Prosecutions of ‘rogue landlords’ between January 2015 and July 2022
Dear FOI Team,
I write under the terms of the Freedom of Information Act to request data relating to the number of ‘rogue landlords’ successful prosecuted between January 2015 and July 2022.
In the context of this request, the term ‘rogue landlord’ is defined as a landlord who ‘knowingly flouts their obligations by renting our unsafe and substandard accommodation to tenants, many of whom may be vulnerable.'
As part of this, I would like the information broken down into the following:
i) The number of rogue landlords not complying with safety regulations identified by this authority between January 2016 and July 2022;
ii) Of this amount, the number of rogue landlords not complying with safety regulations that were successfully prosecuted during the requested time frame;
iii) Of the total amount, the number of rogue landlords not complying with safety regulations that were unsuccessfully prosecuted during the requested time frame;
iv) Of the total amount, how many rogue landlords not complying with safety regulations that have been punished via other means, e.g. fines.
Please present the information in Excel format.
Yours faithfully,
Oliver Murphy
Dear Sir
I refer to the request, which you have made under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 for records held by this service.
Acknowledgement
Your request was received by this department on 26 September 2022.
A final decision on your request would normally be sent to you within 20 working days of receipt of your request. This means that you can expect to receive your decision by the end of 24 October 2022.
There are some limited situations under the Freedom of Information Act, which could mean that the period for a final decision may be longer than the normal 20 working days. If this occurs in your request, we will promptly advise you in writing.
Yours sincerely
Information Rights Officer
Dear Mr Murphy,
Thank you for your request for information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000.
Before I respond, could I please clarify the following: -
1. Do you wish the response to be limited to the definition ‘knowingly flouts'? This could produce a very limited response. Many of the offences are absolute offences in that it is not necessary for the Council to prove the knowledge by the landlord of the offence. 'knowingly' may not be recorded against offences and limiting to this definition will result in exclusion of offences where 'knowingly' is not clear, from the FOI result.
2. Do you wish the response to be limited to 'regulations' rather than primary legislation?. This will result in the majority of enforcement action carried out by the Council in respect of landlords maintenance of safe standards to be excluded. For example, all Part 1 of the Housing Act 2004 and some licensing offences (these are not covered by regulations).
Once you have clarified these, I will respond to your request within 20 working days.
Kind regards,
Stuart Gibson
Group Risk and Assurance Officer
Strategic Housing and Residential Growth
Housing, Environment and Healthy Communities
Gateshead Council
Dear Mr Murphy,
I emailed you on 28 September 2022 you to ask for clarification of your request. I have not received any response and so we have closed your request. You can resubmit a request through our website at www.gateshead.gov.uk/article/3717/Freedo.... Please ensure that your request includes sufficient detail to allow us to locate the information that you require.
Kind regards,
Stuart Gibson
Group Risk and Assurance Officer
Strategic Housing and Residential Growth
Housing, Environment and Healthy Communities
Tel: 0191 433 5308
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