Lodger underpaying by 31p, would you make a fuss?

kpey

HAS to be one of the best threads on MSE ever! I love this thread!

I am on the side of the OP, it's not the amount, it's the principle! I hope you get it back somehow (sounds sarky but it's not, what's yours is yours and the amount is irrelevant!)

:T

beaujolais-nouveau

Blackpool_Saver wrote: »

This is not about 31p it's about the new lodger wanting to have control, it's about his/her deliberate non payment of the amount.

Hear, hear.

It's a judgement call for the OP but, in case it helps, I'll mention that this year when I filed my company's PAYE annual return, I found that due to a miscalculation I had underpaid £1 for 2008-2009. What do you think that HMRC would have said/done if I had argued that I didn't have to pay the outstanding amount because it was such a small amount. And that's less than one-third of what the OP is losing over the year. (Except I think that, once the lodger had established a precedent and got it "accepted by default" so to speak, the 31p underpayment per month would become 51p, then £1.15 and so on.)

thegrimreaper

well i must say if nothing else this thread has just helped me waste a boredom filled hour whilst waiting for someone to come up and pick me up that should have been here long ago.... but still the sun is shining so im off to see if i can find 31p to help

shop-to-drop

Athina

I was just wondering how you are getting along with your lodger?

Hope things have been sorted by now one way or another.

Will you let us know?

Thanks

Jowo_2

The sum of 31p is trivial but the defiance of this act and other behaviour is not. The lodger is cheeky and stingy. I think the landlord is going to hit many problems because of this lodger’s general attitude where they clearly resent the economic relationship and want the others to subsidise their costs way below market rent – this sense of entitlement is going to become unbearable.

I reckon every time a bill comes in, the lodger will quibble and will seek to punish the landlord in other ways. I believe the underpayment is deliberate, provocative and done so they can get sympathy from others for seemingly being hassled for a small sum while concealing their persistent unfair demands for a drop in rent. It’s worked a treat on this forum where many people think the landlord is cruel rather than the tenant is manipulative.

The lodger clearly isn’t happy with the economic/power relationship of lodger/landlord and they are trying to their best to have extra control and influence. This isn’t because are trying to treat them as a ‘subordinate’ or ‘serf’ suggested by another poster but that they are interfering in areas that aren’t part of their domain and should just stick to what was agreed at the outset.

The lodger is selfish to expect the landlord to pay a disproportionate amount of the bills and store their belongings in other areas. It is incredible that the lodger still continues to negotiate a drop in rent under market rates and wants to the landlady have a second lodger to facilitate this. There is no relationship between number of occupants and market rent so quite why the lodger feels entitled to a reduction is beyond me.

The lodger should be told to stick to the existing agreed terms and conditions of the tenancy or move out. Tell them to remove their belongings from the spare room. The landlord should refuse to enter into any negotiations with them – their expectations are too great and since they can’t be met, they shouldn’t be discussed. The OP doesn’t need to be conciliatory because the lodger accepted the tenancy under certain terms and conditions and should stick to their obligations.

shop-to-drop

Jowo wrote: »

The sum of 31p is trivial but the defiance of this act and other behaviour is not. The lodger is cheeky and stingy. I think the landlord is going to hit many problems because of this lodger’s general attitude where they clearly resent the economic relationship and want the others to subsidise their costs way below market rent – this sense of entitlement is going to become unbearable.

I reckon every time a bill comes in, the lodger will quibble and will seek to punish the landlord in other ways. I believe the underpayment is deliberate, provocative and done so they can get sympathy from others for seemingly being hassled for a small sum while concealing their persistent unfair demands for a drop in rent. It’s worked a treat on this forum where many people think the landlord is cruel rather than the tenant is manipulative.

The lodger clearly isn’t happy with the economic/power relationship of lodger/landlord and they are trying to their best to have extra control and influence. This isn’t because are trying to treat them as a ‘subordinate’ or ‘serf’ suggested by another poster but that they are interfering in areas that aren’t part of their domain and should just stick to what was agreed at the outset.

The lodger is selfish to expect the landlord to pay a disproportionate amount of the bills and store their belongings in other areas. It is incredible that the lodger still continues to negotiate a drop in rent under market rates and wants to the landlady have a second lodger to facilitate this. There is no relationship between number of occupants and market rent so quite why the lodger feels entitled to a reduction is beyond me.

The lodger should be told to stick to the existing agreed terms and conditions of the tenancy or move out. Tell them to remove their belongings from the spare room. The landlord should refuse to enter into any negotiations with them – their expectations are too great and since they can’t be met, they shouldn’t be discussed. The OP doesn’t need to be conciliatory because the lodger accepted the tenancy under certain terms and conditions and should stick to their obligations.

Very well said, agree with everything you said. Just wish I could have written it down so eloquantly.

theartfullodger

Agreed: & give lodger notice to quit. Any other course of action will end up with on-going, petty, fiddly arguments about anything & everything...

Cheers!

Lodger

athina_2

God, I can't beleive that some of you even remembered this thread as I forgot about it a long time ago!

She said she tried to change it but her bank couldn't let her do it so she said she would add it on to the next set of bills each quarter.

Also when I was emptying the rubbish, I saw some room rental adverts in there around the time I started this thread. Whether she was looking to move out but didn't find anything better for the same (or less money) or she is still looking to move out, who knows. I'm not really bothered either way if she stays or goes. And I've decided not to make a fuss over the 31p x 5 months either when the bills come. I'll split the bill equally then leave it up to her if she adds on the extra.

bristol_pilot

I've found this one of the most interesting threads on this site. Not because I've particularly learned anything from it, but because it has really illustrated so very clearly how people's attitude to money can vary so much. Thanks for the entertainment :j.