Landlord fined under property licensing scheme

A landlord has been prosecuted after he failed to license his two rental properties in a South Yorkshire town.

Rotherham Council secured a conviction against Simon Nicholls, who was ordered to pay £361 in costs when he appeared at Sheffield Magistrates Court.

Nicholls, of Worksop in Notts, ignored requests from the council to provide information about the properties on Carlyle Road in Maltby, South Yorkshire, which were both tenanted.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The council runs a Selective Licensing scheme, meaning all rental homes must be registered. Nicholls was contacted in December 2015 and in early 2016, but did not reply to three separate requests and an application was never received.

The landlord pleaded guilty to the offence, apologised to the court and stated that he would apply for the licence.

Specified parts of Rotherham were designated as Selective Licensing areas in 2015, meaning all privately rented properties must be licensed as part of a project to tackle low housing demand. Owners must comply with a range of conditions to ensure good management.

Coun Dominic Beck, the Council’s Cabinet member for housing, said: “Our housing officers tried to help this individual licence his property, but the poor response let him down.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“The message is simple, we will not allow irresponsible landlords to persist with their actions indefinitely and will take legal action when landlords fail to licence within reasonable timescales.

“This should be a warning to other landlords that if you don’t comply with selective licensing, a court summons will end up on your doormat.”

Since May last year, the council has successfully completed three prosecutions and is in the process of bringing further cases to court. The maximum fine that can be imposed by the courts is £20,000.