Google MapsA Glasgow landlord who allegedly acted “agitated and hysterical” during an inspection of his property has been refused a licence.
Ajitpal Dhillon wanted a house in multiple occupation (HMO) licence – which would allow him to rent the home to three or more people who aren’t related – for a four-bedroom West End flat.
But the city’s licensing committee refused his application after hearing how council officers had found a series of issues with the 2/2 5 Ruthven Street property. Councillors were told the applicant “could not conduct himself in a manner to be expected from a landlord” during the inspection.
Mr Dhillon was also previously ordered to pay out substantial sums to tenants after failing to place deposits in a tenancy deposit scheme.
In October 2020, a housing tribunal ruled the landlord should pay £5,000 to former tenants of the Ruthven Street flat. It found he had not used a tenancy deposit scheme and had not returned the £1,900 sum to the tenants.
He was told to pay £2,790 to the former tenants of an Argyle Street flat in February 2021 after the tribunal said he had failed to protect their deposit.
The Ruthven Street premises were inspected in November last year in association with Mr Dhillon’s HMO licence application.
Officers found a missing carbon monoxide detector in the kitchen, and an existing detector in a bedroom, needed to be replaced. They also reported the source of water damage affecting the ceiling of a bedroom should be identified.
Condensation mould needed to be cleaned from both bathroom ceilings before they were repainted and a broken chest of drawers had to be repaired or replaced.
Officers reported the standard of management was “unsatisfactory” and added the applicant was “observed to be very agitated and hysterical during the inspection and could not conduct himself in a manner to be expected from a landlord”.
All repairs were completed by January 20 this year, the committee heard. Archie MacIver, the lawyer representing Mr Dhillon, said he wanted the licence to give him “more flexibility going forward”.
He said Mr Dhillon had been “frustrated” during the inspection because he felt issues were being highlighted in the property that hadn’t been in other inspections.
“Mr Dhillon is not a first time HMO licence holder, he has held HMOs in the past,” he said. “He currently has one in University Avenue, which was granted without issue.
“Clearly, he has shown he can very much be someone who can be trusted to operate a HMO satisfactorily.”
Cllr Alex Wilson, SNP, the licensing committee chairman, said: “In your own words, Mr Dhillon has another HMO. He’s experienced, shall we say?
“If he’s an experienced HMO landlord, then he will know all about the process that our officers carry out, which leads me to wonder why on November 12, they found 11 deficiencies.”
He added: “He should know that our officers, when they come out, will look for faults. It’s their job to make sure the property is in a satisfactory condition.”
Mr MacIver said: “I think it’s fair to say that we all have bad days. Sometimes we have days where we say things we shouldn’t say, do things we shouldn’t do.”
He added the landlord “does take his obligations seriously” and had brought in a fire risk assessment team in to speak to the tenants.
Mr Dhillon said: “The reason for this agitation was the changing of the goalposts all the time.”
Cllr Wilson responded: “What may be for one property may not be the same for another property. These are details that were highlighted on this property, not your other property.”
Asked if he would apologise to the officers involved, Mr Dhillon said he did “not say anything untoward to the officers that were there” but he apologised if any offence was taken.
At the time of the inspection, officers were told the property was occupied by two couples – which doesn’t require a HMO licence to be in place.
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