Repayment and banning orders may be applied to rogue landlord

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A council says it is considering seeking a banning order and a rent repayment order against a rogue landlord already fined over £150,000.

The landlord’s offences included failing to rectify safety hazards in a property to let.

Latif Rehman of Birmingham, was fined a total of £151,070 by Wolverhampton Magistrates Court for three breaches of an Emergency Prohibition Order served in relation to a house of multiple occupation in Dudley.

Council officers originally inspected the three storey, four bedroom property following a complaint from one of the tenants in February.

Officers found numerous hazards related to fire and electrical safety as well as risk of entry by intruders and deemed it posed an imminent risk to the safety of its tenants.

A re-inspection in April found that insufficient works had been carried out to rectify the problems. Fire doors still failed to comply with regulations, access to the property was not properly controlled and damp was still present in one of the properties.

The case was brought to court by Dudley council; last month Rehman was fined £50,000 for each offence and ordered to pay £1,000 in costs and £170 victim surcharge.

A council spokesman now says: “Landlords are not above the law. They must comply with standards to fulfil their legal responsibility to protect the safety of their tenants.”

And the council adds that it is now considering applying for a rent repayment order and a banning order against the landlord who two years ago was ordered to pay in excess of £340,000 after illegally converting houses into bedsits.