Landlord fined £11,000 for misleading tenants

A landlord was found guilty of misleading young tenants

A landlord has been found guilty of misleading young tenants and making them pay extra money for their deposits.

Josefina Velazquez, 62, of Hampton Road in Redland, pleaded guilty to three charges at Bristol Magistrates Court on 8 April, and has been ordered to pay £11,000 in fines.

It was found that Ms Velazquez misled her student tenants about their tenancies, so that she could take more money from them, according to the Bristol City Council.

Councillor Richard Eddy said: "We want to make sure that tenants feel confident speaking up when they have an issue with their landlord, and we will look at taking action against any Bristol landlord or agent who systematically misleads their tenants."

An investigation by Bristol City Council uncovered a pattern by Ms Velazquez which involved two groups of tenants, between 2022 and 2024.

Ms Velazquez offered deposits at a lower amount than she charged, and she lied to her tenants about their rights, the court heard.

The council said that Ms Velazquez had begun to refund the money owed to her tenants before any legal proceedings began.

"Following the Council's notification to Ms Velazquez of the intended prosecution, she refunded the remainder of the monies the Council understood she owed to her student tenants," it added in a statement.

Ms Velazquez was ordered by District Judge Matthews to work with Bristol City Council and also spoke about the "vulnerability" of young student tenants who may be eager to secure accommodation within limited time.

Correction 30 April 2025: On April 23rd this article was updated to make clear that Ms Velazquez had begun to make payments before Bristol City Council began legal proceedings against her. It was also amended to say that following notification of legal proceedings she refunded the remainder of the money owed to her student tenants.