Unscrupulous landlord fined for unsafe property

A rogue landlord has been ordered to pay almost £3,000 after being found guilty of a number of breaches relating to an unlicensed HMO he owns in Bury.

Abdul Raza Saddiqui, aged 50, of Parkhill Road, Bury, was fined £1,200 with £2,452 costs and a £30 victim of crime surcharge after being found guilty of 12 housing offences.

The rental property on Seymour Road in Crumpsall, M8, failed various minimum safety standards, including fire safety and gas safety, putting the tenants at risk.

Other breaches of management regulations discovered by council officers included no working fire alarm, damaged fire doors, cluttered escape routes, broken heating facilities, damaged kitchen units, and filthy and verminous common areas.

At a hearing at Manchester Magistrates’ Court, Saddiqui pleaded guilty to 11 offences of breach of HMO regulations, and one offence of a breach of a condition of his HMO licence.

Cllr Bernard Priest, deputy leader of Manchester City Council, said: “There’s no place for rogue landlords in Manchester. Landlords have a responsibility to provide their tenants good quality, safe housing and we take the issue of tenant safety extremely seriously.

“We will continue to pursue enforcement action to defend the rights of tenants and will not hesitate to take legal action against anyone whose property fails to meet the required standards. Our message to landlords is simple – bring your property up to standard, make sure your tenants are safe and get a licence where the law requires one.”

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