Landlord couple to pay £27,000 over unlicensed HMO above shop

A rogue landlord couple who rented out an HMO that was riddled with hazards and had raw sewage outside the front door have been fined £17,000 with costs of £10,000.

Robin and Susan Kirstein, of Berkley Avenue, Greenford, admitted a string of housing offences after ignoring improvement notices on the property at 6A The Broadway, which failed to meet many basic safety standards. Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court heard that these offences were so bad, the judge described the HMO as not fit for human habitation.

Robin Kirstein admitted 13 offences including poor management of the property, lack of adequate waste facilities, lack of fire precautions and failure to provide information, while

Susan Kirstein admitted 17 offences including failure to carry out works to the property and failure to carry out drainage works to ensure sanitary conditions.

Maggots

A council inspection in July 2020 found a leaking soil pipe was causing raw sewage to pool outside the front of the house, causing outbreaks of flies inside and maggots outside the front door.

The property – a four-storey building with a commercial premises on the ground floor and HMO on the other floors – had no lighting or heating in some areas, several of the doors had no handles, there were un-openable windows, mould, stairs with no handrails and broken smoke alarms.

A further inspection in March 2021 revealed that improvement notices had not been complied with.

The pair refused to provide copies of their lease, tenancy agreements, details of the management arrangements and gas and electrical certificates. 

Councillor Eddie Lavery (pictured), cabinet member for environment, housing and regeneration, says the Kirsteins showed scant regard for the welfare of tenants who had an expectation of living somewhere that met decent standards.

He adds: “This property not only fell well below that mark but was riddled with hazards and dangers that could have proved disastrous.”

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