Online landlord licensing forms slammed as council advertises on the Tube

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Online landlord licensing forms slammed as council advertises on the Tube

A London council has been accused of poor timing and clumsy execution after landlord licensing adverts appeared across the Tube network before an early bird discount ends.

One Property118 reader, Richard, questioned the coincidence, saying: “Wandsworth council has posted landlord licensing ads on the Tube, just days before the ‘early bird’ offer expires! Coincidence?”

According to Richard, the online application portal appears to be a recycled HMO system repurposed to handle both selective licensing for single households and families, alongside additional HMO licensing for smaller shared homes.

He describes it as ‘evidently a clumsily adapted version of an existing HMO form’.

His complaints have been echoed on this site in recent years with accusations that councils make the licensing process more difficult than it needs to be.

Wandsworth selective licensing

Wandsworth Council has recently confirmed plans to extend two landlord licensing schemes to protect tenants.

The current arrangements cover all Houses in Multiple Occupation across the borough, along with every privately rented home in South Balham, Furzedown, Tooting Bec and Tooting Broadway.

Landlords were given until 31 December 2025 to benefit from an early bird fee reduction.

From 1 April, the framework widens again so any landlord letting a property in East Putney, West Putney or Northcote will need a licence, regardless of property size or the number of occupants.

But one of the major issues with Wandsworth’s online application process are the basic design choices which will cause landlord frustration.

First request puzzles

The accommodation section opens with what Richard says is a puzzling request labelled ‘Room Name Area’.

He says this is misleading because it is simply asking applicants to name the room.

Richard adds: “Surely a drop-down menu would be more helpful.”

The next problem are the form’s navigation issues so when adding further rooms, users must scroll back up the page to find an add button positioned above previous entries.

Poor programming features

Richard is blunt in his assessment of the selective licensing process, saying: “The likely English-as-a-second-language programmers seemingly couldn’t figure out how to put ‘Add’ at the end where it belongs.”

Then there’s uncertainty over household definitions to compound the landlord’s irritation with the council.

The forms do not explain what happens if occupiers pair up and fall below the additional HMO threshold.

Richard asks: “Are councils seriously expecting landlords to ask who is sleeping with whom?”

Forms are illogical

He stresses that these examples barely touch the wider problem and adds: “This just scratches the surface of these form’s logical and grammatical incompetence, but they are not alone.”

Even where national data should simplify matters, the system appears to fall short.

Landlords attempting to upload an EPC find that the only certificate held on a public register cannot be downloaded as a PDF, despite the licensing portal demanding one.

Instead, the document is displayed on screen without any save option.

There is, however, a workaround and Richard is advising fellow landlord applicants to use the print function and select print to PDF.

Then they must save the file locally and then upload it manually.

Landlords apply for licenses

Since Wandsworth’s scheme launched in July, the council says it has received 5,955 licence applications.

Enforcement activity is already under way, with 444 inspections completed and 85 notices issued where safety standards were not met.

The authority warns that landlords operating without the correct licence risk prosecution or financial penalties of up to £30,000.

Tenants living in unlicensed properties may also be able to reclaim up to 12 months of rent, including Housing Benefit or Universal Credit, where an offence has been committed.

Alongside enforcement, the scheme introduces a new Gold Standard, intended to recognise landlords who go beyond minimum legal and tenancy requirements.

There’s more information about selective licensing, and how to apply, on the council’s website.

The post Online landlord licensing forms slammed as council advertises on the Tube appeared first on Property118.

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