Need advice regarding private landlord

[NewSAHD]

What did the Local Authority say about your housing benefit payments / cheques?

 

Sorry, going out the door very shortly, but was the boiler / hot water / heating all sorted?

Edited December 11, 2009 by NewSAHD

[Gunga]

What did the Local Authority say about your housing benefit payments / cheques?

 

It says on the back of the cheques they can be cashed via a 3rd party. Agent claimed their bank no longer accepts them.

 

Sorry, going out the door very shortly, but was the boiler / hot water / heating all sorted?

 

Boiler/heating is not fixed, freezing cold in the house, damp in every room. No hot water, have to use the shower to fill the sink with warm water or boil the kettle to wash.

 

Paid the due rent via paypal to the agent.

 

Solicitor cannot fit us in until 21st December, so we're just gonna wait it out until then, tried CAB but they're not answering their phone.

[Aviva]

Try Shelter, they are a housing and homelessness charity.

[NewSAHD]

popped in and popping out again now

 

reference "Agent claimed their bank no longer accepts them."

 

i do not know the answer to this at present

 

ask the local authority today if the cheques have been cashed/presented to the bank

although they may not be able to let you know about the latest one (as they may be waiting to hear themselves) they should be able to say that cheques up to DATE have been cashed

 

once you know this you should then have a better idea of what's going on

 

AND if the local authority do say that all / or almost all cheques have been banked / presented then tell the local authority again of your concerns and the police today too [not 999 ] i.e. agent taking cheques, but not forwarding to the landlord, you've received notice, plus, if happening to you, it's happening to others

 

will check back in as soon as can, also, there's other posters here to help too!

 

others and i will come back to property condition queries as soon as

 

good luck

[Aviva]

NewSAHD finding out that the HB cheques have been cashed will not help as the OP has been cashing them and then giving the agency the cash as the agency said their bank would not cash these type of cheques.

[Gunga]

NewSAHD finding out that the HB cheques have been cashed will not help as the OP has been cashing them and then giving the agency the cash as the agency said their bank would not cash these type of cheques.

 

Thanks, yeah we've had to cash the cheques in our bank & pay the agent cash, since doing this, it appears the landlord hasn't received any payments...

[NewSAHD]

NewSAHD finding out that the HB cheques have been cashed will not help as the OP has been cashing them and then giving the agency the cash as the agency said their bank would not cash these type of cheques.

 

that'll serve me right for typing at speed! don't usually miss things like that, promise

 

i recall now that cheques have to go direct to claimants anyway, not the landlord/agent, but i had it in my mind that Gunga's cheques were being passed to agent and cash was also being paid across

 

thanks for correcting this, at least one less thing for Gunga to chase up

 

really really going to go now, but thanks again!

[NewSAHD]

Gunga, hi, first off, two apologies.

 

The first for reading through your post too quickly with regards the cheques. After the embarrassment of that on my part I hope the following goes some way to assist.

 

The second apology is for the length of my reply now .

 

I hope that you and any other CAG posters (and 'lurkers' for I was one for some years) stick to it to the end and that you are offered further feedback too. I mention this as we all post anonymously, so there is no harm in checking and reviewing what is being said, especially so when your family and home are involved.

 

Personally, I believe quite a lot could be pursued before you get to see your Solicitor on the 21st December. I've organised my thoughts a little, so that it easier, perhaps, for you and others to consider and respond.

 

As I understand it:

 

a) The Landlord has served notice on or around the 8th December 2009.

 

He is expecting you to leave within two months, on or around, say, 7th February 2010. Correct?

 

b) This is assuming the Notices served are correct.

 

Perhaps you could post (edited) copies here for others to comment upon. Dates and so on will need to be visible though. If the notices are correct, you're going anyway, once the Court confirms the same. See item n) below too.

 

If they are incorrect, and it happens, it may give leverage when it comes to getting what you need here.

 

c) You originally mentioned, however, that

 

"A few months back the boiler broke & left us with no hot water or heating of any kind (we have no fire), we have 2 children, a 6 year old girl & a 1 year old boy, their room is freezing.

 

All the house is damp & mouldy, we've had to move the kids away to the other side of their bedroom as the damp was moving onto the bed & cott.

