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KEYWORD "Prosecution" - 100 RESULTS
Propertymark asks government: Why bother with local licensing schemes?

Propertymark has responded to the formal consultation schemes being imposed by a string of local councils - but says such measures...

02 September 2024

From: Breaking News

HMRC fines agents £1.6m for anti-money laundering breaches

It’s been revealed by Propertymark that HM Revenue & Customs has fined agents over £1.6m for branches of anti-money laundering regulations. The...

20 August 2024

From: Breaking News

Lettings agency regulation demanded by PropTech leader

Regulation of lettings and estate agencies must be a priority for the government elected tomorrow, a PropTech entrepreneur demands. Sián Hemming-Metcalfe of...

04 July 2024

From: Breaking News

Want your agency to be successful? Then pay staff more!

Paying staff too little is a sure-fire way to hinder growth and profits, according to letting expert and former ALRA President,...

25 June 2024

From: Breaking News

Rogue agency bosses fined after HMO licence controversy

Three directors from two letting agencies and a landlord have been fined £27,500 after failing to secure the appropriate license for...

19 June 2024

From: Breaking News

Agents listed on rogues’ database and fined over HMO failures

Managing agents in London have been instructed to pay a £15,000 fine for operating a House in Multiple Occupation without the...

27 March 2024

From: Breaking News

Labour’s backdoor bid to regulate lettings and estate agents at last

Labour is using a Bill currently going through Parliament as a backdoor method to introduce the regulation of lettings, estate and...

19 January 2024

From: Breaking News

HMO warning letters ignored by rogue lettings agency

A lettings agency has pleaded guilty to seven offences relating to an HMO. IHomes Letting Limited has been fined £16,970 for failing...

11 December 2023

From: Breaking News

Leading agent angry over licensing lack of communications

A high profile lettings agent has written to his local council seeking information about an Additional Licensing scheme which has expired...

04 October 2023

From: Breaking News

Legal advice to agents: Spotting ‘illegal migrants’ isn’t easy

Law firm Brevis Law is shedding light on the difficulties agents and landlords have in meeting Right To Rent requirements in...

01 September 2023

From: Breaking News

Rental firm’s big fine for repair failures on five storey block

The company which owned and was responsible for a five-storey block of rented flats in Bridlington has been ordered to pay...

23 August 2023

From: Breaking News

Beef up enforcement for private renting, demands pressure group

The Nationwide Foundation - a pressure group funded by the Nationwide - says more effective enforcement is required for the private...

15 August 2023

From: Breaking News

Council “deluged” with complaints about private rental homes

Landlords of more than 5,000 homes must register for a license and ensure their tenants have good quality housing or face...

25 July 2023

From: Breaking News

Property company boss hit by big fine six years after offences

A property firm which admitted misleading tenants on their rights and threatening them to leave has been ordered to pay £8,000. Four...

12 July 2023

From: Breaking News

Three agents and landlord hit with massive fines for safety failings

Three property management companies and a landlord have been fined approaching £80,000 for health and safety failings. Mohammed Ali Abbas Rasool, Cadogan...

22 June 2023

From: Breaking News

How To Convert from Let-Only to Fully Managed

What objections are you hearing when you try and convert let-only landlords to fully-managed? Because the latest figures show just 18 per...

21 June 2023

From: Breaking News

Rogue agency hit with big fine for failing to licence properties

An estate agency has been prosecuted and ordered to pay £35,000 for falling foul of property licensing rules. Green House Estate Agents...

17 February 2023

From: Breaking News

Lettings manager guilty of fraud - but how much did she take?

A former lettings manager has pleaded guilty to defrauding her agency employers for almost five years - but there’s uncertainty over...

13 February 2023

From: Breaking News

Overseas owners urged to register with Companies House soon

The Register of Overseas Entities, which came into force back in August, requires all overseas entities owning property in the UK...

19 January 2023

From: Breaking News

Named and Shamed! Letting agents back controversial database

A controversial database which will allow widespread access to the identities of rogue letting agents and landlords has been backed by...

