Leading Berkshire landlord fined over HMO safety breaches

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Rogue landlord Nidan Singh has been fined £6,000 for ignoring a long list of problems at his Reading HMO.

Singh, 76, from Earley, admitted six offences under the Housing Acting for failing to comply with HMO regulations and admitted one offence of failing to comply with two enforcement notices.

Reading Borough Council housing team officers inspected his property in London Road twice in 2019 and found defects including faulty fire detectors, a bathroom in significant disrepair with large areas of missing wall tiles and the toilet seat held on by string, a rat hole and droppings in the kitchen, and damage to a fire door.

Several radiators had also been removed from the central heating system.

Singh was fined and also ordered to pay £1,956 costs and a £181 victim surcharge.

Substandard accommodation

James Crosbie, interim assistant director, planning, transport and regulatory services, says: “We continue to bring successful prosecutions against landlords who offer substandard accommodation.

“Our goal is for all residents to live in quality accommodation and where this is not the case we will do everything in our power to change that. Reading’s landlords must do more to ensure they comply with the rules, or we will take action.”

But Singh got off lightly compared to another landlord, Mohammed Naseer Zamir, who was fined £66,000 for similar offences in January.

HMO plans

In the meantime, Singh has applied to build a property on land in Eastern Avenue, Reading, sparking complaints from local residents that although the original application was for a two-bedroom home, this was changed to a four-bed property.

They fear it will eventually become an HMO with not enough room in the street for parking.

Read about Reading council’s HMO scheme.

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