A professional landlord who left her tenants to choose between security and fire safety has been told to pay back £30,600 in rent.

A First Tier Property Tribunal heard that despite Rebecca Fong being an NRLA member with at least six properties and the director of three companies – one of which (Peck Portfolio Ltd) was involved in lettings – she had made little or no effort to keep abreast of changes in licence and legal requirements.

Her property in Camberwell New Road in London didn’t have an additional licence while the front door locked with a key, meaning that in the event of a fire, one of the four tenants would have had to locate the key and unlock the door. The judge said: “The alternative would be to not lock the door, and this would have compromised their security. Given the previous break-in, it is not surprising the applicants did lock the door. They should not have been put in the position of choosing between security and fire safety.”

Minimum

The property also did not meet minimum fire detection, fire alarm or safe escape requirements while key repair and maintenance operations were delayed or deferred.

One tenant said that the reason they gave notice was because of the lack of licence - but it had been granted two months previously. Fong failed to disclose this, but by the time she did, the tenant was moving out. Another tenant said that the house, previously rented for £3,000, was now rented for £4,000 pcm.

Granted

When the licence was granted, it was subject to conditions which the landlord was aware of, but most weren’t carried out until after her tenants had left. The judge added that Fong did not carry out property inspections - her role was solely reactive to issues raised by the tenants. She admitted she could have done a better job of managing the property with little effort.

Fong was handed a Rent Repayment Order of 80% of the rent claimed.

Photo: Google

‍