 

In our room the damp is so bad it's leaking down the walls. I left a new book in the room overnight & the pages curled up."

and, again, mentioned today that

 

"Boiler/heating is not fixed, freezing cold in the house, damp in every room. No hot water, have to use the shower to fill the sink with warm water or boil the kettle to wash."

I mention this as the majority of the various posts here were about ensuring the rent paid to your Agent / Landlord was not about to go walkabout.

 

The heating and hot water are still a concern, as you may have at least another two months in the property, hence my post now.

 

d) Is it a gas boiler?

 

It's not working, but who/how was it switched off?

 

e) You've been at the property two years, if it was a gas boiler, was it ever Safety Checked and serviced too?

 

The Gas Safety check is an annual legal requirement. A service should be done each year too, as the landlord owes you a general duty of care.

f) How have you documented these various problems with the Agent / Landlord?

 

Is it all by telephone, if so, what was the date you first notified them and what did they do? What happened after that and when?

 

Did you send any emails, or letters to record this?

 

g) If the damp is causing water/condensation to run down the walls has it since developed in to "black spot mould" (which looks exactly as it sounds).

 

If so, can you photograph the rooms now, so you have a record of what is happening?

 

(EDIT: condensation etc, see http://www.landlordzone.co.uk/pdf/Mould.pdf

which I took from another CAG post at

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/residential-commercial-lettings/237305-need-help-advice-private.html#post2639030)

 

 

h) You hope to be rehoused by the Local Authority.

 

Is your current rent covered in FULL by benefits? I'm assuming "no", due to the earlier arrears and repayment plan of an extra £100 a month, but please advise.

 

i) Please also let us know what you can about how the arrears happened, the amount owing and over what period. Were notices served before?

 

Appreciate it's not really relevant now, of course, but can sometimes help put matters in some context and stops the Agent saying "look, it's a difficult tenant, had arrears, we're all best shot of it" i.e. I'm looking at a sympathy angle here too.

j) I mention all this as the house is to be demolished. No doubt this is part of a larger redevelopment of the site, if so, this should benefit the landlord considerably.

 

Please can you let us know what you can about why the property is to be demolished and the plans for the site.

 

You did say, however, that

"The house is due to be demolished & a servayor & been to value the house & make the landlord an offer. We will be rehoused with the local council, which is what we want."

which makes it sound more like a CPO (Compulsory Purchase Order), if so, I have heard it said that landlords can sometimes do less well is such cases.

k) Loathe the "where there's blame there's a claim" culture that seems to be part of daily UK life now. Equally, it is heartbreaking to re-read your post, knowing that you and your young family have been putting up with some relatively grim conditions.

 

No hot water or heating of any kind for months? Using the shower to fill a sink with warm water and boiling a kettle to wash? Not on.

 

I lived in a flat years ago without heating / proper hot water, but it was just the two of us and we spent one winter living under a pile of duvets as the landlord was never going to improve the place. Another time, elsewhere, a boiler broke over a New Year break so, once again, we and our friends lived in sleeping bags and ate takeouts for a few days. We laughed about it at the time and still do now, but we didn't have young children to think of then.

 

Your situation seems to me to be different though. It's not on, not really, but you don't need me to tell you this.

 

My reading of this is that you are patient, sensible person, but that the agent is banking on you not making any great fuss, especially in light of the earlier arrears and the likely demolition of the property. Again, not on.

 

l) Your Solicitor should be better placed to advise on your particular cases, but Section 11 of the Landlord & Tenant Act (and I've lifted the following from a quick google search, to try and save some typing!) certainly requires a Landlord to:

"(a) to keep in repair the structure and exterior of the dwelling-house (including drains, gutters and external pipes),

 

(b) to keep in repair and proper working order the installations in the dwellinghouse for the supply of water, gas and electricity and for sanitation

 

(including basins, sinks, baths and sanitary conveniences, but not other fixtures, fittings and appliances for making use of the supply of water, gas or

 

electricity).

 

© to keep in repair and proper working order the installations in the dwellinghouse for space heating and heating water."

 

Your Landlord does not appear to have complied with the most basic of requirements.

