A rogue landlord who refused to fix up his two dangerous HMOs has had them shut down by Tamworth Borough Council.

The authority issued two emergency prohibition notices after finding tenants living in unsafe conditions at the detached houses in Stonydelph owned by Edward Harris, of Polesworth, which had multiple serious safety failures.

Both six-bedroom properties were being operated illegally as unlicensed HMOs housing tenants in dangerous conditions including no central heating, no hot water, no working fire alarms, inadequate cooking facilities and unsafe access to outdoor areas.

Alerted

Council officers were first alerted by a concerned resident and inspected both properties, which failed to meet even the most basic of living standards and legal requirements.

Harris, along with management agent Touchstone, which had been managing one property since September, repeatedly failed to take action on warnings and advice from the council to address the problems, according to the council.

Choice

Councillor Ben Clarke, portfolio holder for housing, homelessness and planning (pictured), says the state of the properties left it with no choice but to act.

“The safety of Tamworth residents must always come first,” adds Clarke. “No one should be paying costly rent and have to live without heating or hot water, or in a property with inadequate fire safety measures. These basic standards are not negotiable.

“We worked extensively with the landlord and the management agency to give them every opportunity to put things right but failed to address the issues. This left us with no alternative but to issue prohibition orders and close both properties.”

All tenants affected by the closure have been offered support from the council to help them find alternative accommodation. It is now considering further enforcement action.

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