Houses in Multiple Occupation Act (Northern Ireland) 2016

HMO register

62.—(1) Every council must keep a register containing the information required by subsections (2) to (4).

(2) The register must contain details of each application for an HMO licence made to the council, including—

(a) the name of the applicant,

(b) the address of the living accommodation in question,

(c) the name of any managing agent specified in the application,

(d) the date on which the application was made.

(3) The register must contain a note of the council’s decision on each application, including in the case of decision to grant a licence—

(a) the name of the licence holder;

(b) the number of persons authorised to occupy the HMO (as specified in the licence under section 7(3)(c));

(c) any conditions included in the licence;

(d) any variation, revocation or surrender of the licence under section 22, 23 or 27.

(4) The register must contain a note of—

(a) any revocation order or disqualification order made in relation to the HMO, its owner or any managing agent of it;

(b) any Part 4 notice issued in respect of the HMO.

(5) The register may contain such other information as the council considers appropriate.

(6) The council must exclude from its register any information which it would otherwise enter in the register, if the council considers that entering the information is likely to jeopardise—

(a) the safety or welfare of any person, or

(b) the security of any premises.

(7) The council must make any entry relating to an HMO available for inspection, by any person who falls within subsection (9) in relation to that entry—

(a) at its head office at all reasonable times, and

(b) in such other manner as the council considers appropriate.

(8) The council must supply a certified copy of an entry relating to an HMO to any person who falls within subsection (9) in relation to that entry and requests such a copy.

(9) A person falls within this subsection in relation to an entry if the person appears to the council—

(a) to have an interest or prospective interest in the HMO,

(b) to be a resident of the HMO, or

(c) to be otherwise sufficiently concerned with the information contained in the entry.

(10) In subsection (9), an “interest” is—

(a) a freehold or leasehold estate;

(b) a mortgage, charge or lien.

(11) The council must, on the request of any statutory authority—

(a) make its register available for inspection by the authority;

(b) supply a certified copy of its register, or of an extract from it, to the authority.

(12) The council may charge a reasonable fee for supplying a copy under subsection (8) or (11) (see also section 84 in relation to such fees).

(13) A copy of a register, or of an entry in or other extract from a register, which is certified by an officer of the council to be a true copy is evidence of the matters contained in it.