Greater Nottingham Landlords Electronic Newsletter - www.nottslandlordinfo.co.uk Partner logos

Issue 12 - February 2009

Welcome to the February 2009 edition of the Greater Nottingham Landlords' Electronic Newsletter

Dates for your diary

1 April 2009 - Out with CORGI - In with CAPITA. Capita will run the new 'Gas Safe Register' for competant Gas Installers. For more information visit The Gas Safe Register.

Contents

  1. Nottingham City Landlord Convicted at Nottingham Magistrates Court - This resulted in a fine of £8,000 with an additional £1967.53 costs...
  2. Landlord Given Custodial Sentence Following Fatal Fire in HMO - London Fire Brigade (LFB) has recently taken two successful prosecutions under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 following two HMO fires in London...
  3. Fire Safety Logbook Launched - A new National Landlord Association (NLA) approved fire safety logbook is now available as a free download to NLA members...
  4. Check Your Boilers! - Important Information for Buderus 500 series and series 28kw Combi Models...
  5. Do You Have Tenants Struggling To Meet Rising Fuel Costs? - Your tenants may be able to take advantage of one of the cheaper tariffs offered by the utility companies. The most up-to-date details of the tariffs are shown below, why not print off a copy for your tenants?...
  6. 71% of Landlords Expecting Increase in Rental Arrears - The National Landlords Association (NLA), which provides landlords with a tenant referencing service through NLA Tenant Check, has published research showing that 71% of landlords expect rent arrears to increase during 2009...

Nottingham City Landlord Convicted at Nottingham Magistrates Court

The Housing Act 2004 came into force on 6th April 2006 and introduced the provisions for licensing of certain properties. This included mandatory licensing of Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO) of a prescribed description, which includes:

It is now over two years since this legislation came into force with still a number of landlords operating HMOs that meet the prescribed description without applying for or being granted a licence.

Nottingham City Council takes this extremely seriously with enforcement officers taking further action to get landlords to apply for licences for these properties. In some cases this may result in landlords being taken to court for failure to apply for a licence.

A number of successful prosecutions have been achieved over the past year within the City of Nottingham and once a landlord has been convicted the associated tenants can apply to the Residential Property Tribunal (RPT) for a Rent Repayment Order (RPO).

In August 2008 a group of tenants applied to the RPT for a RPO as the property they were living in was unsafe and the landlord had failed to license the three storey end terrace Victorian property. The landlord was convicted at Nottingham Magistrates Court in July 2008 for failing to apply for a licence and failure to keep the property in repair. This resulted in a fine of £8,000 with an additional £1967.53 costs.

The hearing for the RPO was heard on 24th October 2008 which involved the Tribunal inspecting the property and reviewing all the available evidence, including the lack of fire precautions and the previous imminent danger of the roof collapsing.

The Counsel acting on behalf of the Respondent "urged the Tribunal to make no order on the ground that the Respondent had been punished enough by the criminal fines". "The Tribunal considers that under the legislation a RPO serves a different purpose from that of criminal sanctions, namely, to provide a straightforward civil remedy to those persons directly affected by the landlord's illegal acts, and should be judged separately rather than as an adjunct to criminal proceedings".

All the available evidence was assessed by the Tribunal and they "found that the Respondent showed a blatant disregard of his legal responsibilities as a landlord". It was concluded that an order be made of an amount equivalent to 80% of the rent, £7,628.80.

The full RPT decision can be found on the RPT website

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Landlord given custodial sentence following fatal fire in HMO

London Fire Brigade (LFB) has recently taken two successful prosecutions under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 following two HMO fires in London.

On 20 October 2008, Mr Mehmet Parlak was sentenced to four months imprisonment and his company, Watchacre, were fined £21,000 after pleading guilty to eight offences under Fire Safety Order. The prosecution followed a fatal fire in a flat in Ruskin Road, Tottenham in September 2007. This is the first custodial sentence for any prosecution under the Fire Safety Order since it came into force on 1 October 2006.

In December 2008, Mr Armjit Singh was ordered to pay nearly £13,000 in fines and costs after being found guilty of seven offences under the Fire Safety Order. The prosecution followed a fire in a house converted into flats in Wood End Green Road, Hayes in September 2007. Two occupants sustained injuries after smashing and escaping through a first floor window. The stairway had become blocked by smoke as there were no fire doors, no smoke detection and no fire extinguishers.

Both cases reinforce the importance of councils and fire and rescue authorities actively promoting fire safety responsibilities amongst landlords and property managers. Signposting to the LACORS (Local Authorities Coordinators of Regulatory Services) fire safety guidance can help landlords understand their legal responsibilities. See The National Fire Safety Guidance

In Nottinghamshire councils are developing a local protocol for joint working with the fire and rescue service.

