A landlord who reportedly attacked a tenant after he complained about serious disrepairs has been handed a police caution.

Walthamstow resident Michael Woldehanna told the Waltham Forest Echo that he was kneed and punched by his landlord who turned up at his property unannounced, even though this is illegal under The Landlord And Tenant Act 1985.

It allows a landlord access to inspect the property, as long as they have given at least 24 hours’ advance notice, in writing, and that the proposed visit is at a reasonable time of entry.

Woldehanna had complained of mould, cockroaches, lack of hot water, broken radiators, and no working fire alarm in the property, before contacting Safer Renting, which sent letters to the landlord, informing him of his legal responsibilities. He also contacted Waltham Forest Council’s housing team which inspected the house and issued the landlord with an improvement notice in May, asking him to resolve several serious tenant safety hazards.

Video evidence

In a video seen by the Echo, when he arrived at the property on 23rd June, Woldehanna says he will call the police because he felt threatened, to which the landlord says: “Call the bloody police and I’ll f**k you right up.”

Woldehanna can be heard repeatedly asking the landlord to leave while he is followed around the property’s back garden. The landlord, who is seen holding a pipe wrench in his right hand, can then be heard saying: “If you tell me to leave one more time, you’ll be picked up and thrown out.”

The landlord proceeds to knee him several times before throwing a punch. Woldehanna called the police who gave the landlord an ultimatum of either accepting a police caution for common assault or be taken to a police station where he would be interviewed and charged. In a second video seen by the Echo, the landlord is seen to verbally accept the offer of a first-time caution.

Speaking to the newspaper, the landlord denied having assaulted Woldehanna and said he did not know why the police had given him a caution. He said the tenant had not paid rent for five months, which Woldehanna denies.