private landlady refusing to return deposit

[mumof32009]

hi all hope someone can give me some advice in april 2007 we rented a property through a letting agent, were told it was long term let and 5 months later we received a letter from the landlady stating unless we could provide a extra 100 per month she would have to put the property on the market.

We agreed to this on a short term basis as we liked the property and didnt want the hassle of finding a suitable alternative property.

 

we were hassled every month by text message asking if the rent was going to be paid ok,we never missed a single month and on most occasions paid up to a week early

 

may this year my husbands work hours were cut and could no longer afford to stump up for the extra 100 pounds the landlady was requesting each month.

 

The property next door became available at 150 pounds per month cheaper than we were paying and decided to make the move, the landlady was given 30 days notice by a recorded delivery letter,all rent was paid and up to date and thats when the fun started!!!

 

She wanted us out at 9:30am 30 days later and at the time she received the letter to the exact minute, the house was cleaned top to bottom and all carpets profesionally cleaned,the landlady ignored us on handover day and left her boyfriend to do all the talking, we were told they had to put together a detailed report and check for unpaid bills which we made sure were up to date.

 

15 days later and still no report!!!!!,when i saw him at the property yesterday i politely asked if the report was available yet to be told very rudely that i wasnt getting my owed deposit as there was mold under the fridge,carpets replaced and urine stained mattress (WHAT????),the house was in a better state than when we took the tenancy on,he also claims to have photographic evidence and she works for a barister thats happy to take on her case if we decided to take legal action.

 

where do we stand as we where not in the deposit protection scheme and deposit was collected by landlady from the letting agency 6 months after we moved and she went self managed.

 

700 pound is alot of money to us at the minute, sorry for the long post but any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[BAYV explained]

hi all hope someone can give me some advice in april 2007 we rented a property through a letting agent, were told it was long term let and 5 months later we received a letter from the landlady stating unless we could provide a extra 100 per month she would have to put the property on the market.

We agreed to this on a short term basis as we liked the property and didnt want the hassle of finding a suitable alternative property.

 

we were hassled every month by text message asking if the rent was going to be paid ok,we never missed a single month and on most occasions paid up to a week early

 

may this year my husbands work hours were cut and could no longer afford to stump up for the extra 100 pounds the landlady was requesting each month.

 

The property next door became available at 150 pounds per month cheaper than we were paying and decided to make the move, the landlady was given 30 days notice by a recorded delivery letter,all rent was paid and up to date and thats when the fun started!!!

 

She wanted us out at 9:30am 30 days later and at the time she received the letter to the exact minute, the house was cleaned top to bottom and all carpets profesionally cleaned,the landlady ignored us on handover day and left her boyfriend to do all the talking, we were told they had to put together a detailed report and check for unpaid bills which we made sure were up to date.

 

15 days later and still no report!!!!!,when i saw him at the property yesterday i politely asked if the report was available yet to be told very rudely that i wasnt getting my owed deposit as there was mold under the fridge,carpets replaced and urine stained mattress (WHAT????),the house was in a better state than when we took the tenancy on,he also claims to have photographic evidence and she works for a barister thats happy to take on her case if we decided to take legal action.

 

where do we stand as we where not in the deposit protection scheme and deposit was collected by landlady from the letting agency 6 months after we moved and she went self managed.

 

700 pound is alot of money to us at the minute, sorry for the long post but any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

I would call her bluff.

 

This gives a good basic guide:

How to complain - How to solve problems with your landlord - Your rights - Which? Advice

 

If you paid your deposit on 6 April 2007 or later

 

Your landlord should have paid your deposit into an authorised Tenancy Deposit Scheme and provided details of the scheme to you within 14 days of receiving your deposit.

Step one

 

Write to the landlord, asking for their reasons for withholding the deposit. Ask them to return it within a fixed time or provide you with a list of reasons, and receipts, to justify why they are withholding it. Say that you will be contacting the Tenancy Deposit Scheme if this matter is not resolved to your satisfaction. If you don't have details of the Tenancy Deposit Scheme that your deposit is held in, ask your landlord to provide them.

Step two

 

If you are not happy with their response, contact the Tenancy Deposit Scheme. It will have a free and independent arbitration service that will decide how much of your deposit should be returned.

Step three

 

If your landlord didn't pay your deposit into an authorised scheme, apply to your local county court for a court order. You can visit the court or the court service website for information and advice about this. If your landlord or agent has not put deposit into a Tenancy Deposit Scheme when they should have, they may be ordered to pay three times the amount of the deposit to you.

 

You have nothing to lose calling her bluff and everything to gain.

 

Or you can go straight for taking her to a small claims court. Send her a letter stating you want the deposit returned in full within 14 days.

 

If she doesn't start proceedings against her.

 

There is a straight-forward site https://www.moneyclaim.gov.uk/ which allows you do a small claims online. Just follow the steps.

 

This gives more info about moneyclaim:

Make a small claim online with â??Money Claim Online

 

Hope this helps

[saintly_1]

Hi and welcome to CAG

 

I have moved your post to the Residential and Commercial Lettings Forum

 

 

Saint

[mumof32009]

hi thankyou for your response i missed out by a couple of days with regards to the deposit scheme think i will call her bluff and send her a letter tomorrow thanks again

[DevilWearsPrimark]

Its possible that when she collected the deposit from the letting agent in order to self manage, she should have protected it then. Thats when she personally recieved it.

[sillygirl1]

It sounds to me that maybe SHE wasn't paying the mortgage on the property if she's acting that way, getting you to pay £100 extra on the rent for nothing in particular is very suspect.

 

I think that they are chancing their arm, the way I would deal with this is to report her to the taxman and write to the local council stating that she is 'sub letting without any valid boiler checks etc' that should put the wind in her sails.

 

I doubt very much that she is working for a barrister, and they are pulling a fast one with the deposit money. Sadly the deposit scheme seems to have more loopholes that a mouldy carpet....

[mumof32009]

hi thanks for the response you are spot on we had a visit from her mortgage lender he was very surprised to find us as tennents his visit was to discuss the 5 months missing payments before it went for repossession also the gas fire never worked we kept asking for a certificate which never materialised so we decided to leave which seems to have made her very angry

[sillygirl1]

There we go, her claim is now 'spurious' to say the least. Why would they change all the carpets in the house if it is going to be repossessed. I would report her to the taxman asap... it might seem petty but she deserves it.

[Kentish Lass]

Depending on the actual date, it may be that the deposit should have been protected. The leglisation came into force on the 6th of April 2007. Was your original tenancy commencement date on or after that date?? Please let us know this.

 

She cannot just increase the rent after 5 months.

 

Not provided a gas certificate is CRIMINAL OFFENCE and should be reported to the Health and Safety Executive.

 

LL has a responsibility to ensure repairs are carried out.

 

If no proper check-in, which you agreed with and signed, was carried out at the start of the tenancy, she cannot prove that the condition of the property at the end of the tenancy is any difference from the condition at the start.

 

She was letting without permission from her mortgagee - this could invalidate the house insurance.

 

She obviously has not been telling the taxman. Can you prove payment of the extra £100 pcm? Did you pay by cheque. If by cash, did you get receipts?

 

She may well work for a barrister, but being taken to court for non-compliance with so many tenancy laws, particularly the one regarding gas safety certificate, will not enhance her standing with her employer one bit!!