Peter Bedlow, a landlord in Reading, was fined £1,000 and ordered to pay over £2,000 in costs after he failed to ensure a tenant in his property was able to access hot water.
In a report sent to Reading Borough Council in December last year, council officers were alerted about a fault with the gas water heater in Mr Bedlow’s property, which had resulted in the heater system being disconnected.
Mr Bedlow was given two days to fix the fault, in order to ensure a hot water supply was in place for the property’s tenant; however, the landlord did not act on the council’s order and he was served with an abatement notice five days later.
The council eventually had no option but to arrange for the repair work to be carried out, after the landlord failed to do so within the 21 day period allowed.
Mr Bedlow was not present at the hearing at Reading Magistrates’ Court last week, where he was fined £1,000 for failing to act on the council’s abatement notice.
The landlord was also ordered to pay £1,367.85 to Reading Borough Council, to compensate them for the cost of arranging the repairs, as well as costs of £978.92.
Reading’s lead councillor for housing, Councillor Richard Davies, said: “People living in private rented properties in Reading have a right to expect decent standards of accommodation and basic facilities, such as heating and running hot water.
“It’s appalling this tenant was forced to live without any hot water until the council stepped in and arranged for the repairs to be carried out itself.”