Landlord from Bournemouth fined in court for failing to provide valid gas safety certificates in Burnley properties

Mark Taylor (62), of Christchurch Road, Bournemouth, pleaded guilty to four counts of breaching selective licensing conditions by failing to provide valid gas safety certificates when required to do so.

He was fined a total of £2,000 and ordered to pay £640 costs and charges.

Burnley Magistrates’ Court was told that one of the four properties involved had not had a valid gas safety certificate since 2019, and the other three since 2020. All the properties involved are in Burnley. Fortunately, there had been no gas-related incidents at the houses during the time when they had no safety certificates.

Since 1998, under national gas safety regulations, landlords have been required to obtain an annual gas safety certificate.

In selective licensing areas it is a condition of the licence that annual safety checks are carried out and safety certificates made available to the council on request.

Magistrates heard that despite efforts by the council to contact Taylor, there was no acknowledgement or reply from the defendant.

They were told that Taylor had a previous record of non-compliance involving a different property in Burnley and had been fined £5,000 on that occasion.

In mitigation, the court was told that Taylor had been let down by others he had put in charge of the properties. The defendant had been recently registered disabled and had not been able to travel to from his home in Bournemouth to Burnley as often as he used to, to check on the properties. He accepted that it was his responsibility to ensure he complied with the law and had since engaged the services of a reputable agent.

Coun. John Harbour, Burnley Council’s executive member for housing, said: “The priority must always be the safety of tenants in their home. It’s a basic responsibility of any landlord.

“This was a serious breach of mandatory conditions that are in place to save lives. This prosecution sends out a clear message that we will take strong action against any landlord who doesn’t ensure the safety of their tenants.”