Landlord fined £24,000 for not fixing heating

The family living at the property repeatedly complained about the heating not being fixed

A landlord has been fined £24,000 after his tenants were left without heating for six years.

Lakhbir Singh Rakhra was reported to Slough Borough Council's housing regulation team after repeated complaints from the single parent and four children living at his property.

He had been ordered by the authority to carry out the essential repairs in May 2022 but they were not completed for a further five months.

Mr Rakhra had appealed against the fine for not complying with the improvement notice but the penalty was upheld by the First Tier Tribunal (Property Chamber).

In its ruling, the tribunal said: "It is a substantial penalty, but the offence was serious.

"In effect the appellant was failing to comply with essential repairs which he ought to have carried out anyway before he was served with the notice.

"He then failed to comply with the notice itself."

In his appeal, Mr Rakhra claimed his tenants in Rochfords Gardens had obstructed him from doing the required work.

But the tribunal did not believe him.

It said: "If he was really being obstructed by his tenant, he could have sought injunctive relief in the County Court.

"He didn't do this which supports the fact that there was not really a problem. He is clearly an experienced landlord who should know better."

Housing regulation officer Niki Bhogal, who gave evidence at the tribunal, said: "This case should never have come to tribunal.

"The landlord should have been fulfilling his duties, acting on the concerns of his tenant and putting right the issues identified.

"We hope this will serve as a warning to other landlords to take their responsibilities seriously and ensure their tenants have a safe and fully functioning home."

Any application from the landlord for permission to appeal must be submitted by 19 July.