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Disrepair where the landlord claimed a repairs increase in rent and
the tenant felt that the house was not in good repair and was not
reasonably fit for occupation. A charge of one shilling is made
for a certificate, or for the revocation thereof.
Preparations were made to deal with a flood of applications
when the appointed day arrived, and it is interesting to note in
the following table the particulars of applications received during
the four remaining months of the year covered by this report:—
Applications received 9
Certificates granted 3
Applications under consideration at end of year 3
Certificates refused 2
Applications withdrawn 1
From the foregoing figures it will be seen that few applications
were received, and it is difficult to assess exactly the reason. Many
owners did not comply with the conditions set out in the Act to
justify an increase of rent, stating that the amount was insufficient
to meet the cost of repairs. Others, however, availed themselves of
the provisions to increase the rent by two-thirds of the statutory
allowance where the tenant undertook to carry out internal
decorative repairs.
Inspections
The total number of inspections made during the year was
13,980. At 668 of the houses and other premises visited, defects
or nuisances to the number of 1,784 were discovered, and at the
end of the year 1,383 including a number outstanding at the end
of 1953 had been remedied or abated. The work in connection
with 109 was in hand and 1,384 were outstanding. In order to
ascertain that the sanitary defects were being properly remedied
941 visits were paid to the respective premises while the work
was in progress.
The total number of inspections made in regard to each section
of work is recorded below, together with a summary of the sanitary
improvements carried out:
Inspections under Housing Acts 224
Special Inspections 3,233
Reinspections 2,661
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