Five landlords in Greenwich have been hit with fines after council investigations uncovered licensing breaches as well as hazards such as damp and mold, overcrowding and missing fire alarms.

Greenwich Council said its active investigations into multiple occupation houses (HMOs) had uncovered five unlicensed properties in the borough.

It is a criminal offence to let out a HMO in Greenwich without a license, and the borough-wide enforcement scheme has seen the five shady landlords each fined £5,000.

One of the landlord’s properties, a four-bedroom HMO in Greenwich, was rented to four separate tenants and was identified following a resident’s complaint about the property.

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Three of the landlords all have properties in Charlton - a five-bedroom, seven-bedroom and five-bedroom HMO - and the fourth landlord’s property is a five-bedroom HMO in Thamesmead.

Investigations of the properties also uncovered numerous hazards to residents, including damp, mould and overcrowding.

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One of the houses was also judged a fire risk as it had no fire alarm, no fire doors, and had overloaded electrical sockets.

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Cllr Jackie Smith, Cabinet Member for Community Safety and Enforcement said: “Our HMO licensing requirement protects tenants by ensuring landlords are held legally responsible for meeting certain standards, such as fire and general safety, as well as ensuring the property is in good condition.

“I’m encouraging landlords to come forward and work with the Council to help protect their tenants and avoid being fined a hefty sum.”

If you think a HMO in the Royal Borough of Greenwich is in disrepair, poorly managed or might not have a licence, then you can report this to the Council online: www.royalgreenwich.gov.uk/reportaHMO.