A landlord ordered to pay £2,500 in compensation over a damp house says he has launched an appeal.

Fergus Wilson says a county court judge made a legal error when he threw out a case against Attila Lant and his partner Eva Nemeth and ordered him to pay up instead.

The hearing followed a dispute about the property in Wood Lane on the Park Farm estate in Ashford owned by Judith Wilson.

Deputy district judge Adams was told the couple reported a leaking hot water cylinder in May last year which caused extreme damp conditions, including sodden carpets and a partial collapse of the kitchen ceiling.

The property was inspected by Mrs Wilson's husband Fergus who alleged the tenants were legally responsible for the damage and ended their tenancy.

They were then shocked to hear that they were being sued by the landlord for £4,000 for failing to carry out repairs to the property.

Mr Wilson strongly disputes this version of events.

The couple's case was taken by by Kent Law Clinic at the University of Kent which offers free legal advice and representation to people who could not otherwise afford it.

It was heard at Canterbury County Court on September 12 and presented by clinic solicitor Vivien Gambling, helped by second year law student Uzochi Ejimofor.

They counter-claimed for the misery the couple had suffered living for eight weeks in the house while in disrepair, the breach of the landlord’s repairing obligations and the interference with the tenants’ peaceful enjoyment of their former home.

After hearing from the parties and a number of witnesses, deputy district Judge Adams said that he could not understand why the leak was not fixed.

He concluded that the matter was the landlord’s responsibility to repair. Furthermore, the tenancy agreement precluded the tenants from attempting any repair without the landlord’s permission.

The tenants contacted Ashford Borough Council’s environmental health officer who inspected the flat and also urged the Wilsons to carry out the repair.

They did not do so, but are said to have maintained a hostile and at times offensive attitude to the tenants.

In his judgment the judge noted: "Mr Wilson can let his defensive instincts get the better of him and say unpleasant things."

Some new protection for tenants has now been afforded by section 33 of the Deregulation Act 2015, which applies to new tenancies starting on or after October 1, 2015 and which is intended to prevent retaliatory eviction by landlords when their tenants complain of disrepair.