HMO landlord still breaching safety regulations after fine
The landlord of an HMO (House in Multiple Occupation) is still failing to adhere to fire safety rules even after being fined £2,000 and £1,000 in costs for his property in Newquay.
The property was inspected on 13th March 2009 and it was found that there were insufficient or inadequate fire alarms, fire escapes and emergency escape lighting.
Mr Gage was subsequently visited 5 times and had not improved safety standards in the property to an appropriate level. Cornwall Council then decided to bring the case to the attention of the courts.
Mr Paul Gage was found guilty of 6 offences at Liskeard Magistrates Court in July 2010.
Plymouth landlord fined after breaching fire safety regulations
A Plymouth landlord has been found guilty of fire safety breaches after a housing officer conducted an audit on the property last year. The officer discovered that the building had not been fitted with fire alarms, fire extinguishers or adequate emergency lighting.
Mrs Bartlett was ordered to pay £6,929 in costs and will carry out 120 hours of community service after Plymouth Magistrates Court found her guilty of not adhering to the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order.
HMO landlady fined
A landlady of a HMO in Headingley has been ordered to pay £14,000 after being found guilty of 6 violations of the HMO fire safety code.
The breaches were not discovered until a fire broke out in the building and the fire alarms failed to go off. Mrs Anwar claims that due to poor health she had been unable to maintain the fire alarms and had not managed to arrange for someone else to do this for her.
Ms Anwar put her tenants in danger by not providing adequate fire escapes and failing to maintain the fire alarms in the building.
Norwich Landlord jailed after horrific fire
A woman has suffered 80% burns covering most of her body after a fire broke out in her bedsit on 14th April 2009. Ms Skalli was not able to escape from the fire because her windows would only open 4 inches and the only other exit was blocked by thick smoke. Tenants from neighbouring bedsits were rescued by fire fighters or had to climb down drainpipes to escape the burning building.
Doctors thought it was unlikely that Ms Skalli would survive, and John Claxton from the HSE said “This is the most distressing case I have worked on during my 31 years as an HSE inspector”.
Mr Billings, landlord of a number of adjoining bedsits had failed to provide working fire alarms or sufficient escape routes. He had also neglected to have the gas appliances in the properties serviced and inspected.
After a joint prosecution by Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service and the Health and Safety Executive, the Norwich landlord pleaded guilty to a string of serious health and safety, fire safety and gas safety offences.
Mr Billings was sentenced at Norwich Crown Court and will now serve two and a half years in prison.
Landlord fined after man dies in HMO fire
A man has died at his home after a fire broke out whilst he was sleeping. The fire, thought to have been caused by a faulty fridge freezer started at about 11am on 18th November 2009.
Although fire alarms had been fitted in the Birmingham property, they had not been maintained and it was found that neither fire alarm had batteries in them at the time of the fire.
The landlord of the property, Mumtaz Mohammed was ordered to pay £2,500 in fines and £2,000 costs after pleading guilty at Birmingham Magistrates Court on 6th August 2010. Mr Mohammed was charged with failing to ensure that the fire alarms were working, under regulation 4 of the Management of Houses in Multiple Occupation Regulations.