A former letting agent whose firm collapsed owing landlords and tenants more than £410,000 has been disqualified as a director for eight years.
Daniel McCarthy, director of Jupita Ltd, which traded as GDH Property Management Services in the Wirral, cannot manage or control a company or act as a director until 2020.
McCarthy agreed he paid himself £48,909 while other creditors, including landlords, were owed at least £113,809.
Jupita Ltd went in to voluntary liquidation in July, 2010, with assets of £6,000 and debts of £416,879.
McCarthy said he spent money collected as tenant deposits, leaving tenants and their landlords with a loss of at least £35,990.
Dodgy fitter put tenants in gas blast peril
Plumber Mark Austin put tenants’ lives at risk when he bungled a gas fitting job at a buy to let home.
Austin incorrectly fitted a gas boiler and and hob with the wrong pipework, resulting in the gas hob burners going out when the boiler was switched on and the unlit gas came back on when the boiler was turned off, which could have caused an explosion.
An investigation by the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) following complaints from the landlord revealed Austin, trading as APS in Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire, had issued 23 false gas safety certificates posing as a Gas Safe registered fitter.
He also carried out two gas repair jobs after the HSE has banned him from working with gas.
At Cannock magistrates Court, Austin admitted three gas safety breaches. He was given a 12 month prison sentence, suspended for 18 months, 200 hours worth of unpaid community service and ordered to pay £1,000 costs.
Flytipping cost landlord £800
Landlord Comall Masih, of Braunstone Town, Leicester, must pay more than £800 after admitting fly-tipping 30 bin bags and two mattresses. Leicester magistrates heard two letters in the rubbish were traced back to a buy to let property he owned.
