Campaigns briefing - Tackling rogue landlords

A recent survey with the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health (CIEH) found that of those officers working on housing enforcement in the private rented sector, nine out of ten had encountered landlords engaging in harassment or illegal eviction, and 78% had dealt with landlords who persistently refuse to maintain their property to a safe condition.

The damage that rogue landlords cause to the lives of often vulnerable tenants is enormous, and can spread to the wider neighbourhood, with rundown properties blighting communities. National Government needs to wake up to the problem and work with councils to implement a tough programme of action to tackle it.