Julian Richer – the founder of Richer Sounds, the UK’s largest hi-fi retailer – says he may set up a landlord accreditation service to help reform the private rental sector in favour of tenants.

Richer, writing over the weekend in the Sunday Times, says millions of people in the UK now “live with the fear of arbitrary eviction” and “rents rising beyond their reach.”

As part of a manifesto “to put things right” in the housing market, Richer says number one would be “priority reform for renters” including the banning of what he calls “revenge evictions”, the extension of should-hold tenancies for up to five years “byv mutual agreement”, tenants being evicted only for unspecified “major contract breaches” and the statutory inspection of private sector rental properties “with councils taking tough action against rogue landlords”.

Richer’s second manifesto commitment reads: “We need a responsible landlords charter or accreditation scheme in the meantime, which would include ‘voluntary’ adherence to the above [number one]. I am happy to set this up myself if the response is favourable.”

The rest of his 10 point manifesto – not solely about the rental side of the housing market – includes scrapping Right To Buy, avoiding explotiation of Permitted Development Rights to create shoddy housing, and higher quality standards for new homes.

You can read the full piece here – although for some Landlord Today readers, the Times piece may be behind a paywall.