NRLA slams councils’ handling of criminal landlords

The National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) has hit out after research reveals that councils have collected less than half of fines levied against criminal landlords in England.

According to the NRLA, just £6 million out of £13 million in civil penalties imposed on landlords between 2021 and 2023 have been collected by councils.

This means less than half of the fines are being recovered, raising questions about the effectiveness of the current enforcement measures.

Current rules enable councils to issue civil penalties of up to £30,000 for a range of offences with the income used to fund further enforcement activity.

‘Criminal landlords cause misery for their tenants’

The NRLA’s chief executive, Ben Beadle, said: “Criminal landlords cause misery for their tenants and undermine the reputation of the responsible majority.

“Tackling them should be a high priority for councils.”

He added: “At a time of tight budgets, it is strange that councils are failing to collect the fines levied on those landlords failing to do the right thing.

“It makes a mockery of the deterrent such fines should be.

“It will also come as a bitter blow to the many responsible landlords who comply with, and exceed, their responsibilities – but are subject to licencing regimes and associated fees all the same.”

He says the government and councils should work together to boost enforcement teams and make better use of the existing powers they have to tackle poor-quality housing.

Report highlights inconsistency in enforcement

The NRLA’s report also highlights the inconsistency in enforcement across different local authorities.

It found that nearly half (49%) of councils haven’t issued any penalties in the past three years, while a staggering 69% have only issued five or fewer.

These figures were uncovered with Freedom of Information (FoI) requests and come at a time when the Renters (Reform) Bill is being debated in Parliament.

The bill proposes to expand the range of offences for which councils can issue civil penalties.

However, the NRLA’s data casts doubt on councils’ ability to effectively utilise these new powers when they are struggling to enforce existing ones.

The NRLA says a national Chief Environmental Health Officer role needs to be created to lead the charge for improved enforcement against criminal landlords.

It adds that the government should also boost the capacity of council enforcement teams by establishing a recruitment and training fund – and support councils to share best practices.