In a landmark case, a landlord in Brighton was successfully sued by a group of tenants who a court said he had harassed. The court found in favour of the tenants and fined 66-year-old Amrik Manku. Even though the tenants owned the HMO owner rent arrears, his actions against them were deemed unlawful.

• He locked the tenant’s bathroom, denying them access
• Cut off their utility supply and put padlocks on the electricity cupboard
• Dismantled the boiler despite the council already getting involved

The action was a criminal offence having contravened the Protection from Eviction Act 1977.

The Five Tenants Complained

The initial report to Brighton & Hove Council came from one of the tenants. They reported that Mr Manku did not have a license to run HMOs. He then decided to take action that would later be deemed harassment.

A Council Officer visited in January this year, a visit during which they were told that Mr Manku and another family member had been aggressive towards his tenants. They also discovered that the drastic measures of locking access to utilities had taken place, denying access to the bathroom and cutting off the electricity supply. This, they said would be restored once the unpaid rent was settled.

A second visit was made at the end of January following reports from a neighbour who had witnessed Mr Manku and his son dismantling the boiler. It was discovered that the HMO no longer had functional electricity or gas.

The Court Case

Mr Manku had previously had an HMO license for the property but it had expired – something he said was an oversight rather than a deliberate act. Nevertheless, Mr Manku pleaded guilty to charges of failing to have an HMO license, and to the second charge of harassment which included cutting off the services. He did, however, criticise the actions of the tenants who changed the locks while he was abroad, citing a need to get into the property for maintenance.

To many, this is a harsh reminder that the law protects the tenant in all but the most serious of cases. Even in cases where the tenant has failed to pay the rent in a timely fashion, there are procedures that a property owner must follow before acting.

What is Classified as Harassment?

As well as ill treatment due to race, colour, sexuality, there are specific issues concerning the property:

• Denial of services as a form of punishment. If the landlord is responsible for paying for utilities, refusal to do so is harassment
• Regular visits to the property without prior notice, especially late in the evening
• Sending maintenance or other tradespeople to the property without notice
• Opening or otherwise interfering with mail
• Entering the property without permission while the tenant is away