14th
Sep 2022
At long last the government has responded to its consultation on reforming the Rogue Landlord Database and now states that its property portal will be made available to all tenants, landlords and local councils to access any of its information.
The rogue database of landlords and letting agents was originally launched in 2018 but has pathetically low numbers of ‘criminals’ listed in spite of the considerable fanfare it received upon its unveiling.
The government has made it mandatory for Housing Authorities to report when a landlord or letting agent was issued with a banning order since the database’s inception when enforcement actions were regulated.
However rather ‘wishy washy’ legislation allows housing authorities to use their own discretion when deciding to upload details where a landlord or agent was found guilty of a banning order offence or was issued with two or more civil penalties within 12 months……but there are changes afoot.
The new portal will provide a single access point for landlords to gain necessary information to understand all of their responsibilities. Tenants will be able to find out if their landlord is fully compliant and the portal will help councils wage their wars against rogues and bring them to justice as well as being publicised.
It is claimed by the government that the portal will become a “trusted one-stop-shop for guidance on renting in the PRS.”
A spokesperson for the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities (DLUHC), says: “We also intend to incorporate some of the functionality of the Database of Rogue Landlords, mandating the entry of all eligible unspent landlord offences and making them publicly visible.
“The portal will act as a trusted one-stop-shop for guidance on renting in the PRS – levelling up awareness of tenants’ and landlords’ rights and responsibilities across the country.”
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