Private Sector Housing Civil Penalty Policy

8.1 Before imposing a financial penalty on a person, the Council will give the person a Notice of Intent.

8.2 A person who is given a Notice of Intent may make written representations to the Council about the proposal to impose a financial penalty. Any representations must be made within a 28-day period, this period starting the day after the date on which the Notice of Intent was given. As the burden lies with the recipient of any such notice to explain why, exceptionally, the Council should, or should not, depart from the Civil Penalties Matrix and guidance above, the Council will expect the recipient of a Notice of Intent to explain and provide fulsome and cogent evidence to support the existence of any such circumstances when they make representations in response to the notice.

8.3 In the event of two or more persons receiving separate Notices of Intent for the same matter, it should be noted that acceptance and payment of a civil penalty by one person will not negate the Council's intention to impose a civil penalty on the second or further persons. Each person served with the Notice of Intent is considered individually liable to pay the civil penalty notified to them. It is therefore important that any recipient of a Notice of Intent takes the opportunity to make representations should they consider for any reason a civil penalty should not be individually imposed upon them.

8.4 After the end of the period for representations the Council will:

• (a) decide whether to impose a financial penalty on the person
• (b) if it decides to impose a financial penalty, decide the amount of the penalty

8.5 In determining whether to impose a financial penalty, and the level of any penalty, the Council will consider any written representations received in the appropriate time period, and will also consider the totality principle.

8.6 Furthermore, an offender's compliance with the identified breach during the representation period would not, in itself, be reason for the Council to determine that the imposition of a financial penalty was inappropriate. However, compliance at that stage may be relevant with respect to any mitigating factors that could decrease the amount of any imposed financial penalty.

8.7 If, following the receipt of written representations and or the expiry of the time period to make written representations, the Council decides to impose a financial penalty on the person, it will give the person a Final Notice imposing that penalty.

The Final Notice will set out and summarise:

• a) the amount of the financial penalty
• b) the reasons for imposing the penalty
• c) information about how to pay the penalty
• d) the period for payment of the penalty
• e) information about rights of appeal
• f) the consequences of failure to comply with the notice