Moh and Others v Rimal Properties Ltd [2024] UKUT 324 (LC)
This case involved an appeal from two rent repayment order (RRO) applications relating to licensing offences – the cases were considered together as they raised the same point. The tribunal had to consider how long a tenant has to make an application for a rent repayment order against a landlord (who was managing a house in multiple occupation (HMO) without a licence) after the landlord had acquired a defence to the offence.
In the first case (hereinafter referred to as ‘Jerome House’) the tenancy began on 4th May 2021 and the property was an HMO that required a licence under an additional licensing scheme. The landlord made an application for an HMO licence on 4th May 2022 at 13:44pm and the tenants applied for a rent repayment order on the 4th May 2023 at 15:36pm.
In the second case (hereinafter referred to as ‘Reighton Road’) the tenancy started on 8th October 2020 for a twelve-month fixed term and new tenancies were granted in September 2021 and 2022. The property was an HMO and should have been licensed under an additional licensing scheme. The landlord made an application for an HMO licence on 16th November 2022 but could not pay the appropriate fee as the local housing authority’s website was not functioning. The landlord emailed the local authority that afternoon to say the payment system was not working and received a reply that evening that the payment system was down and the local authority would let the landlord know when the problem was resolved. The fee was paid in December 2022 once the website was working. The tenants applied for a rent repayment order on the 15th November 2023.
The First-tier Tribunal decided that, in both cases, they had no jurisdiction to make a rent repayment order as the tenants’ applications were outside the limitation period of when a rent repayment order could be applied for under section 41(2)(b) of the Housing and Planning Act 2016. Section 41(2)(b) states that ‘a tenant may apply for a rent repayment order only if ….. the offence was committed in the period of 12 months ending with the day on which the application is made.’
The tenants appealed to the Upper Tribunal where the following was considered:
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