Barrow Landlord Fined £15,000 Over Fire Safety Failures At Unlicensed HMO
A Barrow landlord has been fined £15,000 after council officers uncovered serious fire safety and licensing breaches at a town centre property.
The problems were discovered following a series of accidental and arson-related fires in Barrow town centre in July 2025. Cumbria Fire and Rescue Service led a multi-agency operation, including door-to-door visits to residents to raise awareness of fire safety. During the visits, officers identified a property being operated as an unlicensed house in multiple occupation, commonly known as an HMO.
A full inspection revealed that the property had no internal fire doors, a severely inadequate fire alarm system and no required compliance safety checks. The landlord had started the process of applying for an HMO licence, but the occupants moved out and the property was sold before the application was completed.
Westmorland and Furness Council decided that selling the property did not remove the landlord’s responsibility for the breaches. It therefore imposed a £15,000 financial penalty. Under housing regulations, landlords must ensure HMOs are suitable for occupation, maintain appropriate safety arrangements and meet requirements including annual gas safety checks, fire doors and functioning fire alarms.
Councillor Judith Derbyshire, the council’s cabinet member for housing and community safety, said the lack of fire doors and almost complete absence of an adequate alarm system could have placed multiple lives at risk if a fire had broken out. She said the authority would continue taking action against landlords who fail to protect tenants.
Councillor Tony Callister, chair of the Furness Locality Board, also welcomed the penalty, saying there had been concerns about some HMOs in Barrow. He thanked council officers and Cumbria Fire and Rescue Service for their work to improve safety in the community.
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