was also instructed by the Magistrates court to pay the total cost of which the council had to pay for bringing the case to court this coming to a further total of £815.
Councillor Ed Turner said “It is good that this landlord has been brought to book for running a cockroach-infested property the way he did. Landlords who fail to meet their responsibilities to their tenants and the wider community should be in no doubt that they will be prosecuted and the courts and now imposing substantial fines.”
