PRIVATE tenants make more than 1,000 complaints a year about their landlords to Colchester Council, a Freedom of Information request has revealed.

The authority’s private sector housing team has launched a crackdown on rogue landlords after receiving 1,115 communications from residents living in privately rented accommodation in 2012.

The team issued 101 “informal notices” to landlords who were failing to keep their properties up to scratch. Complaints range from mouldy ceilings to broken water and electricity supplies.

After this failed to resolve the issue in some cases, a further 29 formal notices were handed out, and three people were taken to court under the Housing Act 2004.

The council has now joined housing charity Shelter’s Evict Rogue Landlords campaign.

See Monday's Gazette for the full story