Landlord hits back at Council after Guardian article

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An article in the Guardian yesterday purporting to expose rogue landlords had the headline “London council finds 35 men living in one three bedroom house”

In the property eight men were found with wall to wall mattresses in one room. Click here to read the full article.

However, the owner, Dr. Sunil Hathi, has threatened to take legal action against Brent council for publicly outing him as a ‘Rogue Landlord’.

Doctor Hathi confirmed that he originally let the property to only three people and was shocked that the property  was being used in this way and was looking to evict the men as soon as possible.

Dr Hathi said: “I have no idea how many people are living at this address, it was originally rented out to three people. This is the first time I have come here in the month they have been living here. We were not aware they were staying here and we are going to evict them.

“Brent council put out a statement to the press saying that it was a ‘Rogue Landlord’ and I resent these comments. They’re highly defamatory and I am speaking with my lawyers.

“I’m not running away from anything, why would I? This house is worth a lot of money. They could have found me in minutes on the land registry.”

The story was uncovered after the council raided the property following complaints from neighbours about overcrowding, anti-social behaviour and fly-tipping.

The Guardian got a quote from Brent Council saying: “Rogue landlords make their money by exploiting people who can least afford it, it’s a shameful practice and this is an especially shocking example.”

However, they failed to find the landlord and only sought a quote from one tenant who was Romanian and could not speak English.

We will have to wait and see what the full facts are in this saga.

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Reinstate claim or start a fresh claim after court fee debacle?

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I was wondering if there are any solicitors on here who could advise me on the following. I have taken a guarantor to court for rent arrears from a previous tenant of mine.

After sending in all the documents I intend to rely on in court along with my witness statement and cheque for £170 for the trial fee that needed to be paid before the 8th Septemeber 2017 I noticed that the cheque had not been cashed by the court.

After calling them up on 8th September I asked them why the cheque had not been cashed and they said they didn’t receive the cheque (it was clearly stapled to my witness statement). I was advised by the court to cancel the cheque with my bank and to pay the court fee over the phone by card.

I phoned my bank and cancelled the cheque then called back the court to make the payment. I was told the bailiffs was using the card machine so they was unable to take the payment. I phoned back a further two times to make the payment to be told that the card machine was still in use. I then called back again a fourth time and the card machine was available this time, but it was past the 2.30pm cut off period to take the payment for the day and I was told to call back in the morning to make the payment.

I explained to the court that I was going away for a week and I needed to make the payment urgently and they told me to send in an email to explain this to the court. So I did just that I sent an email asking for an extension for the payment as I was away for a week and I would make the payment on my return I also explained that I had sent in a cheque and tried to make the payment four times that day.

Anyway cut along story short on my return I called up the court to be told that the claim had been struck out and I have to pay a £255 fee to have it reinstated which am not best pleased about.

The advice I am after is do I have to pay the £255 to have the claim reinstated or could I just start the claim from scratch all over again which only cost me £105 and this time I could add on the interest to the claim which should cover this amount.

So my question please to anyone that could give advice would be: Do I have to pay to reinstate the claim a fee of £255 or could I start a fresh claim which would only cost me £105.

Many thanks

Stephen

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Dr. Ranj Singh supports Gas Safety Week

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Landlord Gas Checks:

The seventh annual Gas Safety Week (18^th – 24^th September) sees organisations across the UK private rented sector (PRS) working together, to raise awareness of the dangers of poorly maintained gas appliances, which can cause gas leaks, fires, explosions and carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning.

Promoted by the Gas Safe Register, the organisation that registers all approved gas engineers, it is appealing to all organisations involved to be part of the campaign and to save lives by spreading the word about gas safety.

Dr. Ranj Singh resident doctor on ITV’s This Morning and presenter, and creator of kids show Get Well, is supporting Gas Safe Register to raise awareness of carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning and its symptoms as a third (32%) of people would not recognise them, misdiagnosing symptoms for other illnesses.

CO poisoning is known as the ‘silent killer’ as it has no smell, taste or colour, and all the symptoms associated with CO poisoning can easily be mistaken for something else as today’s research shows.

CO poisoning is known as the ‘silent killer’ as it has no smell, taste or colour, and all the symptoms associated with CO poisoning can easily be mistaken for something else as today’s research shows.

This Gas Safety Week Dr. Ranj Singh is supporting Gas Safe Register to raise awareness of carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning and its symptoms as a third (32%) of people would not recognise them, misdiagnosing symptoms for other illnesses.

Worryingly, one in 10 (9%) don’t know CO poisoning symptoms at all. These symptoms which include headaches, nausea, breathlessness, collapse, dizziness and loss of consciousness, would be misdiagnosed by many as:

• Concussion (37%)
• Meningitis (36%)
• A panic attack (27%)
• A stroke (22%)
• Flu (19%).

Gas Safe Register is urging people to learn the symptoms of potential CO poisoning, and what action to take if they suspect they or someone in their family may be suffering from it.

Dr Ranj Singh said:

“You can’t see, taste or smell CO, so it’s really important that people become more aware of its poisoning symptoms. As Gas Safe Register’s research has found, many confuse CO poisoning for other illnesses such as flu, but CO poisoning can be fatal so it’s important that we raise awareness this Gas Safety Week so that families can take the right precautions and stay safe.”

Jonathan Samuel, chief executive of Gas Safe Register, said:

“CO can leak from badly fitted or poorly maintained gas appliances. We recommend proactive prevention as the first line of defence against CO poisoning by getting your gas appliances checked every year by a Gas Safe Registered engineer to make sure they’re working safely and efficiently. To provide peace of mind, a CO alarm is a great second line of defence to alert you to a potential leak.”

Gas Safe Register recommends taking the following action if you suspect you might be suffering from CO poisoning:

• Leave the house and get fresh air immediately
• Open doors and windows
• Turn off gas appliances
• Call the Gas Emergency Helpline on 0800 111 999
• See your doctor immediately or go to hospital

If suffering from CO poisoning, most people know to open the windows (68%), leave the house to get fresh air (74%), and contact a Gas Safe Registered engineer to come and inspect to see if there’s a problem (42%).

To find out about landlord gas safety checks visit www.StayGasSafe.co.uk and to find a Gas Safe registered engineer call 0800 408 5500 or visit www.GasSafeRegister.co.uk.

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