Westminster City Council plan to crackdown on rogue landlords and bad behaviour in the private rental sector

By Adrian Zorzut, Local Democracy Reporter

A Central London council is planning a “selective” licensing scheme as part of a crackdown on rogue landlords and bad behaviour in the private rental sector.

Westminster City Council said the programme will run in 15 of 18 wards to “address the prevalence of poor housing conditions and antisocial behaviour” by requiring landlords to be registered in order to privately rent in the areas covered by the scheme.

The council plans to use its powers under section 80 of the Housing Act 2004 to establish two new licensing areas, which are to be known as Designation 1 and Designation 2.

Designation 1 will consist of properties in Abbey Road, Church Street, Harrow Road, Knightsbridge and Belgravia, Little Venice, Maida Vale, Queen’s Park and Westbourne and will focus on poor housing conditions.

Designation 2 will consist of seven wards experiencing high levels of poor housing conditions and significant antisocial behaviour. They are Bayswater, Hyde Park, Lancaster Gate, Marylebone, Pimlico North, Regent’s Park and West End.

The Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) has previously reported on antisocial behaviour (ASB) related to short-term lets around the West End. The new licensing scheme would require landlords to address ASB that’s linked to their properties, which would cover anyone staying in a short-term let as more traditional private rentals.

HMOs are already covered by their own licensing scheme so landlords would not have to pay a separate fee as part of the new selective scheme.

Westminster City is proposing a licensing fee of £995 for private landlords, which will be levied in two parts. The first £543, known as Part A, will be charged when an application is made and cover processing costs. Once a licence has been granted, Part B of the fee, £452, is charged to cover management and enforcement costs.

The licence will cover a five-year period. Any existing private landlords would be required to pay the £995 fee in full when the scheme comes into effect.

The proposal has been broadly rejected by respondents who were surveyed as part of a public consultation. They included residents, private tenants, private landlords, as well as lettings and management agents.

Only 30 per cent of respondents support establishing designated licensing areas. Between 52 per cent and 57 per cent disagreed with the measure, while 75 per cent said the proposed licensing fee was too high. Support was highest among private tenants and owner occupiers, which hovered between 47 per cent and 57 per cent.

Support for the proposed objectives of the scheme fared slightly better, with 37 per cent of people agreeing with them. A majority of respondents agreed there were “significant issues” with private rented properties in the borough.

Despite the mixed results of the consultation, the council said it is pushing ahead with its plans. The same report read: “There are no alternatives identified that would, individually or collectively, be capable of delivering the scheme objectives that the council would achieve through the introduction of the proposed selective licensing scheme.

“Making the designations combined with other measures taken by the council will significantly assist the council to achieve the proposed objectives to reduce poor housing conditions in Designation 1, and to reduce poor housing conditions and achieve a reduction or elimination of the significant and persistent problems caused by ASB in Designation 2.”

The council has also said it does not expect the cost of the licensing fee to be passed on to tenants, citing previous schemes. Inspectors are expected to undertake 20,000 inspections – roughly 60pc of licensed properties – over the life of the scheme.

The council expects this to lead to the improvement of at least 10,000 properties. It is a criminal offence for a landlord to operate a property without a licence in a designated area or to fail to comply with any licence conditions.

This may result in a criminal prosecution or a financial penalty of up to £30,000. The designation may be challenged via judicial review or a complaint to the local government ombudsman. Westminster City councillors will review the decision during a cabinet meeting on Monday, May 19.

PICTURE: PIXABAY