York council tenants urged to avoid 'claim farmers'

A judge sitting at York County Court is said to have recently ordered a tenant to pay costs totalling £10,409.72

A council has warned tenants to report repairs to it rather than make legal claims against it after an unsuccessful claimant had to pay £10,000 in costs.

City of York Council said it had seen a rise in legal claims by "no win, no fee" solicitors acting for its tenants.

Some of these claims had resulted in tenants being left "significantly out of pocket", the authority added.

A York County Court judge ordered a one unsuccessful claimant to pay costs of £10,409.72, the authority said.

'No win no fee' legal firms had been "targeting tenants" to make claims against City of York Council, while so-called "claims farm" workers had been reported to be going door-to-door, it said.

The council said some firms encouraged tenants to make compensation claims against their landlord and then sold this information on to legal firms.

Some of the door-to-door reps had suggested they were working for the council, but the authority insisted they were not.

Councillor Michael Pavlovic, executive member for housing, said providing decent, affordable homes was "a priority".

He said: "We are carrying out a significant housing repair programme to upgrade and modernise homes, while also installing energy efficiency measures to make them more affordable to run.

"We are committed to supporting council tenants and making good any repairs for which we are responsible.

"The recent and rising number of claims against the council have seen everyone lose out - except for the claims farmers. It has left tenants liable to court costs, and the time and money spent by the council to defend these claims could be better spent on investing in homes."