A landlord must pay almost £1,000 after leaving his tenant without heating last winter.

Vivender Nath Blaggan, 47, of Stockton, allegedly left a rental property in the town with a faulty boiler for three months during the coldest part of the year.

He has pleaded guilty to failing to comply with an abatement notice issued under section 80 the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and has been fined £350. In addition he must pay costs of £609.17p and a victim surcharge of £35.

Stockton Council says it was contacted by a tenant at Blaggan’s property in January 2014 after repeatedly asking the landlord to repair the heating, which had failed in November. 

A council inspection of the property confirmed there was a problem with the gas boiler and led to the serving of the Section 80 notice. However, Blaggan failed to comply.

In mitigation Blaggan said that he had provided the tenant with a fan heater and offered to pay for the extra electricity it would use; he also claims some repairs were conducted on the boiler but these only lasted for one week before the problem recurred.