Download an extract of the register
This gives the addresses of HMOs, start and end dates.
View the full register
If you wish to arrange a viewing of the full register or to request certified copies of it as per your right to do so under the Housing Act 2004, please email phs@lbhf.gov.uk.
There is no charge made to view the register, providing no attempt is made to copy it. you can make an appointment between 9am and 5pm on a weekday to look at the register via Microsoft Teams. There is no charge for this, but you would not be able to copy it. It is important to make an appointment as the register is held securely on a computer and will not be available if you come without an appointment.
The licence holders' names and addresses are included as those are required to be included by the regulations. The HMO owners’ names and addresses are personal data and therefore are not disclosed.
Purchase a pdf copy of the full register
The HMO Register can be sent to you as a pdf version by email. The Council is authorised in Housing Act 2004 (section 232) to recover its costs of producing and sending a copy of the HMO Register, and this cost is £54.
The reason we supply the Register in pdf format is because advice from the Information Commissioner's Office in 2017 about disclosure of landlords' names and addresses was as follows:
“As the duty of the council under the Housing Act 2004 is to provide a copy of the register (which will include the name and address of each licence holder by virtue of that duty) to a requester, such a disclosure of personal data is lawful and there would be no breach of the first data protection principle. However, it is the form in which the register is provided where it may be considered unfair and subsequently breach the DPA, such as publishing the full register on the internet. The requirement under the Housing Act is just to provide a copy of the register on request, there is no obligation to make it available electronically since publication on the internet may be unfair and excessive given the potential for ease of access by a large number of people."
Therefore, the Council is not obliged to make the information available to you in excel or csv format as such forms of disclosure could be a breach of the DPA as it makes the names and addresses too accessible.
If you decide that you wish to purchase a pdf copy of the HMO register, please email phs@lbhf.gov.uk and we will arrange for a member of staff to contact you by phone to take the card payment of £54.
The licence holders' names and addresses are included as those are required to be included by the regulations. The HMO owners’ names and addresses are personal data and therefore are not disclosed.
Information exempt from disclosure under the FOI Act
Requests to see the full HMO register are exempt from disclosure under FOI, due to the council’s obligations under section 232 of the Housing Act 2004 to someone who requested a copy of the HMO Register and paid the required fee.
The council would therefore advise that you email phs@lbhf.gov.uk to arrange a viewing of the register or to request certified copies of the register as per your right to do so under the Housing Act 2004. The required fee for a copy of the register is £54, although there is no charge made to see the register, providing no attempt is made to copy it.
In accordance with section 16(1) of the FOI Act, the council has a duty to provide advice and assistance to you, as far as it is reasonable to do so. Therefore I would advise you that the HMO register with the premises address, date of issue and date of expiry but with the personal data such as the licencee's name not included is available property licensing for landlords and letting agents.