A landlord who ignored repeated requests to provide his tenant with hot water has been told to pay £5,600 in fines.

Wajid Mahmood, 41, of Holden Street, Clitheroe, pleaded guilty to failing to comply with an improvement notice and was fined £2,025 and ordered to pay costs totalling £2,846 by Blackburn magistrates.

The court was told that the poor state of the property in Bawdlands, Clitheroe, and the long-running fight to sort problems had a serious impact on the tenant’s mental health, who was unable to wash properly due to a lack of hot running water.

The ground floor flat tenant first contacted Ribble Valley Borough Council to report that the front door didn’t lock, and the shower only ran cold. He then reported extensive disrepair, and a council inspection found a number of serious hazards, including significant damp and mould growth, a defective boiler, faulty electrics and no hot running water. An improvement notice was issued requiring remedial works be carried out.

Complained

A new tenant moved in who also complained to the council about ongoing problems with the property, but a follow-up inspection found most of the repairs hadn’t been completed.

The court was told that Mahmood had pleaded guilty at the first opportunity and had lost his good character. He said a close family member had serious health issues which required his time and attention. He accepted works had been carried out later than they should, but most had now been completed.

The property was owned jointly by Mahmood and another man. While both men were initially jointly charged, in light of Mahmood’s guilty plea the council withdrew the charge against the second man on the grounds that it was not in the public interest to continue.

Chairman

Councillor Mark Hindle, chairman of the health and housing committee (pictured right), says the case shows clearly that it will take strong action against the small minority of private landlords who “make their tenants’ lives hell by allowing their properties to become so poor they don’t meet even the most basic needs”.

He adds: “Rented properties should be safe, clean and secure and landlords have a moral, as well as legal, duty to ensure they meet the proper standards. In this case the tenant was badly let down and the state of the property was so bad, without basic essentials such as hot water or heating, that it had a detrimental impact on his mental and physical wellbeing.”

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