 

m) Above all, your Landlord also owes you a duty of care to ensure you are safe, wherever reasonably practical, together with the heating and hot water. You do not appear to have these basic requirements.

 

I can foresee them saying you have the shower and that the property is to be demolished. However,

 

i) you have been without heating for many months already,

 

ii) we are now at the coldest time of the year too,

 

iii) they have only recently served notice (and, a little caution here, in light of JimmySpangle's earlier comment that it seems they solicitor may know what he is up to ensure he can prove service of notice, see http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/residential-commercial-lettings/237270-need-advice-regarding-private.html#post2634232),

 

iv) whilst knowing the earliest they can expect to obtain possession is if you leave voluntarily on/around 7th February 2010

 

v) so, similarly, you have two more months at least to put up with this state of affairs

 

OR

 

(and part of the reason for setting all this out, hey, a quick telephone call would be so much easier! but, in the nicest possible way, can't ever see that that is going to happen!)

 

OR the Agent and Landlord can be urged NOW to provide some temporary respite, by getting something sorted before Christmas Day.

 

They've got close to two weeks still to reconsider what has happened here and get something sorted.

 

n) I would urge some general caution here too, as I have heard it said that you need to let the Court order possession, before you leave, so that you don't lose the chance to be rehoused. Perhaps others here could comment on this?

 

If so, it may take a little longer than the "7th February 2010" mentioned earlier before you can move, so that you don't jeopardise your chances of being rehoused, which means this matter may go on a little longer for you too.

 

You may already be aware of this, plus, your Solicitor and, in particular, the local authority who are to rehouse and others here at CAG can comment too.

 

o) Whilst I can understand your landlords position (devil's advocate; the house is to be demolished, why waste money / materials?) equally I feel your landlord is, frankly, ignoring / avoiding the duty of care they properly owe you.

 

I am sure, especially through December (Christmas? bah humbug), January and February, some of the coldest months, that they would not expect, or accept no heating, or hot water in their own homes.

 

Two young children in the house too.

 

Not right, not acceptable.

 

p) And, if there is a freeze this winter, what of any (usually hot) water in the pipework. Is there a danger of later finding burst pipes and all the damage to your own possessions that that could cause?

 

Depending on the plumbing / type of heating this is a foreseeable problem and one they should try to avoid.

 

q) Notwithstanding the proposed demolition of your home, the landlord appears here to be failing in their repairing obligations and in the duty of care they owe you. Yes, you had had arrears, don't condone that, but you have repaid them now and are ensuring you meet your rent now on the due date.

 

r) As I mentioned, above, I loathe the UK's increasing claim culture (irony being that I am posting on Consumer Forum, no offence intended though), but I would be advising the Agent / Landlord and speaking to your Solicitors too seeking to have:

 

i) some form of heating / hot water supplied immediately, in light of the inaction over many months

 

(is it inaction? see comments at f) and elsewhere)

 

ii) as well as any additional cost of running whatever heating / hot water is used to be met by the Landlord

 

(reason for saying this is that electric radiators can be expensive, but you need heating though, so get the landlord to cover the additional cost of running such heaters.

 

Avoid Calor Gas heaters, perhaps, unless otherwise advised here, as they can create a lot of water vapour (a litre of water for a litre of fuel burnt?), which may only exacerbate any problems with condensation.

 

That said, if the landlord is paying for the supply and running of Calor Gas heaters, all you need do is properly ventilate your home i.e. leave some windows open from time to time)

 

iii) some form of rent free period before you leave, or some other form of compensation

 

(although if you are benefits this may need to be factored in, albeit the likely sum sought / expected could be no more than a gesture of goodwill and should have no impact on benefits. Perhaps others can comment?)

iv) any legal or other costs that you incur in pursuing these matters

 

s) With regards rent free periods / compensation, by all means mention that this aspect never occurred to you before; this does seem to be the case, as you have not mentioned compensation in any of your posts, which, in itself, is refreshing.

 

Above all, you just need to be able to have a warm, safe home for your young family.

 

t) There's two weeks before Christmas, arguably, that's plenty of time for the landlord to organise some temporary respite to your problems with hot water / heating.

