Criminal landlords ‘being let off hook by councils failing to prosecute’

Two thirds of local authorities have failed to prosecute a single landlord in past three years, figures show

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Thousands of criminal landlords are getting off the hook as local councils fail to prosecute them for the sub-standard state of their properties, according to new research.

More than two thirds of local authorities across England have failed to prosecute a single rogue landlord over the past three years, according to figures obtained by the National Residential Landlords Association through Freedom of Information laws.

In the three years between 2018/2019 and 2020/21, 67 per cent had not successfully prosecuted a landlord for offences related to standards in or the management of private rented housing. A further 10 per cent had secured just one successful prosecution.