August 10, 2016 3.36 pm
This story is over 68 months old
Boston landlords crammed eight tenants into hazardous city home
Boston-based landlords who allowed unthinkable overcrowding and a catalogue of health and safety breaches at their Lincoln property have been fined more than £30,000. City of Lincoln Council officers uncovered more than a dozen hazards including serious overcrowding when they raided the home in the Sincil Bank area of Lincoln. Boston based Balt Properties Ltd, its Managing…
Boston-based landlords who allowed unthinkable overcrowding and a catalogue of health and safety breaches at their Lincoln property have been fined more than £30,000.
City of Lincoln Council officers uncovered more than a dozen hazards including serious overcrowding when they raided the home in the Sincil Bank area of Lincoln.
Boston based Balt Properties Ltd, its Managing Director Vytautas Sidlauskas and Manager Valdas Kakta, were each found guilty of 14 offences relating to mismanagement at Lincoln Magistrates’ Court this week and fined a total of £29,090.
Magistrates described the case as ‘very serious’ and stated that Balt Properties Ltd had ‘failed in its duty to adequately protect and provide for its tenants.’
Furnishings were broken and dangerous in the property, like this questionable bannister.
City of Lincoln Council Housing Enforcement Officers carried out the raid at 99 Scorer Street on March 9 this year as part of a crackdown on poor quality rental housing in the city.
This was funded by a £96,000 grant from the Department for Communities and Local Government.
Doors in the property were padlocked from the outside.
After initially being denied entry, officers found a raft of serious health and safety breaches, including broken and missing smoke alarms, loose banisters and overcrowding.
Eight tenants shared one kitchen and bathroom, while fire escapes were blocked by furniture and doors padlocked from the outside.
Furniture was blocking doorways in the house.
The penalties were:
Balt Properties Ltd – £12,040 fine (£860 for each offence); £500 costs; £86 victims’ surcharge = £12,626
Vytautas Sidlauskas – £10,050 fine (£750 for each offence); £500 costs; £75 victims’ surcharge = £11,075
Valdas Kakta – £7,000 fine (£500 for each offence); £500 costs; £50 victims’ surcharge = £7,550
The total penalty was £31,251, comprising fines totalling £29,090, victim surcharges of £211 and a contribution to the city council’s legal costs awarded in full, totalling £1,500.
David King, Rogue Landlords Team Leader, said: “This property has been mismanaged to such a degree it represents a real and present danger to the tenants from numerous hazards: there is inadequate fire safety, an inadequate fire warning system, an inadequate means of escape, inadequate electrical safety, inadequate hygiene and bathing facilities, overcrowding, inadequate food preparation and storage facilities, and tripping and lighting hazards in common areas of the premises.
“Taken together, these add up to a dangerous building containing numerous accidents waiting to happen.
“By not taking action to remedy these defects, the defendants took advantage of the occupiers, taking considerable sums in rent while leaving them in sub-standard and dangerous accommodation.”
Councillor Pete West, Portfolio Holder for Housing, added: “This is an excellent result that shows how seriously the court treats cases of sub-standard housing.
“In this case the landlords had failed to meet a series of basic health and safety regulations, putting the lives of tenants and those living close by at risk.
“The Rogue Landlords Team has done an extremely worthwhile job in checking the quality of homes and ensuring landlords take the necessary action to bring their properties up to an acceptable standard.”
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Television presenter Stephen Mulhern will be in Lincoln next month for ITV’s ‘In For A Penny’ show and the producers are looking for extras to assist with a returning game.
In For A penny is a British game show based on a segment of the same name from Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway.
The show returned for a fourth series which began last month with Stephen Mulhern hitting the streets with his pop-up gameshow, where unsuspecting members of the public take on a challenge and compete for a cash prize.
Lifted Entertainment, who produce programmes as part of ITV Studios, are looking for extras with a variety of different hairstyles, normal, bald, colourful, braids, mullets, perms and more, for a paid role. The extras will not be in contention to win any prize money, but will help with the gameplay.
Filming will take place during the morning or afternoon of either June 8, 9 or 10, with the exact date/time being confirmed in the coming weeks.
Anyone interested and available is being urged to send their full name, contact number and location, as well as a clear picture of themselves with their current hairstyle, to [email protected].
We are appealing for witnesses and anyone who may have captured dashcam footage following a serious RTC on the A631 last night.
Officers received reports of a single-vehicle collision just after 7pm on 18 May involving a white Yamaha FZR 600 motorcycle.
A 34-year-old man sustained serious injuries and was taken to hospital where he remains.
The collision occurred on Gainsborough Road, Bishopbridge and the A631 junction just north of West Rasen was closed before 8pm to allow emergency services to deal with the incident. It was reopened during the early hours of this morning (19 May).
If you witnessed the collision or captured dashcam footage, you can get in touch in one of the following ways below:
By calling 101 quoting incident 421 of 18th May.
By emailing [email protected] quoting incident 421 of 18th May in the subject line.
If you wish to remain anonymous, you can report via the independent charity CrimeStoppers on 0800 555 111 or online https://crimestoppers-uk.org/