Student landlord fined
A LANDLORD must pay £62,200 in financial penalties after he failed to maintain and licence two homes rented out to students in Dunkirk.
Anthony Carroll, known in the business as "Uncle Tony", let the properties to students without a licence from Nottingham City Council.
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COURT FINE: Anthony Caroll
At a Greenfield Street property, an inspection found black mould on walls, no certificate of inspection for the electrical fittings, loose carpets on the stairs, a damaged sash window and hole in a floorboard.
Two students who had found the property infested with mice had been illegally evicted when Carroll changed the locks in December 2008 and demanded money from the pair to cover the rent owed by three tenants who had moved out.
"He said until the money was paid they would not be able to get in," Christopher Geeson, prosecuting, told Nottingham Crown Court.
"There was one short-hold tenancy agreement, so they jointly owed £1,500. The two tenants that were locked out contacted the university and Anthony Carroll again, who refused to let them in. They eventually called police. Under the supervision of the police they recovered all of their property."
A second house, in Highfield Road, had a washing machine and freezer in the hallway blocking a stairwell in the event of a fire.
A smoke alarm had been disconnected and electric wiring had not been checked or tested within five years.
Carroll, 66, of Highfield Road, pleaded guilty to 17 charges.
He admitted he had let rooms without an appropriate licence and had not complied with regulations.
He was fined £14,700 and had more than £37,500 confiscated in rent during the time the two properties were not licensed. He must pay £10,000 towards court costs.
For the unlawful eviction he was given a four-month prison sentence, suspended for one year, with supervision from a probation officer.
Mark Kelly said in mitigation that Carroll ran his business on his own and had literacy problems.
"He's spent £15,000 having work done to these properties."
12 Comments
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by Kevin, Coventry
Sunday, January 24 2010, 12:46AM
“Re:David, Nottingham
What did you know about him? He do had literacy problems which is judged by authority and not judge by you. You should responsible for your words.”
by older and wiser, nottingham
Tuesday, January 12 2010, 10:47PM
“As an undergraduate many years ago I spent a year in one of Mr Carroll's properties. We were left to remove the former tenants ourselves, there were flees in the sofa, electric sockets did not work, there were no fire alarms, stairs were dangerously constructed, the toilet never stopped leaking, I had no bed and we provided much of the furniture ourselves. Our relatives rallied around and helped to make the place habitable. In retrospect I am aghast at how naive we were; the place was dangerous, it was not our job to do any work on it, and we should have turned around and left. However as a student, often living away from home for the first time, you are naive and we did not realise what our rights were or what we should expect from a rental property. Mr Carroll did do some work to the property at our, request (I seem to remember that an angry father helped matters) however it was poorly done.
I am now a landlord myself; with this role I feel I take on a burden of responsibility for the safety and well being of my tenants. I do not necessarily think that Mr Carroll is a cruel man; however ignorance is no excuse for allowing vulnerable students to live in potentially unsafe conditions.
Sometimes I moan about the number of regulations that we have to meet as landlords. However it is circumstances like this which highlight why they are in place. I have appreciated the Universities approved property scheme, which recognises good quality accommodation, their approval giving me peace of mind that I have done all I can to safeguard my tenant's wellbeing.”
by daisy, resident
Tuesday, January 12 2010, 7:12PM
“mr carroll is a landlord from hell he causes problems for the residents all he is interested in is getting the rent from his tenants no concern for the way he bodges up his properties and causes distress
to residents who live around properties he is doing up he plays on the vulnrable who come to our country for their education”
by Bob, Dunkirk resident, Nottingham
Tuesday, January 12 2010, 4:58PM
“In my view, Mr Carroll deserves everything that's thrown at him, and more. Good on you Nottm City Council for finally prosecuting this greedy man. His botched housing and monstrous constructions have blighted Dunkirk for far too long. I've been a local resident my entire life, and have sadly seen the area I grew up in and used to be so proud of, rapidly decline, mainly due to the likes of his many unkept, environmental health hazard properties making the area look scruffy and unsightly. I'm very glad he's been punished, and hopefully this will deter other irresponsible landlords (only after making a quick buck) from doing the same.
He's got his just desserts.”
by Trevor, Nottingham
Tuesday, January 12 2010, 4:35PM
“Re:Happy Blosson & Jessica and their gushing praise for Tony Carroll. I would sugggest the following:- You are pretty female ex-overses students, the type of tenant 'Uncle Tony' prefers to rent his 'Better Quality' properties to. Unfortunalely, your fellow, mainly male overseas students. (my neighbours) live in squalid, unlicensed and unkempt 'Uncle Tony' properties and fail to get essential repairs done because 'Uncle Tony' is obviously too busy spending time & money organizing parties for you, helping with your food shopping and driving you around the UK on sightseeing trips. Well, lets get our priorities right, are these the actions of a reputable landlord or someone enhancing his own social life at the expense of his legal obligations to his tenants? 'Uncle Tony' may have planted a lovely apple tree in your garden, meanwhle, his other tenants, my neighbours, can't use their gardens because they are overgrown, rat infested, overflowing with rubbish, discarded furniture and rubble from his botched-up DIY jobs. When my overseas student neighbours complained and withheld their rent until the repairs they requested were done, 'Uncle Tony' confiscated their laptops until they paid -up and, guess what? NO repairs were done. Hardly the actions of a misunderstood landlord, more like those of a 'money grabbing 'Lothario Landlord'”