 

If you're agreeable, I'd suggest you put together an email covering all this and send to the Landlord / Agent this weekend, so that come this Monday morning they can pull their finger out for you in advance of Christmas day (a Friday this year).

 

I'd suggest you post your draft here first, for all to comment upon, so that you don't create any issues for yourself later on. Although, at this stage, I'm not quite sure what else you can do.

 

I have three young kids myself and we're writing cards and so on this weekend, but will keep an eye for any subsequent post from you and others. Youngest has just been up , but I've been able to come back to typing this post too

 

u) In light of the rent and so on you need to consider going to your Landlord direct too. I certainly would be, but perhaps others here can comment on this too?

v) I think you may have the Landlord's name and address already, as you accidentally (or on purpose?) received a bill in the Landlord's name from the Solicitor, see http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/residential-commercial-lettings/237270-need-advice-regarding-private.html#post2634232

Is your Landlord a private individual? If so, is the Landlord's name in the telephone directory? BTdotcom is an easy first point of call.

 

You could still call them about the rent and the other issues here, if it is that the Agent is not dealing with matters. Get an email address and confirm what has been said/agreed in writing too. Post here first, as you go along, if you want.

 

w) Finally, finally (!), before I run out of letters of the alphabet, the Landlord and Agent would not expect to have these problems over the Christmas break, let alone for many months, so why should you and your family?

 

You've been patient enough, so time, perhaps, to draw a line under all this and get what you can sorted.

 

You are seeing your Solicitor on the 21st December too, so look forward to hearing how you get on then too. In the meantime, apologies to you and others for the length of this post.

 

Fully you may already have covered some or all of this already, if not, hope this all helps. Also, please accept it in the spirit in which it was intended.

 

Best of luck, hope it all works out for you.

Edited December 12, 2009 by NewSAHD
Ádded link to another CAG/condensation post - and typos!

[Gunga]

Hi, Thanks for your huge & helpful reply.

 

I'm going to photograph the damp & post some of the documents for you & others to see.

 

We've remained in this property in the state it has been because we were told of the demolision & would get a council house, which is what we've wanted (as i want to be close to my dad as my mother dies 2 years ago & he needs some support) also the council provide homeloss compensation of £4,700. We feel we are entitled to that & the landlord/agent might be trying to kick us out so we don't get the house/money.

 

Also, council houses round here are very difficult to get, i think the landlord may want us out so maybe a family member can move in for a few months & then claim the council house when he agrees to sell.

 

Are you saying that we are going to get evicted regardless of the fact that we have paid all our rent £350 per month plus an extra £100 on arrears per month since the agreement with the agent was made in june?

 

All we want from this is the house & compensation that we feel we're entitled to.

 

The boiler broke & an agent repair guy came and had a look at it, then said he needed a part & he'd be back on the monday (repair guy came on friday) monday came & he didn't arrive, after chasing up the agent for a week or so, we were told the landlord wont repair the boiler as we own him rent.

 

We think fraud is happening here, either by the agent or by the landlord or by both.

 

I sense they want us out the property so we don't get the cash & house.

 

I mean, seriously, to get us out his home, all the landlord has to do is sell his home to the council.

 

Taken from an email from the regeneration team when i asked what if the landlord refuses to sell:

 

"We will continue to negotiate with the landlord as far as is reasonable

practicable to reach agreement.

 

Should the landlord not wish to sell the ultimate and last resort would

be a compulsory purchase order."

 

Surely the easiest solution is to just sell & get rid of us? I think it's spiteful & I'm not leaving this house without a fight.

 

Can i not use the damp/no heating/agent fraud as leverage to make some deal to allow us to remain in the property?

 

I will post the pictures & documents today asap.

 

Thanks again for all your help.

[Gunga]

I've attached 3 documents:

 

The Agreement

 

 

Please note 2 things on this, the amount owing is £1752.80 on 11th June 09. Also there was no signature from the agent on this.

 

 

Landlords Figures

 

 

Looking at the landlords figures, a few things come to our attention.

 

He's been getting paid too much each month, £26.24 a month to be exact. As a result, we were actually ahead with our rent by at one point over £500!! Then apparently from 16th march onwards he stopped receiving any money. This is the time we were told by our angent to pay by cash & not the housing benifit cheques we had been doing.

