Two landlords have been fined £23,000 combined for renting out dangerous properties in Cardiff last week.
On Friday 9th February, Rowshanara Begum was fined £20,000 at Cardiff Magistrates' Court for failing to comply with five improvement notices for work to a house she rents out in Blaenclydach Street, Grangetown.
This case came to light when a tenant complained to the council that the property wasn't to the required standards.
The case was brought to court in December 2023, where Begum was fined £10,000, and ordered to pay costs and charges of £2,190.
It was made clear to Begum that the improvement works identified through the inspection had to be completed by March 2022, but these were never carried out.
A further summons was issued on Begum to attend Cardiff Magistrates' Court last Friday, and a further fine of £20,000 was handed down, along with a charge of £1,000 in costs and a further £2,000 surcharge.
Similarly, on February 8th, Lawford Cunningham was fined £3,000 for failing to comply with legislation relating to the licensing and management of a House of Multiple Occupation (HMO) he owns in Ferry Road, Grangetown.
A housing inspector visited the four-storey property to assess whether the landlord was renting out the property in breach of the regulations.
Cunningham was fined £3,000, and ordered to pay £367.80 in costs, with a victim surcharge of £2,000.
Cllr Lynda Thorne, cabinet member for communities at Cardiff Council, said: "The majority of PRS landlords provide a good service for their residents, but unfortunately there is a minority that do not.
"When we take these matters to court, we do this to benefit the residents living at these properties, so that the faults identified are fixed and the properties are safe to live in.
“As one of these cases show, we do make the necessary checks to ensure that the work is completed, and if it hasn't been, we will look to prosecute the landlord again."