23 September 2022

From: Breaking News

Hefty fine for property company ignoring improvement notices

A property ownership and management company has been fined £20,000 for failing to carry out safety and fire safety improvement works...

28 April 2022

From: Breaking News

Shocking case of property rental firm's open sewer in garden

A property management company has been fined for failing to repair an open sewer in the garden of a rental property. SRA...

01 April 2022

From: Breaking News

Clampdown on agents by council officers with qualifications

The Mayor of London Sadiq Khan wants is introducing a new qualification and training for borough council housing enforcement officers to...

17 February 2022

From: Breaking News

Agency Fraudster - Suspended sentence for agent embezzling £50,000

A lettings agency employee who diverted over £50,000 of landlords’ money into his own account has been given a suspended sentence. Paul...

08 February 2022

From: Breaking News

Digital changes to Right To Rent - agents urged to prepare

Propertymark is advising agents to prepare for substantial changes to the Right To Rent process arriving in just two months time. As...

03 February 2022

From: Breaking News

Agents may shun landlords with poor compliance record - claim

Self-managing landlords who think they don’t have the same compliance obligations as agents could face serious repercussions, Trading Standards chiefs have...

31 December 2021

From: Breaking News

Named and shamed - landlords told ‘check this agency before using’

Bristol-based lettings management company Iletpro Ltd has been ordered to pay a total of £2,700.06 in fines and costs for failing...

09 December 2021

From: Breaking News

Angry agent renews attack on landlords and councils

A lettings agent who also runs a tenant complaint insurance service has renewed his attack on landlords and local authorities. Ajay Jagota...

03 December 2021

From: Breaking News

Purplebricks lettings chief quits after deposit controversy

Purplebricks says its head of lettings has left after just eight months - and just days after a crisis involving tenant deposits. A Purplebricks...

01 December 2021

From: Breaking News

Caught! Agency that illegally evicted tenant ends up in court

A lettings agency has been prosecuted by Birmingham council for unlawfully evicting a tenant. Principal Homes is based at Great Barr and was...

29 October 2021

From: Breaking News

Council boasts of court cases and fines against letting agents

One of the local authorities with the tightest clampdowns on letting agents has issued a statement celebrating its successes. Tower Hamlets council in...

19 October 2021

From: Breaking News

Banned! Court order prohibits investor from letting properties

A landlord who persistently broke residential lettings rules has been banned from operating in a landmark legal ruling. Julie Stoddern, of Camborne,...

08 March 2021

From: Breaking News

Jail threat after fraud team probes HMO with illegal extensions

A landlord who built unlawful extensions to a family home and squeezed up to 14 people into the rooms has forfeited...

19 February 2021

From: Breaking News

Agency director and landlord hit with massive fines

Two landlords - one of them an agent - have been given fines totalling £135,000 and must pay costs for failing to...

16 February 2021

From: Breaking News

“Horrible crime” of illegal eviction probed by police

A 24 month community order and 200 hours of unpaid work are the price being paid for an unlawful eviction.  Buy to...

15 February 2021

From: Breaking News

Fire service wins case involving multiple safety breaches

One person had to be rescued from a fire after their landlord failed to ensure they had a working fire alarm...

27 November 2020

From: Breaking News

Right To Rent stays after court rules against campaigners

The Court of Appeal has ruled in favour of the government’s controversial Right To Rent scheme, overturning a decision reached last...

22 April 2020

From: Breaking News

Labour council seeks Judicial Review of landlord licensing refusal

Liverpool’s Labour council, which was prevented by the government from extending its city-wide licensing scheme for another five years, is seeking...

06 April 2020

From: Breaking News

Lettings agency in court as new ‘rogues taskforce’ swings into action

A lettings agency and its director have pleaded guilty to renting out an overcrowded house in the first case brought to...

17 March 2020

From: Breaking News

Sex-For-Rent amendment bid to Renters’ Reform Bill

A Liberal Democrat MP is seeking to amend the Renters’ Reform Bill to make it illegal for tenants to be offered...

