Unfair deduction from deposit- pre TDS

[electrica77]

Hi all,

 

I moved into a property the month before the TDS came into force, so I accept that my deposit was not covered by this scheme.

 

We have looked after the property as though it were ours- we did not put a single nail in the walls, did not break anything, and left thehouse in immaculate condition. When I say immaculate, we had a post tenancy clean done, two of the carpets were cleaned, the windows were cleaned inside and out, and we had a gardener mow and tidy round the whole garden before we left. i did have receipts for these but they have since gone missing.

 

Now when we moved in, the house was dusty and the landlord had left various possessions strewn around, including a garage full of chairs, tools, bin bags of stuff etc. We accepted he had left it and thought no more of it.

 

On entering the property we were given a CD with video footage of the house, instead of a written inventory. On exiting, a woman hired by the LA came round and did a checkout procedure. there is a green form, which is supposed to be filled in on entry witha score for condition of various items, and then again on exit, with any deductions marked against it. it is called a 'condition agreement' I believe, and we were told at checkout that the house was immaculate- the only things she wanted corrected were done there and then, and she said we should get our full deposit back. we signed the agreement and so did she. i had spoken to the LA a couple of times since then and was told we would get the full deposit back.

 

 

So, you can imagine that i was rather surprised that we have had around 105 pounds deducted.

 

25 quid for 'light hoovering and polishing' on an invoice dated 6 weeks after we left, and 80 quid for 'garden and garage clearance' dated three weeks after we left.

 

On speaking to the LA, they couldn't tell me what exactly had needed to be cleaned or removed, and I complained bitterly that we were never informed about this. I told him that I did not believe there was anything to be removed and that his agent had confirmed everything was in good order. what was left in the garden and garage was the landlords, or a couple of things in excellent condition like a set of stepladders and a fridge that we had left in good faith for the next tenant and that the agent confirmed was ok to leave.

 

Anyway, he let slip that the landlord has been in over christmas decorating and replacing carpets, and if i was a betting woman i would guess that this is where the additional cleaning and clearing has come from. I did mean to take photos on exiting the house, but because we had signed off this form saying it was all in good condition, and because we were in a hurry, i didnt get around to it.

 

Do I have any way of reclaiming this money? I know its a relatively small amount, but I'm really annoyed about it and feel it is unfair. i've asked the agency to confirm exactly what was taken away, and have complained that the landlord had had 6 weeks to mess up the house before making these charges, as well as them letting goodness knows how many viewers round to see it.

 

Help!!!

[electrica77]

*bump*

 

c'mon guys, someone must be able to help me!!

[electrica77]

PLEEEEASE! someone on here`must have some pre- TDS knowledge to share?

[callumsgran]

Do you have a copy of the outgoing report?

If so you are entitled to all your money back however little it maybe

[electrica77]

hi, thanks for replying. can you elaborate a bit on what you said though, ie is there an official process I need to go thorugh? i have already raised this as a complaint with the letting agent and said that our outgoing report (of which i do have a copy, and it is signed and does not state any refund to the landlord- all the scores were 8-10 out of 10) showed no faults. the letting agent said it's up to the landlord if he wants to refund it.

 

is there a template letter i can use or anything like that?

[callumsgran]

Hi there, i dont think there is a template letter on here but all you need to do is write to the landlord saying that it was unfair of him to deduct anything from your deposit as you have a written outgoing inventory that states nothing needs repairing or cleaning and he is not allowed to charge you for cleaning six weeks later

He should've returned it two weeks before anyway

Give him 14 days to refund the deductions or you will take it further

 

Remember to post it recorded/signed for