One in five renters suffer at the hands of landlords

ONE in five tenants in the West Midlands rent from rogue landlords, a survey suggests.

Some 17 per cent of them live in a house with damp and 13 per cent are unable to deal with the issue with their landlord easily, according to new research from boiler company Help-Link.co.uk

Its study found that one in 10 tenants in the region currently live in properties suffering from water leaks.

Last year, Citizens Advice reported that rogue landlords were raking in £5.6 billion in rent payments each year for unsafe homes that did not meet legal standards set out by the Housing Health and Safety Rating System.

This includes category one hazards such as severe damp, rat infestations and even risk of explosion.

The report also revealed 740,000 households in the UK presented a “severe threat to tenants’ health”.

Worryingly, families with young children are living in these conditions. Almost one in five people say they have tried to leave their accommodation but are stuck within a contract agreement.

However, a spokesman for landlord eviction specialist Landlord Action said: “It is possible to end an agreement at any time if both parties agree. Nonetheless, some tenants feel this is an impossible solution as 25 per cent of landlords in the UK fail to even respond to tenant complaints or communication.”

Tenants in the West Midlands who have reported water leaks and issues with damp and mould have to wait an average of seven-and-a-half weeks for landlords to come and fix the problems, the survey suggests.

The Landlord Action spokesman said: “One of the common complaints we have found in the past is that some tenants make it difficult for landlords to visit the property. However, regular inspections are imperative to check pipes for breaks, leaks and blockages, bleed radiators and arrange routine boiler checks. Blocked or leaking pipes can freeze during the cold months, then expand and burst.”

The survey suggests that a fifth of tenants in the West Midlands do not receive their full deposit back, with the average tenant in the UK losing around £355 at the end of their agreement.

Almost half of tenants living in the West Midlands who have lost their deposit believe this is due to wear and tear, which they argue is something landlords should expect to happen when they rent out a house.

But the Landlord Action spokesman said: “Landlords cannot simply retain a deposit or any part of it without giving explicit and clear written reasons for doing so.”