NEWS IN BRIEF

Fire-risk landlord must pay £20,285

A TENANT living in “squalid and quite deplorable” conditions had to escape through a third-floor window when his home caught fire, a court was told.

The man was eventually rescued by firefighters from the property in Mount Pleasant, Swansea, during the blaze in December last year.

The incident led to the investigation and prosecution of landlord Paul Williams, who was ordered to pay more than £20,000 in fines and costs after he admitted 25 offences under the Housing Act 2004 for failing to comply with HMO management regulations and HMO licence conditions.

Offences included items blocking a fire escape route, windows and fire doors in a state of disrepair and staircase carpets badly worn out. The fire detection system was not working.

Swansea Magistrates’ Court heard that Swansea Council environmental health officers made the findings after twice visiting the property in January.

Now Williams faces uncertainty about his licence to operate as a landlord of houses in multiple occupation (HMO) in Swansea.

The matter has also been reported to the Welsh Government’s Rent Smart Wales scheme to consider Williams’ future as a licensee with them.

Williams, director of Shotblue Ltd, Clydach, was fined £18,600 and ordered to pay costs of £1,692 with a victim surcharge of £93, totalling £20,285.

The court was told that investigators found areas of damp in bedrooms, exposed wiring and loose staircase handrails.

The chairman of magistrates examined photographs of the property and said it was clear the conditions in which the tenants lived were “squalid and quite deplorable”.

Following the case Andrea Lewis, cabinet member for housing, energy and building services, warned: “Landlords need to know if they don’t play by the rules we will prosecute.”