10 March 2020

From: Breaking News

Referral Fee clampdown confirmed for lettings agents too

The clampdown on referral fees, until now concentrated on the sales sector, will extend to letting agents too. James Munro, head of...

28 February 2020

From: Breaking News

Tenant ‘financially exploited and harassed’ by landlord, claims council

A landlord has been ordered to pay nearly £6,000 in fines and costs after pleading guilty to harassing and financially exploiting...

27 February 2020

From: Breaking News

Council claims licensing scheme ‘has improved 3,100 homes’

The government has given the green light to a council’s huge licensing scheme, set to cover 18 of its 20 wards...

17 February 2020

From: Breaking News

Portal, agencies and directors hit with £100,000 penalty over unsafe flat

A room-finding portal, along with the owners of a London lettings agency and management firm, must pay over £100,000 for letting...

12 February 2020

From: Breaking News

Right To Rent: ‘no documents needed’ if digital checks come in

The government says it’s working on an online digital Right To Rent status checking service for agents and landlords to use,...

10 February 2020

From: Breaking News

Multiple prosecutions as council names and shames rogues

A council has prosecuted five private landlords who failed to get licences for the properties they let out. Oldham council says its...

05 February 2020

From: Breaking News

Fatal fire in unlicensed house leads to fine and entry on rogues database

A judge has ordered two landlords to pay a total of £14,858 for illegally renting out an unlicensed house without working...

30 January 2020

From: Breaking News

Government backs huge licensing scheme extension until 2025

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has backed a five year extension for a massive London council landlord licensing...

28 January 2020

From: Breaking News

Labour council wants city-wide licensing and possible £12m windfall

Another Labour council wants to introduce a city-wide landlord licensing scheme - a proposal that would require government approval to implement. Last...

24 January 2020

From: Breaking News

Huge £18,000 penalty for landlord who failed to improve property

A landlord in one of the most scenic parts of Devon had been served with a £18,000 civil penalty because he...

23 January 2020

From: Breaking News

Newspaper’s amazing call for massive landlord licensing scheme

A newspaper in Liverpool has sharply criticised the government for refusing to allow the city council to continue a huge landlord...

21 January 2020

From: Breaking News

Property firm boss says he cannot abide by Improvement Notices

The owner of a Derbyshire property must pay out more than £3,000 after being found guilty of failing to comply with...

02 January 2020

From: Breaking News

Banned! Man cannot be letting agent or landlord for 30 months

A landlord has been banned for two and half years after repeatedly putting tenants’ lives at risk by letting unsafe housing. This...

18 December 2019

From: Breaking News

Dawn raid finds 17 tenants crammed into sub-let HMO

A dawn raid by enforcement officers from a London council has discovered 17 men sleeping on mattresses in a three bedroom...

29 November 2019

From: Breaking News

Owner hit with £60,000 in fines over substandard property

A landlord has been hit with court fines for a fourth time for failing to properly manage his rental properties.  Landlord Jack...

27 November 2019

From: Breaking News

Property firm and landlord fined £22,000 for issuing ‘sham licences’

A rogue landlord and the property company he ran have been fined £22,000 for dishing out ‘sham licences’ to tenants in...

20 November 2019

From: Breaking News

Fine after improvement notice on rented home was partly ignored

A rented home in Mansfield was found to have serious health and safety hazards, including a leaking roof and a lack of smoke...

11 November 2019

From: Breaking News

Cut the red tape! Huge rise in laws governing private renting

One of the industry’s leading trade bodies has revealed that the number of laws creating an obligation on landlords in the...

04 November 2019

From: Breaking News

Shock warning that agents could be sued under selective licensing laws

A long-term legal critic of selective licensing is warning that letting agents could be held jointly accountable with the landlords, -...

22 October 2019

From: Breaking News

Best agents should demonstrate  compliance to expose rogue operators

A call has been made for the best letting agencies and other rental sector professionals to show how they comply with...

