The tourism watchdog has had a busy summer as it stepped up spot-checks on substandard accommodation in Gozo, The Business Observer has learnt.

Tony Coleiro, chairman of the Malta Tourism Authority’s Enforcement Directorate Board, said when contacted that the authority’s enforcement officers had carried out over 4,000 inspections so far this year.

This is half the 8,000 carried out last year but does not include the figure for August – which is expected to be high.

He said enforcement officers carried out spot-checks in Gozo regularly throughout the year, intensifying surprise visits in summer and other specific holiday periods.

In 2012, the officers carried out around 2,800 spot-checks, almost seven times the 417 inspections carried out in 2011.

Mr Coleiro said statistics on action taken were not kept as owners were immediately ordered to refurbish their properties and then followed up regularly.

Mr Coleiro was contacted over reports filed with the board and also received by this newspaper of substandard accommodation in Gozo which is offered for rent.

Martin Galea said he was “shocked and incredulous” when he walked into a farmhouse he had rented for a five-day stay in Gozo with his family.

There was a thick layer of dust on the floor, the water heater in the bathroom was rusty and leaking rust into the underlying bath, only one of the two hand wash basin taps were working, three of the five kitchen chairs were broken and the oven knobs were missing.

“There were cobwebs everywhere and the television wasn’t working. We had foreign friends with us.

“The place was a disgrace, there’s no other way to describe it,” he said when contacted.

He uploaded photographs on Facebook and the matter was immediately dealt with by the Malta Tourism Authority’s enforcement division.

This was the scene that met some Maltese who were planning to stay at this farmhouse.

The owner of the farmhouse in question, in the quaint village of Qala, was ordered to carry out improvements to the property before renting it out again.

Another traveller, who preferred not to be named, also recounted his experience when he found out that the Gozo farmhouse he had booked online some months back was adjacent to a construction site, with a tower crane towering over the pool area.

He called the owner who said this was the first complaint he had receivedall summer

Although no work was being carried out while they were there, the water in the pool was covered by a layer of dust and the outdoor furniture was filthy.

He said he called the farmhouse owner who initially said this was the first complaint he had received all summer. There was also a considerable amount of dust inside the residence.

A photo posted by a woman yesterday after she spent the weekend at a farmhouse in Gozo with her family and had to deal with a drainage overflow problem that was also seeping into the pool.

The owner did not have another property to offer the guests, some of whom had travelled from overseas for a short holiday with their friends, but agreed to give them a full refund.

Mr Coleiro said that during the past five years, rented accommodation in Gozo had increased by 27 per cent, amounting to an extra 1,055 beds in licensed self-catering bedstock in Gozo.

Currently there are more than 900 units, apartments, farmhouses and villas licensed with the MTA.

Its enforcement officers carry out surprise visits to ensure the units being rented to Maltese and tourists meet standards.