Southwark Council works with cops to tackle dodgy landlords

In the past month the authority has run a training programme with Southwark's police to help police officers spot unscrupulous landlords who take the law into their own hands by evicting tenants without following the correct process.

The council backs those private landlords keen to provide warm, safe homes for residents, but it comes down hard on those who exploit residents with poor quality or unsafe homes, or those who try to illegally evict or harass their tenants.

Councillor Ian Wingfield, cabinet member for housing said: "The council looks after not just its council tenants, but also has the interests and wellbeing of all those who live in the private rented sector in the borough and to whom it has a duty to enforce housing law.

"It's unacceptable for anyone to suffer harassment or fear illegal eviction from their home, or live in sub-standard homes. Prevention is always better than cure and I commend our team and the police for preventing 180 families in the private sector from becoming homeless each year, many of whom could have ended up on the streets.

"The work of the team has never been more important as the number of private sector tenants being evicted may well rise as a result of the government's new housing benefit caps."

Landlords evicting tenants without following due process are committing the criminal offence of illegal eviction.

Illegal eviction can be simply changing the lock whilst the tenant is out of the property. But there are other, more serious examples of landlords using harassment to force the tenant out. For instance:

• Threatening the tenant with violence or using actual violence
• Cutting off essential services such as water, gas or electricity
• Entering the tenant's home without the tenant's consent and/or; interfering with the tenant's belongings;
• Sending in builders to start major building works without the tenant's knowledge or consent
• Bombarding the tenant with texts and telephone calls demanding the tenant leave
• Making frequent and unannounced visits often late at night

By contrast, due process consists of a valid notice, a court order for possession and a bailiff's warrant.

The council instigated the training so that police officers called out to deal with alleged incidents of illegal evictions and/or harassment could do so armed with the knowledge of what constitutes illegal eviction and harassment.

The training, which cost nothing for either authority, took place in August and October and has resulted in greater partnership working in preventing homelessness due to a more effective referral system, and a higher success rate in dealing with these incidents in terms of police knowledge, time and resources.