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Fire safety logbook launched

A new National Landlord Association (NLA) approved fire safety logbook is now available as a free download to NLA members.

The logbook has been developed to help landlords keep a record of their fire safety precautions. It includes templates and forms such as:

The logbook is designed to be used in conjunction with the LACORS guidance on fire safety. The LACORS guidance sets out clear guidelines on how to carry out fire risk assessments and the safety measures that are required in different residential properties.

For more information see www.landlords.org.uk

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Check your Boilers!

Important Information for Buderus 500 series and series 28kw Combi Models

In a few isolated incidents it has been identified that in the course of an annual service a minor leak has been detected on the aforementioned boilers. The leak is very small and generally contained within the sealed combustion chamber therefore is not a safety issue.

As a responsible manufacturer Buderus has instigated a programme where every 500 series and 600 series 28kw Combi boiler be visited and remedial action undertaken.

The boilers affected are;

All other Buderus domestic and commercial products are unaffected and not requiring the planned remedial action.

Any landlords concerned about the above information should contact the designated customer service team on 0800 5879940 to arrange for an engineers visit.

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Do you have tenants struggling to meet rising fuel costs?

Your tenants may be able to take advantage of one of the cheaper tariffs offered by the utility companies. The most up-to-date details of the tariffs are shown below, why not print off a copy for your tenants?

E.ON

StayWarm provides fixed prices from 12 months after you sign up dependent on how much energy you use. At least one person in the house should be over 60 years of age, less than four people must live in a home which must have three bedrooms or less. Customers also need to take both electricity and gas from E.ON and agree to pay by monthly Direct Debit. Call 0845 303 3060

EDF Energy

Energy Assist Tariff provides a 15% discount on fuel bills. Customers must either spend more than 10% of their total net annual household income on energy costs or be in receipt of income support and/or pension credit benefits. Call 0800 096 9000

npower

Spreading Warmth tariff provides annual discounts of up to £125 per fuel. Customers must have a household income of under £13,500, and at least one person in the house should be over 60, under 16, disabled, or have a chronic illness. Call 0808 172 3999

Scottish Power

CareFree Plus offers qualifying customers a fixed discount of up to £112 per year. Customers must be aged 60 years or over, registered on Scottish Power's CareFree Scheme or in receipt of selected state benefits. Call 0845 2700 700 and ask for the CareFree team.

Scottish and Southern

energyplus care gives qualifying customers receive up to 20% discount on their current fuel prices, regardless of which payment method they use. Customers must spend more than 10% of total household income on energy bills. Call 0800 622 838

British Gas recently removed its Essentials tariff, replacing it with Essentials Advance, which focuses more on energy efficiency. British Gas currently has half a million customers on its social tariff, and does plan to re-introduce Essentials early next year. While we wait for the application doors to open once more, it is encouraging its most vulnerable customers to take advantage of free insulation, plus £50 off their next bill once work has been completed.

Switch to Direct Debit . The way you pay your bills can also determine the potential savings you can make. 41% of gas and 39% electricity customers pay their bills by cash/cheque/debit card. By switching to direct debit, these customers could make an annual saving of £55 and £46 respectively.

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71% of Landlords Expecting Increase in Rental Arrears

The National Landlords Association (NLA), which provides landlords with a tenant referencing service through NLA Tenant Check, has published research showing that 71% of landlords expect rent arrears to increase during 2009.

Of those questioned, just one% felt that rent arrears would decrease next year, while 28% thought there would be no overall change.

The research also revealed that 67% of landlords have experienced problems with rent arrears in the past, while 37% are having payment difficulties with current tenants.

The results paint a worrying picture for some landlords, who are clearly concerned about the effect the credit crunch is having on their tenants' ability to keep up with rental payments.

At a time when everyone is keeping a closer eye on their finances, landlords need to be able to rely on the steady income received through rent - the consequences of not receiving rent could be very serious in terms of potential repossession and impact on housing supply.

David Salusbury, Chairman, NLA, commenting on these latest arrears figures, said:

"Landlords are clearly concerned that tenants will be unable to keep up with rent payments over the next 12 months. It is a worrying situation to be in and landlords need to do all they can to ensure they are regularly receiving rent. Regular communication between both parties is essential to head off major problems.

"The money received through rent is vital and with 71% of landlords predicting that rent arrears will rise in the next 12 months, it is more important than ever that landlords are able to make an informed decision about the financial worthiness of the tenants they are taking on. A simple credit or tenant reference check before they make a decision will give landlords some additional peace of mind that their tenants can be relied upon to meet rent payments."

For more information on NLA Tenant Check, visit the NLA website and click on the logo.

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