A lettings agency has been fined for failing to meet health and safety standards and endangering vulnerable tenants.
Steadwall Properties Limited in Derby has been fined £14,000 after pleading guilty to renting out accommodation deemed unsafe by the city council. The property, located above a pharmacy, had been made the subject of a Prohibition Order in August 2023.
This was in response to an inspection by the environmental health officers, which uncovered significant safety hazards including risks of structural collapse.
The property had been converted into two flats, but the building work had not been certified. The Prohibition Order, issued under the Housing Act 2004, meant no one could live there until work had been done to make the flats safe.
A routine check of the properties in August 2024 and a subsequent criminal investigation found that the flats had been rented out to new tenants in contravention of the Prohibition Order, and that serious safety hazards remained in the property. The letting agents had been receiving rent payments for eight months.
At Southern Derbyshire Magistrates’ Court, Steadwall Properties Limited pleaded guilty to the offence of knowingly permitting occupation of a prohibited property contrary to section 32 of The Housing Act 2004,
The company was fined £21,000, reduced to £14,000 because of an early guilty plea, and ordered to pay £1750 costs.
In summing up the case, the Magistrates commented that Steadwall Properties had recklessly permitted occupation and placed vulnerable tenants at risk of considerable harm.
A council spokesperson says: “We’re committed to ensuring everyone in Derby has a safe place to call home. While most private landlords are responsible and provide good quality housing, our dedicated team works tirelessly to identify and pursue those, whether they are landlords or letting agents, who disregard the health and safety of their tenants.
“We simply won’t tolerate substandard accommodation and will continue to use every tool at our disposal – from prosecution to civil penalty notices and rent repayment orders – to hold them accountable.
“I would encourage anyone with concerns about their rented property or their landlord to report this to our team.”
