Trade body calls for action on rogue landlords

The Government recently abandoned plans put forward by the previous government to regulate the private rented sector, saying that the selective licensing powers local authorities already had were enough to protect tenants.

These powers enable local authorities to monitor and regulate landlords in areas of low housing demand, or ones which experience high levels of anti-social behaviour.

But research carried out by the Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA) found that only 12 out of 400 local authorities have so far used their powers to introduce selective licensing.

It added that across these local authorities, only 15 landlords had been prosecuted for failing to comply with the licensing requirements.

The group said it had also uncovered inconsistencies in the way local authorities were enforcing the legislation.

Ian Potter, operations manager of the ARLA, said: "ARLA's research highlights the low number of prosecutions and the inconsistent means by which selective licensing is enforced, and the need for a national scheme to regulate the private rented sector.

"The Government's argument that selective licensing allows local authorities to deal with the problem of rogue landlords does not stand up to scrutiny.

"We again urge the Government to re-examine selective licensing, and as a bare minimum, strengthen the obligations of local authorities and landlords to provide adequate protection for tenants in the private rented sector."

Housing Minister Grant Shapps said: "With the vast majority of England's three million private tenants happy with the service they receive, I am satisfied that the current system strikes the right balance between the rights and responsibilities of tenants and landlords.

"So I make a promise to good landlords across the country: the Government has no plans to create any burdensome red tape and bureaucracy.

"But for the bad landlords, I am putting councils on alert to use the range of powers already at their disposal to make sure tenants are properly protected."