01 October 2019

From: Breaking News

Huge Confiscation Order of £400,000 imposed on buy to let investor

A rogue landlord who divided his three-bedroom home in central London into eight flats has ended up with a bill of...

18 September 2019

From: Breaking News

UK’s most controversial licensing scheme a success claims council

The most controversial local council rental licensing scheme in the country has been deemed a success - at least by the...

16 September 2019

From: Breaking News

Shock Trading Standards claim: almost half of letting agents breaking the law

London Trading Standards has made the startling claim that 46 per cent of almost 2,000 agents it has surveyed are falling...

13 September 2019

From: Breaking News

Police raid smokes out cannabis farm and string of lettings problems

A joint operation between Avon and Somerset Police and North Somerset council has uncovered a string of issues connected with rental...

02 September 2019

From: Breaking News

Buy to let con-man must pay back £48,000 rent or go to prison

A man who claimed he needed a council house but was actually a landlord has been ordered to pay back more...

07 August 2019

From: Breaking News

Another council seeks government backing to widen licensing

Another local authority has announced that it wants to introduce another selective licensing scheme and designate its entire patch for HMO...

02 August 2019

From: Breaking News

HMRC tax clampdown on buy to let finds 16,000 investors underpaid

A campaign by HM Revenue & Customs to encourage buy to let investors to ‘fess up’ to their unpaid tax has...

17 July 2019

From: Breaking News

Right To Rent: industry and government go back to court

Both sides of the Right To Rent debate are squaring up for their latest court battle. Earlier this year the High Court...

11 July 2019

From: Breaking News

Surge in landlords declaring unpaid tax following HMRC crackdown

The number of landlords admitting to not paying tax has soared in the past year, according to new data. During 2018/2019, 16,110...

08 July 2019

From: Breaking News

Empty buy to let with wild garden reaps £7,000 bill for owner

A buy to let investor has been fined £4,800 and ordered to pay £2,200 in costs for failing to keep his...

19 June 2019

From: Breaking News

Government backs Labour council’s ‘unique’ licensing scheme

The government has agreed that a council in London where all 51 councillors are Labour should go ahead with a five...

03 June 2019

From: Breaking News

Deposit Cap: agents want more information - and now

The Tenancy Deposit Scheme says that success of its information centre shows that the industry wants more information on the deposit...

30 May 2019

From: Breaking News

Landlord hit with huge fine after council uncovers astonishing web of lies

A rogue landlady has been hit with a fine of £24,000 after conning her tenants and the local authorities with a...

10 May 2019

From: Breaking News

New regulatory body for Fees Ban likely to clamp down hard

The Association of Residential Lettings Agents says it backs a new Trading Standards-led body which will enforce the Fees Ban starting  on...

18 April 2019

From: Breaking News

Banning Orders Flop: not even one issued after 12 months

A Freedom of Information request by The Guardian newspaper has produced the startling admission from government that not even one landlord...

17 April 2019

From: Breaking News

More Brexit chaos with warning EU citizens ‘may have problems renting’

A lettings sector trade body says EU citizens may face problems getting private rented accommodation after Brexit. And the body - the...

08 April 2019

From: Breaking News

Lies, illegal flats and hidden tenants lead to suspended jail sentence

A buy to let investor who hid families in windowless rooms after failing to get planning permission for a block of...

28 March 2019

From: Breaking News

Scandal: Agent steals £350,000 but pays back just one pound

A lettings agent who stole over £350,000 is reported to have been told to pay back…£1. Local media in the south of...

27 March 2019

From: Breaking News

‘Scrap Right To Rent’ call after latest controversial court ruling

With the government already on the ropes over Brexit, there’s a call today for one of its flagship immigration policies to...

22 March 2019

From: Breaking News

Stop the excuses! Lack of enforcement by councils blasted by trade body

A leading trade body says the argument that councils have insufficient powers to tackle rogue operators isn’t supported by the facts...

