The landlord of a flat has been ordered to pay a total of £3,287 for failing to carry out repairs.
Carlo Ykhlef, of Bridlington, failed to undertake basic repairs and put in place adequate management arrangements to ensure the property he let out was safe for the tenant.
As Ykhlef did not comply with improvement notices served under the Housing Act 2004, East Riding of Yorkshire council brought the case.
Ykhlef did not attend the magistrate’s hearing and the matter was proved in his absence.
He was ordered to pay a total of £3,287 - £660 for each of the two improvement notices served on him, costs of £1,439 and a victim surcharge of £528.
The court heard the flat, which was occupied by a vulnerable tenant, contained hazards which represented a real danger, not only to the tenant but also to her visitors, including her daughter who was several months pregnant.
The prosecution was brought by the council's private sector housing team after inspections found the property was fitted with inadequate heating and insulation, a dangerous staircase, a faulty fire alarm and lacked a suitable door lock to the only main entrance door to the flat.
Legal notices were served on Ykhlef by the council in connection with the property, which contained both Category 1 and 2 Hazards, including fire and excess cold.
However, he failed to complete the works and instead continued to allow tenants to live in unsafe conditions.
Chris Dunnachie, private sector housing manager at the council, says: "Throughout this case, officers have tried to work with the landlord to undertake essential works to the property, but their advice and then legal notices were ignored.
"This failure meant the council had to undertake emergency works to a dangerous staircase as a priority.
"Landlords should not be profiting from renting unsafe homes.
"The council does, and will continue to, take robust action when the safety of tenants is put at risk due to serious hazards from the properties they are living in."
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Serves him right and it should have been even more cash..
You want to hurt a landlord do it with there bank accounts.
Sandy B Baby.. Where have you been....???
Their and not There.... x
He was even caught without needing a licencing scheme to catch him.
Up early this morning Sandra?
And that is the way it should be done, if you have a rogue landlord you prosecute that landlord and penalise him.
You don’t bring in unnecessary rules for the other thousands of excellent landlords out here.
I also note that the prosecution was taken by the “ Private sector housing manager” at the council. There appears to be no equivalent post that can prosecute the Social housing sector.
Great points Peter, however I have a question for the council. This is exactly the type of tenant that should be qualifying for social housing. Should that not be looked at by the Social Sector Housing Manager??
As for the guy who has not repaired his place then he should have been slapped harder.
Has everyone noticed how all these non productive council jobs worth's are 'officers' or 'managers'.
This is terrible on so many levels. I am fed up with this one-sided reporting where no one asks the landlord for their side of the story. There should be a right of reply and the landlord side would probably be the tenant has been abusive to him not paying the rents refused access and probably cause most the damage yourself. Weather this is true I have no idea but I've known other landlords in similar positions who often have the view that they're paying a cheap rent what do they expect.
The council may have stormed in slapping notices taking no regard to the problems did not try and help. The notices have strict time limits which non lawyers would not appreciate etc
What is the point of prosecuting what is required is the problem fixed. The council would be better as their peer to have done has done the job themselves the council did that charge the landlord the extortionate
Sorry the above comments got posted before I'd corrected it
I was going to say that the if the council did the work their extortionate charges would be punishment in itself if punishment is required.
A tenant who interferes with the fire safety equipment in a property as many of my tenants do is committing an offence under the the Housing Act but never prosecuted. When I mentioned this point to the housing officers they say their job is to protect tenants. How about protecting landlords the figures show we are a declining species and providing and essential service. There is now no shortage of tenants it is landlords we need.
I leave my main criticism to last, why do landlords want other landlords prosecuted? Rarely are very bad landlords prosecuted. The criminal landlords know the system and know how to avoid prosecution. All you find is the council go for easy targets, mainly incompetent landlords who need help not prosecution.
Jim, by not complying with improvement notices and by not attending court, he is judged to be a rogue landlord. I and others, do not support rogue landlords.
Why would GOOD landlords not want BAD landlords prosecuted?
If! The charges are correct, he got what he deserved and I as a responsible Landlord would not defend his behaviour.
Also not turning up for his Court appearance speaks volumes, yet another person with an exotic name, who has no regard for Law and order.
Our laws don't apply to him
ERYC is run by a bunch of vexatious clowns. TWICE within the last 18 months they have issued me with a summons for 'non payment' of council tax. BOTH times THEIR administration was proved to be at fault and they'd issued them incorrectly. The council tax had been paid. Would anyone know if I have any type of financial claim from ERYC for my cost of time?
sometimes you need both sides of the story , we had a sitting tenant paying 17.50 yes not a typo a month rent , for a 6 bed house in middle of |Muswell hill London, any issue he would run to the council and complain the council came and did the work and charged us 50k and put a charge on the property. we ounce lost the keys so took out the lock for just one hour to get a new key made for it without having to disturb the tennat. on seeing this he smashed the old antique large stained front door window and put his own lock in and then contacted the council saying we were harassing him as we changed the lock and he had to smash the window to get in , why he couldn't smash the tiny window next to the lock and had to smash the large window seems the council didnt didnt ask, but agreed with him that we chaged the lock with aboslutelly no proof. Again the council sent us a letter that we are harrassing the tenant. He then sublet the property and after investigation, it was prooved , so eventually after 40 years at this rent 17.50 !!!we got him evicted
We never hear both sides to these stories do we ?
Andrew the answer is very simple does prosecution have any benefit? The landlord now has a criminal record and we all feel smug because we are doing good job and those who get away with it I get a good thrushing.
But then you listen to both sides and you come away thinking what's the point? The cost of prosecution must have cost account the council more than the landlord was fined probably at least twice. The cost of prosecution is paid by the rate payers. As for the landlord we don't know his side of the story I doubt the council bothered to find out. They just want to be seen coming down hard on landlords For all we know the landlord could be having a mental breakdown and is in need of assistance not prosecution which by the way is not uncommon with our judicial system.
It is not tenants who need help they do not provide housing it is the landlord who provides housing and they should be helped not prosecuted
A vulnerable Tenant maybe she should have been in Council Care, was it the Visitors that made her Pregnant or was it the immaculate conception that’s all right then the Council will need a bigger place for her preferable a brand new one to join the millions of unmarried mothers on housing benefit, no wonder men are turning gay.
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