LANDLORD and mortgage lenders lodged more than a dozen claims to repossess homes in Gwynedd and Anglesey as the country emerged from the latest lockdown, figures show.

Claims and repossessions shot up across England and Wales during the summer, following the end of the tenant eviction ban and the lifting of most coronavirus restrictions.

The charity ‘Crisis’ said the figures showed that the measures introduced to prevent homelessness during the pandemic were inadequate.

Ministry of Justice figures show 15 claims to repossess homes in Gwynedd were lodged by mortgage lenders and landlords between July and September.

Though this was higher than the three claims made in the same period in 2020, it was still fewer than the 41 recorded in 2019.

Of the claims lodged in the three months to September, 10 were made by private and social landlords against renters.

Bailiff-enforced evictions were banned for a large part of 2020-21 – a measure introduced by the Government to prevent renters from becoming homeless during the pandemic – though the ban was lifted in Wales on June 30.

The figures show three property repossessions took place in Gwynedd between July and September; all were evictions of renters.

As for Anglesey, four claims to repossess homes were lodged by mortgage lenders and landlords between July and September.

This was the same number as the claims made in the same period in 2020, and fewer than the 14 recorded in 2019.

Of the claims lodged in the three months to September, two were made by private and social landlords against renters.

The figures show one property repossession took place in Anglesey between July and September, which was the eviction of a renter.

Jon Sparkes, chief executive of Crisis, said more must be done to prevent people from becoming homeless, including lifting the freeze on the rates of housing benefit paid to low-income families to prevent tenants from falling behind on payments.

He said: “More and more people who lost their jobs and had their lives turned upside down are now being forced into homelessness.

“As more cases make their way through the courts, we sadly expect this to increase further still."

Across England and Wales, 13,000 repossession claims were submitted to county courts between July and September – a significant increase from 4,065 in the same period last year.

Claims made by landlords accounted for more than three-quarters of the total.

Nationally, there were 5,238 repossessions in the three months to September – 93 per cent of which saw renters evicted from their homes.