 

Also look at the month of June 09, on the 8th June, 3 days before we made the agreement with the agent, we only owed the landlord £710.33, yet for some reason the agent has a figure of £1,042.47 more.

 

We have proof that we've payed all the rent from the dates the landlord claims he received nothing, also we have proof that we've been paying £100 per month off the arrears since june, which equals £600, the landlords figure of £710.33 would be paid off this month had this not have happened.

 

Letter from the landlords solicitor that we shouldn't have received.

 

 

Just added this because it's odd we received it.

 

I'll add more documents asap.

 

Also forgot to mention, we fell behind in our rent because we changed circumstances & our rent was stopped & restarted again so we could go on another sceme.

Edited December 12, 2009 by Gunga

[NewSAHD]

Quick reply now, will check back in later.

 

The first document you have attached appears to be a "promissory note", not the tenancy agreement.

 

The former "note" is a very useful way for landlords to deal with arrears, if you later default on payment. It seems they know what they're doing. Please post your tenancy agreement too, if you can.

 

I will also send you a PM as there are names visible in the scanned documents and so I would rather not repeat them here on an open forum . Google is very useful too and wouldn't want to prejudice your position by finding your Agent / Landlord work their way to this site.

 

In an open forum, however, can I ask if the company name visible (PDLtd) is the letting agent who has not been passing on the rent or, in fact, is your landlord? Their website would tend to suggest one and the same.

 

Off again, catch up later, and look forward to hearing any further comments from you or others.

[NewSAHD]

PM now sent, have to go now, will check back in later.

 

If you can answer my PM / questions in the open forum too, without mentioning names, I am sure that will help others here too who are answering your own questions - there seems to be a wealth of experience at CAG which may serve you well.

 

i.e. is your Landlord and Agent, in fact, one and the same?

[bedlington83]

The agreement above; did you sign it?

 

We have proof that we've payed all the rent from the dates the landlord claims he received nothing, also we have proof that we've been paying £100 per month off the arrears since june

If you've actually made all the payments that are missing in the landlords statement, where do the arrears come from?

[bedlington83]

Any chance you can post your tenancy agreement up?

[JimmySpangle]

Ok, lets us clarify something important here. Payments to the agent. You say you paid in cash, but you also mentioned PayPal earlier. So, just so we are all clear on the facts, how have you paid the rent and the arrears since April?

 

Have you been to the agents at all? What is their last communication with you?

 

You mention Nottingham in one of your posts. I am in Nottingham, so if I can offer any assistance I will be happy to.

 

I think without any doubt you shopuld report this to police as theft because you have paid the agents and it is clear they have not passed the funds onto the rightful recipient, the landlord. I would do this immediately before they lock up and disappear.

 

Again, can you clairify who the agreement is actually between. At the top it should say something to the effect of 'Tenancy agreement between Mr F Bloggs (tenant) and Thieving Agents Ltd (landlord)' or something.

 

We can help a lot more if you post up the agreement.

[bedlington83]

I've just worked out that £26.24 is 7.5% of £350 (within a penny - its actually £26.25). My guess is that its the agent's commission, so you were never in credit.

 

What's the £462.39?

[Gunga]

The agreement above; did you sign it?

 

 

If you've actually made all the payments that are missing in the landlords statement, where do the arrears come from?

 

My partner signed it the agreement.

 

The arrears, came from a change in circumstance and our rent benifit was stopped, which we told the agent about.

 

Any chance you can post your tenancy agreement up?

 

 

I can't, the gaurentour has it (partners mother - 200 miles away) however she has just told us the agreement is between us & the agent.

 

Ok, lets us clarify something important here. Payments to the agent. You say you paid in cash, but you also mentioned PayPal earlier. So, just so we are all clear on the facts, how have you paid the rent and the arrears since April?

 

Have you been to the agents at all? What is their last communication with you?

 

Again, can you clairify who the agreement is actually between. At the top it should say something to the effect of 'Tenancy agreement between Mr F Bloggs (tenant) and Thieving Agents Ltd (landlord)' or somethin

 

We've been paying the housing benifit cheques directly by haand to the agent until they said they couldn't accept them, so we payed by cash by hand until yesterday payment, which we payed via the agents website using paypal.

