A PROPERTY company has “continued to ignore” long-term damp and mould issues across two of its flats despite being fined in court over a month ago, leading a scrutineer to question the enforcement powers available to environmental health.
David Letto, director of PIOS Ltd, was fined £3,000 on behalf of the property firm in the Magistrate’s Court on 3 July after pleading guilty to two statutory nuisance charges relating to flats 3a and 3b at 1 Balmoral Terrace in St Helier.
He admitted to failing to comply with two abatement notices issued by Environmental Health on 28 October 2025 arising from water ingress at the neighbouring flats.
The notices were served to PIOS Limited after the department received reports from tenants citing persistent problems with damp and black mould.
In a statement provided to the court on 3 July, the tenant of flat 3b said she had been highlighting the issue for over a decade.
She wrote: “As the years have passed, the damp has progressively worsened. I even drew around the damp areas and watched the water spread.
“There is a severe area above my bed that has now developed a crack and has swollen to such an extent that I am worried it may fall on my head during the night whilst I am asleep.”
André Rees, whose mother owns the two flats under a 99-year lease structure, told the JEP that his family has been petitioning PIOS Limited – who are responsible for maintaining the outside of the building – to address the water leakage since 2015.
“We have raised this with David Letto countless times, eventually escalating this with Environmental Health in 2017,” he explained.
“[The department] then got involved and liaised with David Letto at Bull & Co to carry out remedial work, which was done with pressure from Environmental Health.
“Over the years, it then transpired that the remedial work has not worked and we repeatedly chased David Letto to fix the issues to no avail.”
Despite the recent court proceedings, Mr Rees stated that PIOS Limited has “continued to ignore” the terms of the abatement notice issued in October 2025.
“We have not heard anything from David Letto at Bull & Co, acting on behalf of PIOS Limited, with regard to PIOS Limited starting to carry out the required remedial work as detailed by Environmental Health,” he said.
The abatement notice, which has been seen by the JEP, warns that businesses who continue to re-offend post-conviction are liable to receive added financial penalties.
Mr Rees pointed out that the notice makes direct reference to a “further fine not exceeding £1,000 for each day on which the offence continues after conviction for that offence”.
He described being “concerned” and “surprised” by the continuing lack of action – and raised concerns about whether PIOS Limited would be made to comply with the abatement notice.
The JEP understands that the conviction does not prevent ongoing action and that PIOS Limited are still required by law to abate the notice.
But Environment, Housing and Infrastructure Scrutiny Panel chair Deputy Hilary Jeune expressed concern that the work required of PIOS Limited to alleviate the damp and black mould was yet to be undertaken.
“While it wouldn’t be appropriate to comment on the specifics of an individual case, it is concerning when residents continue to experience conditions found to constitute a statutory nuisance,” she said.
“Enforcement powers exist under the relevant legislation, and how they are used is a matter for government.
“Cases like this raise wider questions about the effectiveness of enforcement processes – questions the panel will continue to examine as part of its work.”
