Thanks for your advice guys!

Hi, I would like to know where I stand with holding back some of the rent. I realise that if I with-hold all the rent the landlord can serve me a possession notice which it is mandatory for a court to give if proven. However if I hold back part of the rent then is it mandatory for a court to give a possession notice? Or is this discretionary so I could argue my case? Basically my landlord is failing to deal with the severe damp I have in my room and so I want to with-hold what I consider a fair portion of the rent. Thanks in advance

Thanks for your reply. It is a block of flats but they are less than 2 years old and I'm on the ground floor. I do not know about the other flats. The pressure is certainly low, though I will time how long it takes to fill a litre when I am back there at the weekend.

Hi, I am renting a flat from a landlord through a letting agency. The water pressure is very low and I've asked the letting agents to look into this but they have not done so. Are they obligated to sort this or should I be contacting the water board? Regards, Joe

Thanks for your help guys. I will be sending off for my credit file.

Hi, As a young person I've never really been bothered about CRA's. I've never had a credit card but had a few direct debits set up in my name. I applied for a student account recently and was rejected. They told me to contact Experian as to why. Now I understand from reading a few of these threads that these guys are dodgy as hell so would like some advice please. I would be interested to know what my credit file says but I'm not sure how to go about it. Should I ask for a credit report, or send them a subject access request or should I avoid being contact with there sort of people at all costs if I can help it? Thanks, Joe

brilliant job, I noticed this too and thought it was unfair. The websites are set-up to be very easily read by young people and they state that you effectively pay back the exact value of the loan. It's good to see that someone is challenging this, I will be following this thread closely. Keep up the good work!

Policy is by Endsleigh, student year abroad policy

Loss, theft or damage to valuables left unattended at any time (including in a vehicle or in the custody of carriers) unless deposited in a hotel safe, safety deposit box or left in your locked accommodation. Unattended - means when you are not in full view of and not in a position to prevent unauthorised interference with your property. I had valuables stolen from my car that were out of sight and locked in the boot, the car had an alarm and was parked near a security office so I took as much precaution as I could. I had no accommodation at the time so this was the safest place. Am I still screwed or can I argue that based on me not having accommodation at the time this was the best situation to prevent unauthorised interference with my property? To me it seems unreasonable to deny if it was out of sight and in a locked compartment, especially as it was alarmed and near a security office.

Out of interest I took it to an apple shop and they replaced the casing, investigated the flickering screen and replaced the hard drive which had some known issues, they were very helpful and stated that apple were well aware of the casing issue and so they fixed it all free of charge.

yes I see your point but I have a witness to the conversation about the £94 fee who will back me up. If they turn up to court with receipts then won't the judge view them poorly? I mean they are refusing to provide receipts/invoices when I have requested them in writing and would be wasting everyone's time should they suddenly show them in court.

£94 agent fee for being locked out. At the time I asked if I would be charged and they said I wouldn't as I didn't need my keys replaced, only letting in. £11.75 - marks on lounge wall £7.05 - Kitchen to be cleaned £2.35 - Freezer and shower to be cleaned I would of accept the damages if there were receipts/invoices but they won't provide.

yes thats right but here is my situation. It was a joint assured tenancy with a letting agent and landlord, there were 5 tenants. I have asked several times for my deposit and invoices/receipts etc and finally get my deposit back with roughly £115 taken off. There is approximately £20 for damages and £95 charge from the letting agents. I am currently abroad until next summer so would like any court proceedings to take place once I am back. Below is what I have so far... Claimant Me, the tenant Defendants The landlord The letting agent Brief Details of claim not sure what should be put here, any advice please? Value £115 - Amount of deposit not returned £50 - Court cost £x - Cost of my time Particulars of Claim I claim the sum of £115 plus interest, being the outstanding amount of the £250 deposit which I paid on (date) under a tenancy agreement of premises at (address of premises) The tenancy was an assured shorthold tenancy. It was created in writing by a tenancy agreement dated (date) made between (name and address of landlord), the landlord, (name and address of letting agent), the letting agent and (names and addresses of tenants), the tenant. The tenancy was for a fixed term of 12 months, commencing on (date), at a rent of £220 each per calendar month. The tenancy was terminated on (date), by the expiry of the fixed term. The tenant left the property on (date). Signed ok so my questions are, even though this was a joint tenancy, can I sue them as an individual for my charges and deposit? Can I charge for my time that I have been trying to sort this? If so at what rate? How do I get the case to hold until I get back into the UK? Should I put more info on the particulars of claim? i.e. any correspondence between the defendants and myself? also any advice on the form?

Would someone be able to help me fill out the N1 form? I have followed the instructions in the sticky but could do with some further advice. Thanks in advance Joe

as ours was a joint tenancy should we be suing collectively or can we take them to court individually?

posted before reading planner's response, looks like i was told incorrectly. I still believe I am correct about the bills though, so will be pursuing that still.

i was told it is a bit of a grey area and that even though the deposit was paid before april 6 it should still be protected because the deposit covers the dates of the contract which started after april 6. if i paid a deposit 2 years ago but signed a new tenancy agreement now the deposit would have to be protected.

contacted shelter today and they say that refusing to return deposit because of utility bills is unfair and nothing to do with the deposit. They have recommended that I contact the council and speak face to face with someone who specialises in tenancy law. They also said that even though the deposit was paid before 6 April 2007 the contract started in July 2007 and so we might be able to claim that it should have been protected in a TDS. Just like if you paid a deposit before and renewed a contract the renewal counts as a new contract and should therefore be protected in a TDS. Will post more details when I get them.

Just spoke to consumer direct and i asked if the unfair terms in consumer contracts regulations 1999 applies and they as it is land based it might have different terms. I am going to contact the citizen's advice bureau later to see what they say. what do you propose i do about court action? i have issued a LBA as i had no contact and i gave them until 10th august to pay me or i would start court proceedings. Now they have given me a reason, even if i do think it is unfair, should i wait or still issue the N1 form? Thanks

Hi MrShed, we moved into the property in July 2007 and left in June 2008. The water is one person's, the gas and electricity is in another's and the phone was in my name.

Hi there, I have now been contacted with the letting agency, they say they will return my deposit only when i prove my bills are paid in full. It was in contract to do this but i'm sure i read this was an unenforceable condition. It was a joint tenancy so none of the bills were in my name. where do i stand on this? is there some consumer law i can quote that says bills have nothing to do with deposits and that they are unenforceable in a tenancy contract?

if they have admitted fault then you could say you either want it fixing or replacing under SOGA. "For up to six years after purchase (five years from discovery in Scotland) purchasers can demand damages (which a court would equate to the cost of a repair or replacement)." You could try explaining this to the store manager where you bought the tv. If they refuse then write a letter to head office giving them 14 days to respond. If you get no favourable response then I would suggest a LBA with an independent evaluation giving them a further 14 days, then submit a court claim. I wouldn't worry about going to court as JL are likely to pay long before it gets there. The only problem you will have is having to talk to your wife for a while longer unless you buy a cheap tv until you get your big one back.

i think if you can get an independent evaluation which shows that it is a manufacturing fault i.e. nothing you have done has caused it then you may be able to claim under SOGA.

ok its just i will be out of the country for 10 months so will be unable to attend.

oh as a side note I was planning on sending the LA and LL a LBA and completed N1 form on 1st August if they havn't returned my deposit in full by this date. What should I do about this charge? send it along side the LBA or as a separate issue? Cheers