Woman dying of lung disease ‘caused by mould’ urges action on rogue landlords

A woman with potentially terminal lung disease who claims it was due to being exposed to mould in her rented home has demanded the government empowers victims to take rogue landlords to court and “hit them in the wallet”.

The woman, who is in her 50s, said she may have as little as 18 months to live. A medical expert she engaged in a legal action against her landlord believes her illness was likely triggered by moulds within her home caused by disrepair. She now requires constant oxygen via mask or nasal catheter and is on the waiting list for a lung transplant.

Jane is among 320,000 private renting householders in England suffering with mould and condensation problems on top of the 116,000 in social housing like Awaab’s family, according to government figures. She pays about £1,400 a month in rent.

She described how after, several years of asking her landlord politely to fix leaks causing mould in the house where she brought up two school-age children, she finally “let rip” after returning from a holiday to find it had crept up walls and curtains and across the carpet in one child’s bedroom – “a living, creepy, black mass of grossness”. But she claims the problem was not fixed for two years, by which time her illness was well established.

Published on November 28, 2022 by The Gaurdian.