Rakusen v Jepsen: UTLC 11 Nov 2020

Rent Repayment Order From Superior Landlord

Housing – Rent Payment – Whether A Rent Repayment Order May Be Made against A Superior Landlord – – application to strike out claim for rent repayment order – ss. 40, 41 Housing and Planning Act 2016 – appeal dismissed
‘the FTT does have jurisdiction to make a rent repayment order against any landlord who has committed an offence to which Chapter 4 applies, including a superior landlord. There is no additional requirement that the landlord be the immediate landlord of the tenant in whose favour the order is sought. That appears to me to be the natural meaning of the statute and is consistent with its legislative purpose. The only jurisdictional filter is that the landlord in question must have committed one of the relevant offences, and before an order may be made the FTT must be satisfied to the criminal standard of proof that that is the case. Although a narrower interpretation is possible it would involve reading the language as prescribing an additional condition which is not clearly stated, and which would detract from the simplicity and effectiveness of the statutory regime. ‘

Martin Rodger QC, Deputy Chamber President
[2020] UKUT 298 (LC)
Bailii
Housing and Planning Act 2016 40 41
England and Wales
Citing:
CitedLondon Corporation v Cusack-Smith HL 1955
The House considered a purchase notice under section 19(1), Town and Country Planning Act 1947, which turned on the second limb of the definition of ‘owner’ because the land in question was not let at a rack rent. Lord Reid considered a chain of . .
CitedUrban Lettings (London) Ltd v London Borough of Haringey UTLC 5-Mar-2015
UTLC HOUSING – houses in multiple occupation – landlord and tenant – rent repayment order – person having control – appropriate person to repay rent – ss 61(7), 72(1) and 73(5) Housing Act 2004 – appeal . .
CitedGoldsbrough and Another v Ca Property Management Ltd and Others UTLC 29-Oct-2019
Housing – House In Multiple Occupation
Held: An application for a rent repayment order could be made against a superior landlord (here the freeholder) despite the applicants never having been in the relationship of landlord and tenant or . .

Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Housing

Updated: 02 November 2021; Ref: scu.655562