Hackney tribunal case: landlord's reasonable excuse blocked £40,000 rent repayment claim

In a significant Upper Tribunal decision, a landlord in Hackney successfully defended against a rent repayment order application after demonstrating a reasonable excuse for not having the required HMO licence.

The case, Kemp and Others v DIP Systems (UK) Ltd, concerned a flat let to four tenants in Hackney between 2021 and 2023. The property required an additional HMO licence under Hackney's scheme. The landlord attempted to apply on 16 November 2022 but could not complete the application due to a fault in the council's online payment system. The application was eventually completed on 15 December 2022.

What the tribunal decided

Deputy Chamber President Martin Rodger KC upheld the First-tier Tribunal's decision that no offence was being committed during the period when the landlord had a reasonable excuse. Because the 12-month time limit for RRO applications runs from the date of the offence, and no offence was being committed during the period of reasonable excuse, the tenants' application was out of time.

What this means for landlords

This case establishes that a genuine attempt to comply, frustrated by circumstances outside the landlord's control, can constitute a reasonable excuse. However, the key word is genuine. The landlord in this case had evidence of the attempted application and the council's payment system failure.

The practical lesson

Document everything. If you are attempting to apply for a licence and encounter delays, whether caused by council processing times, website faults, or missing information, keep detailed records of every step. Screenshots, emails, and dated notes could be the difference between a successful defence and a five-figure RRO award.