A landlord has been told to pay his former tenant £12,555 after he locked her out of his rental property when the ceiling collapsed.

Chris Singellos also deliberately failed to get a licence under Haringey Council’s selective scheme, a First Tier Property Tribunal ruled.

The tenant moved out from Fairfax Mews in London in November 2023 when water began leaking into the bedroom and the living room ceiling collapsed. The boiler had also failed, leaving her without heating or hot water.

She emailed Singellos, telling him the property was not habitable and asked for an end to the tenancy and an immediate release from the agreement as she was sleeping on a friend’s sofa “until I am well enough to pick up any remaining possessions that have not been completely ruined by the problems detailed above and find somewhere alternative to live”.

Twice

She tried to go back twice in early December to remove her belongings. On the first visit, she found the bedroom door locked and on the second, the locks had been changed, and she could not get into the property. On 10th December, Singellos sent her an email giving her notice with immediate effect using a legal clause in the tenancy agreement.

The judge said he had intended to exclude his tenant from the property indefinitely as it was clear that she had not surrendered her tenancy. The tribunal was satisfied she had been unlawfully deprived of her occupation of the property.

Argued

Singellos argued that he believed that she would not return and the judge ruled he had not committed an unlawful eviction.

However, the judge said: “The respondent had taken a dismissive approach to the genuine issues raised by the applicant. The tribunal was also satisfied that, despite being frequently alerted to the ongoing problems of the leaks into the property from the flat above, the respondent took inadequate steps to remedy the problem, resulting in the eventual collapse of the ceiling.”

The tribunal made a 10% reduction in the Rent Repayment Order.

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