An Oxford landlord has been fined £1,000 following the conclusion of a two-day trial, at Aylesbury Magistrates' Court.
Mr Abdul Khuja of 154 Cowley Road, Oxford had pleaded not guilty to a charge of failing to comply with an Improvement Notice served on him by Oxford City Council's Environmental Health service.
The notice related to a defective property at 6A Rectory Road, Oxford. The property is owned by Mr. Khuja and managed by his son Tariq through his firm Letting and Property Management, also of 154 Cowley Road.
An Environmental Health Officer served the notice in July 2007, following an inspection of 6A Rectory Road, Oxford. The notice required repairs to be carried out to deal with extensive dampness and a repair to a light.
The notice expired at the end of September 2007 and a re-visit in early November revealed that the necessary repair works had not been carried out. The officer found that the property had fallen into such a poor state of repair that a further notice had to be served prohibiting the use of the flat.
Mr Khuja appealed against this notice, but the Residential Property Tribunal subsequently dismissed his appeal in May 2008. Mr Khuja's defence relied on evidence that the tenant Fatima Bashir had been obstructive and sought to prevent access to the property.
The Court also heard that Tariq Khuja had retained a key throughout the period of the notice and could have exercised his right as the landlord to enter the property and carry out the repairs.
District Judge English felt that Tariq Khuja had over-dramatised his evidence in terms of his getting access to the property.
As well as being fined £1,000, costs of £4,000 were also awarded to the Council against Mr Abdul Khuja. Mr. Khuja indicated that he intends to appeal.
Ian Wright, Public Health Team Manager at Oxford City Council, said after the hearing: “It is important that landlords recognise the importance of legal notices. Mr Khuja had ample opportunity to comply and could have asked us for an extension of time if his problems were as bad as he claimed.”
Councillor Ed Turner, City Executive Board Member for Housing, added: “This is the latest in a series of successful prosecutions. The Council will not rest until bad landlords mend their ways or are driven out of the city's housing market.”
