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Letting agent fined £25,000 over ‘unsafe’ HMO
A letting agent has been ordered to pay a fine of £25,800 after “serious safety issues” were uncovered at a rental property.
Zivile Aksinaviciene of J&KO Property Ltd was the property licence holder for the house in multiple occupancy (HMO) in Northampton.
Concerns were raised over the safety of the property, which prompted an investigation from West Northamptonshire Council in May 2022.
The inspection revealed that the electrical meter had been tampered with, which the council said would seriously endanger the safety of the four residents of the property. An electrician was instructed by the council to carry out emergency work.
Further fire safety breaches were uncovered too, such as missing smoke alarms and poorly maintained fire doors.
Aksinaviciene was fined £25,000 for breaching the licence conditions for an HMO, and a further £800 due to not being a member of a property redress scheme.
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The owner of the property has taken back responsibility, and carried out more work in order to improve the safety standards, according to the council. This has included surrendering the HMO licence and converting the property to a single-family house.
Councillor Adam Brown, cabinet member for housing, culture and leisure, said: “From some of the images captured at this address, it is clear the licensee had little regard for the safety of their tenants.
“The Housing Team cannot visit every property, but this case demonstrates that we will take action when people contact us with their concerns.”