Two rogue Barnet landlords and their lettings agents will have to pay tens of thousands of pounds after allowing their tenants’ home to become infested with rats and cockroaches.
![Two of the rooms were let by UKPA Property Consultants, the trading name for R. B Jethwa Ltd. The firm was fined £2,500 and ordered to pay costs of £764.25 and a victim surcharge of £170.](/sites/default/files/styles/ob_barnet_news_item_full/public/2020-07/5FFDF357-586F-4825-89E2-4EF92BDE53E4%20homepage.jpg?itok=5VkCfgNG)
Two of the rooms were let by UKPA Property Consultants, the trading name for R. B Jethwa Ltd. The firm was fined £2,500 and ordered to pay costs of £764.25 and a victim surcharge of £170.
Barnet Council’s enforcement officers found that 80 Highfield Avenue, Golders Green, had not been registered as a House of Multiple Occupancy (HMO) – despite being home to nine people. They discovered a faulty fire alarm system, stairs and flooring that had been partially eaten by rats, and a severe cockroach infestation – all breaches of HMO management regulations.
The nine people included a pregnant woman who was sharing one small room with her husband and young child. Another run-down room was home to a man who often shared it with his two children.
Councillor Richard Cornelius, Chair of the Housing and Growth Committee, said: “We will not tolerate dodgy landlords in Barnet. These people have purposefully breached the law and put their tenants at risk. The COVID-19 lockdown cannot be used as an excuse not to licence HMOs and ensure that properties are safe. I am delighted to see the courts supporting the council in sending out a strong message that this kind of behaviour is not acceptable.”
Owner of the property Asher Abraham was fined £20,000, with £6,113.96 in costs and a £170 victim surcharge, after proceedings at Willesden Magistrates Court on Tuesday 7 July. Co-owner Hannah Abraham was fined £1,500 with a victim surcharge of £170.
Three of the rooms were let by Easy Lettings, while the other two were let by UKPA Property Consultants, the trading name for R. B Jethwa Ltd. Easy Lettings and R. B Jethwa were each fined £2,500 and ordered to pay costs of £764.25 and a victim surcharge of £170.
To find out more about HMOs in Barnet, visit: www.barnet.gov.uk/hmos.
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Barnet Council’s Environmental Health team – responsible for enforcing housing regulations in Barnet – is part of the joint venture between Capita and the council.