A Lincoln landlord who flouted fire safety rules has been ordered to pay over £8000 in fines and costs, reports Inside Housing.

Lincoln Magistrates Court heard that the property was overcrowded with exposed wires coming from switches and a make-shift kitchen had been built on the landing, creating a fire hazard.

Landlord Mr Abdol Ali Javid Keshmiri faced with 11 charges relating to his management of a house of multiple occupation (HMO).

When inspectors from City of Lincoln Council visited the property, they found that the three-storey building was split into two separate flats.

The ground floor flat had no notices of fire escape routes, the kitchen and dining room and bedroom had no smoke or heat alarms, and doorways from the ground floor bedroom up to the hallway of the flat on the first floor had been sealed.

Bedrooms on the ground floor had no means of escape in the event of a fire, as the windows did not open.

A kitchen that had been installed on the first floor with sink and cupboards, plus appliances such as cooker and washing machine, left only a 19.5-inch gap to escape in the event of fire.

There was no fire alarm installed on the second floor, and firefighting equipment and fire alarms that were fitted were not kept in good working order.

Mr Keshmiri pleaded guilty to 11 charges including 10 charges of failing to comply with regulations in respect of the management of housing in multiple occupation and one charge of failing to comply with the requirements of a housing notice.

Magistrate chairman Kevin Moody said: “We have a job to do in this court, we have to protect those that are vulnerable from people like yourself that are rogue landlords and we have to deter yourself and other people from doing the same.

He continued: “The potential for harm that could have arose from the property from the people living there is very dangerous, these safety breaches are unacceptable.”

Original source

Residential Landlord