Details on how the British Government is going to crackdown on landlords in the private rented sector renting out overcrowded and dangerous homes have been published.
Measures to improve living conditions of private tenants in shared homes were laid before Parliament by Housing Minister Heather Wheeler which give councils tough new powers to tackle rogue landlords and impose fines of up to £30,000 for those who do not comply.
From October councils will be able to set minimum bedroom size standards and also introduce limits on how many people can live in each bedroom of a licenced multiple occupancy home. Councils will be able to use national minimum standards or apply even tougher requirements in order to address specific local needs.
The aim is to help ensure tenants have the space they need as well as reduce health and safety risks they face by sharing cooking and washing facilities with too many people.
The new standards will apply to all landlords seeking new licences while landlords of existing properties will be given up to 18 months to make necessary changes when re-applying for a licence when it expires.
In a move to stop rubbish piling up outside some shared rented homes, often presenting health risks and blighting neighbourhoods, landlords will also be required to provide adequate waste storage facilities in line with their local authority’s rules. If they fail to do so they could face a fine.
These latest measures build on wider Government action to drive up standards in the private rented sector by tackling bad landlords. This includes the launch of a new database of rogue landlords and introduction of banning orders for the worst offenders coming into force next month.
‘Everyone deserves a decent and safe place to live. But some tenants are being exploited by a minority of unscrupulous landlords who profit from renting out cramped and sometimes squalid or dangerous properties,’ said Wheeler.
‘These measures will mean landlords must provide adequate space for their tenants or face a hefty fine. It is part of a raft of new powers for councils to crack down on rogue landlords and comprehensive action we are taking to improve conditions for private tenants,’ she added.
Last month new legislation was introduced requiring more landlords to obtain a licence from their council. Landlords of one and two storey multiple occupancy properties will be brought within scope of mandatory licensing requirements across England, affecting roughly 160,000 additional properties.
Rooms used for sleeping by one person over 10 will have to be no smaller than 6.51 square metres, and those slept in by two people over 10 will have to be no smaller than 10.22 square metres. Rooms slept in by children of 10 years and younger will have to be no smaller than 4.64 square metres.
The licence must specify the maximum number of persons, if any, who may occupy any room and the total number across the different rooms must be the same as the number of persons for whom the property is suitable to live in.
National mandatory licensing currently only applies to houses in multiple occupation that have three or more storeys and occupied by five or more people. It is being extended to cover one and two storey houses in multiple occupation which are occupied by five or more people.
Civil penalties of up to £30,000 as an alternative to prosecution came into force April 2017 and a database of rogue landlords and letting property agents convicted of certain offences is set to be implemented in April 2018.