08 March 2019

From: Breaking News

Agent lied about working for company even after being sacked

A rogue lettings agent has been fined over £72,000 after being found guilty of 15 separate offences relating to three illegally established houses...

07 March 2019

From: Breaking News

What now for Right To Rent after government's bloody nose?

There’s been general support for last week’s judgment by the High Court that the government’s Right To Rent policy breaches human...

04 March 2019

From: Breaking News

Right To Rent breaches human rights, High Court rules

The High Court has ruled that the government’s Right to Rent scheme breaches human rights law. Under the Right to Rent landlords are...

01 March 2019

From: Breaking News

Tenants Fees Bill is now law as clock ticks down to June 1

The Tenants’ Fees Bill has now become law, receiving formal Royal Assent yesterday afternoon - and within minutes, the government issued...

13 February 2019

From: Breaking News

Licensing: councils accused of automatically imposing harshest penalties

Councils have been accused of routinely pursuing the most serious enforcement option open to them if they find a local licensing...

14 January 2019

From: Breaking News

Government revises rental property minimum room size guidance

In an announcement made just hours before much of the industry started its Christmas break, the government has clarified its guidance...

24 December 2018

From: Breaking News

See you in court! Right To Rent judicial review to be heard today

The High Court today begins a Judicial Review of the government’s controversial Right to Rent scheme. The scheme began operating nationwide in...

18 December 2018

From: Breaking News

Millionaire buy to let landlord has £25,000 bill after disability row

Famous buy to let landlord Judith Wilson has been fined £10,000 and ordered to pay almost £15,000 costs for failing to...

13 December 2018

From: Breaking News

Licensing: councils slammed for failing to police their own schemes

Two thirds of local authorities in England and Wales brought no prosecutions against private landlords in 2017/18 according to research by the...

29 November 2018

From: Breaking News

£450,000: is this a record penalty for a buy to let landlord?

We regularly carry stories about fines for landlords and letting agents who have apparently broken council or national laws - but...

26 November 2018

From: Breaking News

‘Take rogues to court’ - council urges private tenants to take civil action

Nottingham council - which recently introduced one of the largest and most controversial selective licensing schemes in the country - now...

23 November 2018

From: Breaking News

Controversial landlord couple must reveal finances to court

One of Britain's highest profile landlords is to be sentenced on December 11 - and she must show the court details of...

20 November 2018

From: Breaking News

Council to send hundreds of buy to let fixed-penalty notices today

A council says it has been preparing prosecution and penalty notices “for hundreds of private landlords that have failed to apply...

01 November 2018

From: Breaking News

Shocking claim that councils 'interview landlords under caution'

The heavy-handed administration of selective licensing schemes is driving out buy to let investors. That’s the claim from David Kirwan of Kirwans...

30 October 2018

From: Breaking News

Right To Rent and Brexit: 'give EU citizens the paperwork' say groups

The Home Secretary has been asked by a leading lettings sector trade organisation to ensure hard copy documents are given to...

09 October 2018

From: Breaking News

Jail for men who 'made up' VAT returns for franchise lettings branch

A man who submitted false VAT returns for the Lincoln franchise branch of Martin & Co for a period of six...

08 October 2018

From: Breaking News

Hefty fine after unsafe overcrowding in unlicensed HMO loft

A buy to let investor that let at least eight people from six different families rent space in his three-storey property...

03 October 2018

From: Breaking News

London council threatens bans and fines as it brings in new licensing

The Labour-led local authority in Hackney has issued a statement pledging fines or even bans if landlords fail to get appropriate...

27 September 2018

From: Breaking News

Corbyn's council clamps down after 35 tenants found in just four flats

Two private landlords have been found guilty of managing Houses in Multiple Occupation with dangerous and sub-standard conditions, following a successful...

26 September 2018

From: Breaking News

Banned and fined! Notorious HMO had 'unsafe and insanitary' rooms

The landlord of an HMO who subjected his tenants to insanitary and unsafe living conditions has been told he will no...

13 September 2018

From: Breaking News

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