 

Tenancy agreement is with my partner & the agent.

 

Here's some pictures of the damp around the house.

[Gunga]

What's the £462.39?

 

That i think was for a delay in the benifit, if i remember.

[bedlington83]

My partner signed it the agreement.

 

The arrears, came from a change in circumstance and our rent benifit was stopped, which we told the agent about.

Sorry, I didn't mean "why did you get into arrears": I'm not bothered about that. What I'm trying to do is work out whether you are currently in arrears or not.

 

From the landlord's statement it looks like you moved in around the end of September/beginning of October 2007 and paid all your rent on time until February of this year, after which you stopped paying and haven't paid anything since. On the other hand you say that you've made all of the payments that are missing on the landlords statement, so there cannot be any arrears.

 

Assuming that the landlord's statement is correct up to February can you provide a breakdown of the amounts that you paid and the dates that you paid them since February?

 

Also, does your tenancy agreement say £350 a month or £350 every 4 weeks?

[Gunga]

From the landlord's statement it looks like you moved in around the end of September/beginning of October 2007 and paid all your rent on time until February of this year, after which you stopped paying and haven't paid anything since. On the other hand you say that you've made all of the payments that are missing on the landlords statement, so there cannot be any arrears.

 

Exactly, if we are to beleive the landlord, and we assume he has books to show the income of his business, as he has more than one property & running under a ltd company then, there is no arrears as we have proof of the payments we've made since june which covers the arrears he has since february.

 

The agent is not providing any answers & has since failed to provide an explanation on several occasions, and now keeps hanging up the phone.

 

We drove past the agents shop and there was lots of staff running round the offices with paperwork & staff shouting at each other.

 

I sense the agent are either:

 

1) About to close down from financial difficulty, bearing in mind they owned/letted many properties that are now empty having being purchased by the council to be demolished.

 

2) They are fraudsters and are stealing the money

 

3) A member of staff is stealing the money & the company is unaware up until now

 

4) They've made some mistakes.

 

 

Assuming that the landlord's statement is correct up to February can you provide a breakdown of the amounts that you paid and the dates that you paid them since February?

 

What we have paid from June since we made the agreement is:

 

6 X £350.00 = £2,100.00 +

1 X £ 70.00 = £ 70.00 +

12 X £ 50.00 = £ 600.00 = £2,770.00

 

We don't have receipts from before june as we only started keeping them after the agreement was made to safeguard ourselves as we suspected they might try & say we've missed a payment of something.

 

We do have bank statements online that shows money paid in & taken out, however it doesn't proove we paid it to the agent.

 

Also, does your tenancy agreement say £350 a month or £350 every 4 weeks?

 

Not sure, i think it says £350 per calendar month.

Edited December 12, 2009 by Gunga

[Gunga]

Also, it's worth adding that an engineer from the agent came to check the gas appliances around 2nd December.

 

When we went in to pay the arrears payment, the agent asked if we'd been given a certificate for the inspection, we hadn't.

 

They said that on Monday the engineer would return with the certificate, but he didn't.

 

Also, when we got the tenancy agreement, the agent took it back off us as apparently it was missing a signature. We never got it back, and when we asked about it, they refused to believe it was taken from us & want to charge us £15 for another copy.

Edited December 12, 2009 by Gunga

[bedlington83]

Exactly, if we are to beleive the landlord, and we assume he has books to show the income of his business, as he has more than one property & running under a ltd company then, there is no arrears as we have proof of the payments we've made since june which covers the arrears he has since february.

Why did you sign a document agreeing to repay £1752.80 for an "overdue debt" if you didn't owe it? In your original post you said that you had fallen into arrears. How much was the arrears?

 

The agent is not providing any answers & has since failed to provide an explanation on several occasions, and now keeps hanging up the phone.

All talking to the agent is doing is tipping him off that you're on to him. You need to talk to the landlord, and quite possibly the police too, but just stick to the landlord for now until I get it clear in my head what's been going on

 

Not sure, i think it says £350 per calendar month.

