Advice wanted urgently!!

culpepper

can you not get a bolt for the inside of the door and padlock it shut on the outside with a hasp and staple? (you could leave them there when you leave so you are not leaving holes in the door).
Ask if the uni will let you have your mail delivered there if you explain about the stolen mail.
I Can't think what to do about the smoking apart from opening windows.

PasturesNew

Don't the smoke alarms go off if somebody's smoking?
How many other people are in the house?

bubblesmoney

things to do and to consider in ur situation.

maintain a detailed logbook of events. do this without fail after even a tiny incident. write down details of people present time and date etc.

for missing items from ur room and mail, that is not a civil matter. that is a criminal offence. so detail all the events in writing and make a WRITTEN complaint to the police detailing the theft of items and mail and also unauthorised tresspassing into ur rented premises (room) and to take cognisance of these offences affecting u. also mention these repeated attempts at stealing ur stuff and mail theft and coercing u to pay bills that are not yours. as these all constitute criminal offences and harassment ask them to take remedial action as per criminal laws applicable including the 'protection from harassment act' as there are more than 2 such incidents.

inform the landlord in writing about all these incidents. if u have individual contracts with landlord for each room then, mention in ur letter to the LL that he/she is vicariously liable for all the criminal damage caused by other tenants as there are no locks in the property which can protect ur belongings and for generally not taking remedial measures when his other tenants are causing trouble inspite of u informing them about it. keep copies of all communications. send by registered mail or by email. mention u r making complaints to the police and council regarding criminal offences etc. this might get the LL into action and they might let u off early.

also mention that other tenants smoking is aggravating ur asthma and that if u need to take time of work, u will be making enquiries with no win no fee lawyers for making any injury claims against aprties involved and LL if they are deemed to be vicariously involved. i dont know if this will apply to smoking in lodgings affecting other lodgers health, but worth enquiring from local council and CAB etc. if u want to get out, which i think is the best solution, then do anything and everything (legal) to make it cheaper or less hassle for the others/LL to release u from ur contract early without any penalties.

make sure whether they have protected ur deposit in a DPS within time limits. otherwise u might be entitled for refund of 3 times ur deposit and any legal fees for covering expenses to recover the money etc. explore this option as well

look up on this forum or www.direct.gov.uk what a tenants rights and responsibilities are, then see if the LL or other tenants are impinging on those rights and take remedial action as appropriate. i guess since ur finances are dire u wont be able to afford a lawyer. hence ur best bet is the council, CAB and also DPS and also police routes as explained above.

also since ur mail is repeatedly being stolen maye other people residing there are into ID fraud, bring this to the notice of the police. try redirecting ur mail to another place (family / friends place) as a stopgap measure till u find another place to live.

if nothingelse works. give as good as u get, be a bigger !!!!!! than the rest and make it a point to annoy landlord and other lodgers/tenants and dont pay bills and let them want to be rid of u from that place. not the best solution but if all else fails i would do that, dont know about others

best of luck

MoneySavingSpender

bubblesmoney seems to cover most of the bases,

Write down everything that has happened and is happening, chronological diary of sorts will do this nicely.

I hope by next week you'll of moved out as that place sounds like a nightmare.

Become best mates with the landlord is the only thing I can add to bubblesmoney's advice so that you can make your exit from that hell-hole as easy as possible.

Tim_Deegan

PasturesNew wrote: »

Don't the smoke alarms go off if somebody's smoking?
How many other people are in the house?

Smoke alarms very rarely go off from cigarette smoke unless there are loads of people smoking. Other wise smokers would have all taken the batteries out, and loads more people would have died in house fires.

tbs624

Flickering_Ember wrote: »

I moved into a house with a load of people I had never met before; the girl whose room I was taking got me there under false pretences like telling me nobody smokes when in fact they do, and it affects my athsma.

Did you sign up to one contract with all of the other tenants or do you each have an individual contract? If it's the one contract then you will all be what is called "jointly and severally liable" for the rent & other payments - this may well help you here. If one tenant leaves, then the LL can chase that tenant for their share of the rent but it is more likely that s/he will look to the remaining tenants to make up any shortfall as they are obliged to do where JS&L applies. This may give you some leverage - you could maybe try the "stop your appalling behaviour or I'm off" line.
(do get local legal advice before actually leaving the tenancy though)

Also check back through the wording of your Tenancy Agreement - it may contain clauses about not causing annoyance to fellow tenants and not committing criminal acts on the premises which can give you added ammunition for getting the LL to act.

Does the Agreement say anything about smoking? ( I have to say that if I had asthma I would have got it in writing that the property was a non-smoking environment before signing up.)

Do you know whether the house is registered as an HMO (House in Multiple Occupation) and/or whether your LL is accredited by Liverpool City Council? You would need to check the lock situation with the LL because when a property is an HMO there are specific fire safety regs that must not be breached.

It can be difficult for an outsider joining a group of tenants who all know each other and sometimes the first month or so becomes a bit of a battlefield whilst each susses the other out but this does not excuse their apparent behaviour: as bubblesmoney has said, other tenants nicking your stuff is not a civil matter. You need to be firm with the police and tell them that you want each incident recording: part of the problem IMO is that the police are so overwhelmed by the paperwork that is engendered each time anything is reported to them that sometimes people may get fobbed off when the issues are on the lower end of the scale (to them).

As the others have said, you should have checked the household utility meters when you moved in and made it clear that you would only pay from that date onwards. Go and take meter readings now, so that you work out an average cost back to the last bill that they received and then work out a pro-rata amount that is fair for you to share the payment of.

You sound as though you really need the support of someone local - the CAB has already been suggested but there are also 2 law centres in Liverpool: L8 on Princes Rd 0151 709 7222 and the Vauxhall Law & Info Centre 0151 482 2001. You can get free advice from them on the best way to proceed.

You may also find it helpful to talk to someone at Shelter 0808 800 4444.