HMO prosecution is warning to landlords, says council

A landlord has been ordered to pay over £3,000 in fines and costs for operating an unsafe HMO.

John Abraka pleaded guilty at Romford Magistrates Court to charges for the property in Romford, which included failing to license the property as an HMO; failing to provide documents requested by the local authority; and numerous breaches of the HMO Management Regulations

Abraka was fined for the offences and ordered to pay court costs and a victim surcharge. 

Havering council officers visited the premises in September 2021, after receiving complaints by a member of the public about the property.

On the visit, the officers found that it was occupied by eight people with evidence of a garage having being illegally turned into a bedroom.

The property was also in a bad state of disrepair and had a lack of the required fire safety precautions expected in an HMO.  

A council spokesperson says: “All our residents deserve to live in safe accommodation.

"We will continue to crack down on irresponsible landlords taking advantage of families and individuals by providing poorly maintained HMO properties.We won’t tolerate it and neither will we stand for landlords not having the correct licences. We are also here to support landlords to help them make sure tenants are living safely in private rented accommodation in Havering.

“However, landlords of HMOs that break the rules must be aware that like in this case, we will use the strongest possible action against them.”

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