Landlord Fined £15,000 for Unlicensed HMO in Barrow
Westmorland and Furness Council imposes significant penalty for multiple breaches of housing regulations, including fire safety failures.
By Megan Worthington
••2 min read
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Generic image of red-brick terraced houses under a grey sky, with subtle reflections of emergency lights on wet pavement.
Westmorland and Furness Council has fined a landlord £15,000 for multiple breaches of regulations concerning houses in multiple occupation (HMOs) in Barrow town centre.
Council officers identified significant failings at the property, including a lack of internal fire doors, an inadequate fire alarm system, and no compliance safety checks. Crucially, the property operated without an HMO licence.
Although the landlord initiated the HMO licence application process, the property was sold and occupants moved out before it was completed. The council determined that the sale did not excuse the serious breaches of licensing and management regulations.
These issues came to light following a series of fires in the town centre in July 2025, prompting a multi-agency response led by Cumbria Fire and Rescue Service. During a door-to-door fire safety operation, officers discovered the unlicensed HMO, leading to a full property assessment that revealed the extent of the failings.
Westmorland and Furness Council is legally obligated to ensure HMOs are suitable for occupation, with satisfactory management arrangements and fit and proper licence holders. The HMO Management Regulations mandate landlords to conduct safety measures like annual gas safety checks and maintain fire alarms.
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"This was a deeply concerning example of a landlord taking rent from a number of people without putting in place the proper protections to keep those people safe. The complete lack of fire doors and the almost complete absence of a fire alarm system put multiple lives in that property at risk if fire had broken out."
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"It is worrying as well as ironic that all these issues were uncovered during a multi-agency operation to address a spate of fires in Barrow town centre."
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"The council will continue to robustly pursue any landlord who cuts corners and puts their tenants’ lives at risk."
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"There have been concerns about some HMOs in Barrow for some time, so it is good to see a rogue landlord being brought to book. I would like to thank council officers and the Cumbria Fire and Rescue Service for doing this work to keep people safe."
For more information about HMOs, visit the Westmorland and Furness Council website.
