A landlord with multiple premises in Bootle has been landed with fines totalling tens of thousands of pounds after being taken to court by Sefton Council for ignoring safety risks and continuing to allow tenants to live in dangerous conditions.

Safety hazards

Mr Puvirasa Thankavel was originally served and Emergency Prohibition Order (EPO) by Sefton Council in May 2022 owing to multiple safety hazards in three of his lettings on Hawthorne Road, Bootle.

An inspection uncovered multiple hazards including risk of electrocution, fire and cold, damaged electrical outlets, inadequate fire separation between premises and unmaintained entrances.

Although an EPO prohibits a property from being used for living or sleeping accommodation due to serious health and safety breaches, a further Council inspection in November 2023, found that the premises were still being let out by the landlord. This placed Mr Thankavel in breach of the emergency order. Serious risks were still present during this inspection and the landlord was successful prosecuted in Sefton Magistrates Court this month.

Successful prosecution

Mr Thankavel pleaded guilty and was ordered to pay £22,630, including a fine of £20,000 for breaching the initial order and renting the property out unlicenced. The court noted that his tenants were in ‘immediate risk’ of danger and that if a fire had taken place, it would have been ‘catastrophic’.

Cllr Daren Veidman, Sefton Council’s Cabinet Member for Housing and Highways said: said: “We are delighted that the prosecution against Mr Thankavel was successful and hope that this serves as a reminder to other landlords in the Borough that Sefton Council will take action if a property is not suitable to live in.

“A safe and secure home is a basic need and cases like this, where landlords put residents in dangerous living conditions, is completely unacceptable.

“We know that many landlords stay up to date on the upkeep of their properties and offer a welcoming home to their tenants, but some take advantage of the situation and the people living in their residences.

“Sefton Council will continue to inspect properties owned by landlords to ensure that they are kept to an acceptable standard, and we will continue to seek prosecutions against landlords who do not follow the basic guidelines.”

Increased enforcement

In order to tackle issues with landlords breaking license conditions and letting out unsuitable properties, Sefton Council is dedicating more time to enforcement cases and already have other prosecutions pending.

Over the past five years, over 100 Civil Penalty Fines have been served to landlords for various offences, including failure to licence properties and breaches of enforcement notices. These fines range have ranged from £250 to £15,000.

People can find out more about acceptable living standards for rented properties and how to make a complaint at www.sefton.gov.uk/Housing-standards.

Last year, Sefton Council extended its Selective and Additional (HMO) Licensing schemes for private rented homes until the end of February 2028. The schemes, which cover approaching 4,000 private rented properties across the Borough, enable the Council to step in and deal with poor management and hazards being faced by tenants.

Over 3,000 serious health and safety hazards, including problems with fire safety, electrical hazards, damp & mould and excess cold, had been removed from properties since licenses were introduced in 2018.

Landlords can find out if their property needs a licence and can make their application by visiting housinglicensing.sefton.gov.uk.