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TODAY'S OTHER NEWS

Rogue landlord fined £27k for unsafe HMO

An unscrupulous landlord has been fined £27,000 over an unlicensed HMO in Luton with multiple fire and safety breaches. ​

Luton Magistrates Court heard that the unlicensed property at 14 Kenneth Road, Luton, LU2, had poor fire alarm systems and blocked fire exits, missing and broken tiles on the roof, and evidence of rat infestation.

Marco Caruso of Verulam Court, Hendon, pleaded guilty to illegally managing a HMO and seven breaches of HMO regulation.

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He was fined £27,000, which included a £170 victim surcharge and costs of £848.70.

Cllr Tom Shaw, portfolio holder for housing, commented: “This is a great result for the rogue landlord project [being operated by the council] and an excellent example of how we are working together to ensure that private housing in Luton is of a good standard.

"If an HMO is poorly managed, the tenant’s safety could be at risk.

“We are committed to identifying rogue landlords and making sure the properties they manage are in a good condition and adhere to safety regulations, or face prosecution.”

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  • Daniela Provvedi

    These unscrupulous LL really pi** me off. They give us all a bad name!
    How much work does it take to stick a couple of fire alarms on the ceilings, clear away the fire-exits, replace broken tiles and call in a company to deal with rat infestation??
    For goodness sake, I would do that all in a morning!!
    I feel that the new government laws are based on these few unscrupulous LL, and not based on the rest of us who do a good job.
    Really annoyed with stories like this. That's it, rant over, happy new year. 🙂

  • icon

    Agreed Daniela - on most points. However the only time I have had rat or mice infestations ( other than an isolated short visit) is when tenants keep the property like a tip. Vermin are social creatures and tend to like living with like. Clean properties don't tend to have rodent infestations.

  • PossessionFriendUK PossessionFriend

    Okay, there are breaches there, no argument, BUT £ 27 Grand !!! - come on - where's the proportionality.

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