Today the Government will introduce banning orders on rogue landlords and letting agents. Local authorities in England can apply to the First-tier Tribunal to issue a banning order against the landlord or agent.
The Housing and Planning Act 2016 (Banning Order Offences) Regulations 2018 will result in landlords and agents who are convicted of a banning order offence from being prohibited from working in the lettings industry. Whether it be as a landlord, a letting agent or working as part of a property management team. The new database of criminal landlords and lettings agents will be created under the Act and will go live today.
Some of the most common banning order offences are:
- Illegally evicting or harassing a residential occupier
- using violence to secure entry
- providing false or misleading information
- failing to comply with an improvement notice
- failure to comply with a prohibition order
- offences in relation to licensing of Houses in Multiple Occupation
- offences in relation to selective licensing under Part 3 of the Housing Act 2004 (section 95)
- violence for securing entry
- offences related to drugs
- contravention of an overcrowding notice
- harassment and stalking
- fire safety and gas safety offences
A landlord or agent would be forbidden from renting or managing rented property although the order may permit them to do such work whilst closing the business down. A banning order will be for at least 12 months but there is a possibility that it could be for longer. Banned landlords will also be forbidden from transferring their property to a business where they have an interest or a close colleague.
If convicted of a banning order offence the agent or landlord will be placed on a national database of rogues which will used to make it easy for councils to share data across the country and ensure that the rogue landlord or agent cannot move to another area and continue operating. Offending landlords will remain on the database for a minimum of 2 years.
List of banning order offences
The Housing and Planning Act 2016 (Banning Order Offences) Regulations 2017
These regulations provide the list of offences where, in addition to other penalties such as fines, the court can also impose a banning order on the landlord or the agent. The above regulations came into force on 6 April 2018 and apply to England.
| Legislation | Provision | Offence |
| Protection from Eviction Act 1977 | Section 1(2), (3) and (3A) | Unlawful eviction and harassment of occupier |
| Criminal Law Act 1977 | Section 6(1) | Violence for securing entry |
| Housing Act 2004 | Section 30(1) | Failing to comply with an improvement notice |
| Section 32(1) | Failing to comply with a prohibition order | |
| Section 72(1), (2) and (3) | Offences in relation to licensing of Houses in Multiple Occupation | |
| Section 95(1) and (2) | Offences in relation to licensing of houses under Part 3 | |
| Section 139(7) | Contravention of an overcrowding notice | |
| Section 234(3) | Failure to comply with management regulations in respect of Houses in Multiple Occupation | |
| Section 238(1) | False or misleading information | |
| Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 | Article 32(1) and (2) | Fire safety offences |
| Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 | Section 33(1)(c) | Gas safety offences – duties on landlords in regulation 36 |
| Immigration Act 2014 | Section 33A(1) and (10) | Residential tenancies – landlord offences |
| Section 33B(2) and (4) | Residential tenancies – agent offences | |
| Fraud Act 2006 | Section 1(1) | Fraud |
| Section 6(1) | Possession etc. of articles for use in frauds | |
| Section 7(1) | Making or supplying articles for use in frauds | |
| Section 9(1) | Participating in fraudulent business carried on by sole trader etc. | |
| Section 11(1) | Obtaining services dishonestly | |
| Section 12(2) | Liability of company officers for offences by company | |
| Criminal Justice Act 2003 | Schedule 15 | Specified violent and sexual offences |
| Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 | Section 8 | Occupiers etc. of premises to be punishable for permitting certain activities to take place there |
| Section 9 | Prohibition of certain activities relating to opium | |
| Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 | Section 9A(1) and (3) | Prohibition of supply etc. of articles for administering or preparing controlled drugs |
| Section 18(1), (2), (3) and (4) | Miscellaneous offences | |
| Section 19 | Attempts etc. to commit offences | |
| Section 20 | Assisting in or inducing commission outside United Kingdom of offence punishable under a corresponding law | |
| Section 21 | Offences by corporations | |
| Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 | Section 327 | Concealing etc. criminal property |
| Section 328 | Arrangements | |
| Section 329 | Acquisition, use and possession | |
| Protection from Harassment Act 1997 | Section 2 | Offence of harassment |
| Section 2A | Offence of stalking | |
| Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 | Section 30 | Breach of criminal behaviour order |
| Section 48 | Failure to comply with a community protection notice | |
| Criminal Damage Act 1971 | Section 1(1) | Destroying or damaging property |
| Section 2 | Threats to destroy or damage property | |
| Section 3 | Possessing anything with intent to destroy or damage property | |
| Theft Act 1968 | Section 7 | Theft |
| Section 9 | Burglary | |
| Section 21 | Blackmail | |
| Section 22 | Handling stolen goods |
Note that section 9 of the Draft Tenant Fees Bill proposes to add certain breaches of the tenant fees ban legislation to the list of offences in the Housing and Planning Act that can result in a banning order.
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