Its very important that you find out because you're actually paying four weekly according to the landlord's statement. There are (obviously) 12 months in the year whereas there are 13 four week periods (13 X 4 = 52). In other words, by paying every four weeks you pay 13 X £350 = £4550 a year whereas if you paid monthly it would be 12 X 350 = £4200 a year

 

Also, when we got the tenancy agreement, the agent took it back off us as apparently it was missing a signature. We never got it back, and when we asked about it, they refused to beleive it was taken from us

I thought you said it was at the guarantor's home?

[NewSAHD]

Who is your Agent?

 

Who is your Landlord?

 

The first document makes reference to "P D Ltd" (I've abbreviated this for reasons given previously and would suggest you do the same when replying) and those who are following this post will be able to work it out too.

 

P D have a website and their company details are at Companies House for inspection too

 

For a £1 you can get the names and addresses of the Directors / Company Secretaries of this company, so, if the Agent and Landlord are not the same, but PD Ltd are the Landlord, you have an easy way to contact them direct now too

 

Off again now, back later!

 

ps If you have difficulty with the Company House website let us all know and we can either take you through it, or do some more digging for you.

[NewSAHD]

Gunga, hi, I now have full names and addresses of the Directors of the Agent and also for the Landlord's Company.

 

The Directors of the former Company are not Directors of the latter, and vice versa, so the two companies appear, on the face of it, to be unrelated.

 

The appears to be no BT listing for the Directors of Landlord Company though, which is a shame.

 

Please could you confirm that it is in order for me to forward these reports on to other posters here by way of PM's (that is, assuming this is OK with them too!).

 

As previously advised I undertake not to use this information in any other way than to assist you.

 

It does seem very odd though that an Agent could have their arrears figures so wrong that they are willing to let a Landlord/the Landlord's Solicitor pursue arrears formally through the Courts.

 

Money does funny things to people though. I will say no more on the subject, as we could all move towards libeling someone, which is not what the CAG forums are about, I'm sure.

 

bedlington83 is already looking at how your arrears have been calculated, but we really do need to see a copy of the AST, to determine what was due and when, as per the tenancy agreement, and what was paid and when.

 

There seems to be conflicting information as to who holds the tenancy agreement, though. Please can you clarify what, exactly, it is that your partner's mother has in her possession?

 

Is it the promissory note you posted earlier, or does she have a tenancy agreement? It's the latter we are all wishing, ideally, to see.

 

If she does, after all, have a copy of the tenancy agreement, but can't get it to you, please have her read the relevant bits to you over the telephone and/or email the same to you, so that you can, in turn, let us all know.

 

Many thanks.

[JimmySpangle]

I think the main issues here are a little simpler than perhaps we are all thinking. As I see it, the tenant has rented a property and the arrangement has been to pay via the letting agents from day one. This means that the letting agent is acting as a collector on behalf of the landlord. If, for whatever reason, the agent fails to pass on monies received from the tenant, then the dispute arrises between landlord and agent.

 

If the landlord proceeds to court with this, it will 100% be thrown out as the debt is not as claimed at all. It is not disputed that there is a debt, but it is less than £100, not the £2200 the landlord seems to believe it is.

 

As the landlord has a solictor he will be educated enough to realise the position if you tell him.

 

So, I suggest a letter to the landlords solicitor with a copy of all receipts and dates of payments. I storngly suspect the landlord is unaware of these payments at all. Certainly the solicitor will not have been privy to them otherwise they would not have put theirt name to issuing of papers in a case that clearly is flawed.

 

In the absense of the AST we have to make some assumptions. However, it is not significantly relevant whether the agent passed on monies or not. What is significant is that the landlord has shown by way of his figures that he did ineed receive payments until March. As the tenant has continued with payments, but the agent has not passed those on it would suggest some serious problem with the agent. Not wanting to fall foul of libel I will tread carefully here, but the potential problems COULD be a mistake, wrong filing, wrong account, theft by staff, theft by company or something else.

 

It is also possible the monies have been paid to the landlord and it is he trying one on. However, that could be easily cleared uyp by the agent. The fact that the agnets are now being evasive would suggest to me something definitely not right there and I would suggest again that the police are brough in as this would seem to be a potential case of theft of monies rather than arrears of a tenant.

 

Strike whilst the iron is hot. Get the police in whilst this company is still trading. ie, do it now!