More than a quarter of Londoners who rent their homes from private landlords will now be able to check if their landlord is rogue.
All London boroughs have agreed to share their information about successful prosecutions against private landlords and letting agents.
Londoners who are renting a property will be able to use the free online tool to check if their property is being managed by a landlord who has previously been convicted for housing offences.
The tool is being compiled by the London Assembly, with data from various boroughs still being uploaded on to the checker tool. It constitutes one of Sadiq Khan's attempts to get "fairer housing" in the capital, one of the central themes of his Mayoral campaign in 2016.
As well as local authorities, data from London Fire Brigade and all three letting agent redress schemes is being shared. The online tool contains a basic level of information, but the data is also being shared between borough councils and authorities to help clamp down on landlords who abuse the system.
One conviction listed in the database was a £150,000 fine in May 2017 to a landlord who owned a building in Eccleston Square, Westminster. The fine came after a serious fire at the block where 13 residents had to be evacuated and a series of fire regulations were found to have been breached.
The Mayor's checking tool works separately to a Rogue Landlord National Database run by the government, which is not available to the public and has details of more limited offences.
The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: “The rental market in the capital is difficult enough to navigate without a small minority of rogue operators exploiting their tenants. This tool will empower Londoners to make an informed choice about where to live.
“I’m extremely grateful for the support of all the local authorities and other bodies which have signed up to contribute their records to the database. I’m confident this will be a major step in tackling unscrupulous and illegal practices in the rented sector."
Assembly Member for Ealing and Hillingdon, Onkar Sahota, said: “We know that the vast majority of landlords are decent. Sadly there remains a small minority who take advantage of those desperate for a roof over their heads. It is only right that those who have behaved badly are named and shamed.
“Once again the Mayor is ahead of the government, whose national database is not available to the public. But the Mayor's powers are limited and he needs the government to act to give him the power to make further improvements for London renters, such as introducing longer tenancies and scrapping 'no fault' eviction.
“Everyone deserves a decent home and that's why I'm glad Ealing and Hillingdon have got behind this register. It's a message to rogue landlords that their time is up.”
