'Lacklustre' landlord fined for hazardous flats

A landlord who left a "vulnerable" tenant with no hot water for months has been ordered to pay almost £14,000 by a court.

Drayi Ncube Enoch repeatedly failed to make essential improvements to two of his flats, located above a shop on Leeds Road in Shipley, despite legal orders from Bradford Council.

Enoch, of Bond Gardens in London, was found guilty of two charges relating to his failures as a landlord at Bradford Magistrates' Court on Friday.

Imran Hussain, prosecuting on behalf of Bradford Council, described Enoch's approach as a landlord as "lacklustre".

He said an inspection of Enoch's properties had found "multiple hazards", including a lack of carbon monoxide alarms, food hygiene issues and fire hazards.

"The occupant of the property was vulnerable, they suffer from mental health issues, and they were left without hot water for months.

"He had no way to heat his home, no way to clean dishes. This all further impacted on their mental health."

Bradford Council had taken action against Enoch for the poor state of the flats in 2022, fining him £16,500 for failing to comply with an improvement notice.

In March 2024 the council returned to the flats to see if there had been any improvements and in May he was served with an improvement notice.

An inspection on 10 June found none of the required works had been carried out, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Enoch, who failed to appear in court, was found guilty of failing to comply with a housing improvement notice issued in June 2024 and failing to comply with an abatement notice the same month.

Hussain said the tenant was unable to heat the flat due to a broken boiler and the electric shower was not working.

Magistrates were told there was no response from Enoch, who repeatedly failed to engage with the council.

Magistrates found him guilty in his absence, saying the council's evidence was "clear and compelling".

They fined Enoch £5,250 for each of the two offences. He also has to pay a £2,000 court surcharge and pay Bradford Council's £1,340 costs – a total of £13,840.

Listen to highlights from West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North.