Sister lost her deposit

rowdyp

My sister rented a house from an agent while she was at uni. She moved in to the house in July 2007.

She left the house two weeks ago. The house was cleaned and she moved all of her things out.

Today she got a letter telling her she will not be getting back her £250 deposit because the kitchen needing cleaning :mad:

Its nonsense. The house was cleaned. It was cleaner than when she moved in.

No doubt her housemate has also lost her deposit. So £500. But, she'll confirm this with her.

What can she do?

alipops1986

Not alot be honest, unless you have photographs of your cleaning. Otherwise, it's pretty much a persons word against anothers.

The same happened to me when i left my rented accommodation at uni. I was charged for allsorts of crazy cleaning stuff. However, it was difficult to prove otherwise. I get about £100 back tho.

rowdyp

Well, she can ask for copies of cleaners bills cant she.

See the proof.

Blacksheep1979

Was there a moving in/out inspection - without that the landlord/agency won't have a leg to stand on.

BASSETT

She should have got a letter explaining breakdown of cleaning costs and included pictures of the areas of concern taken by the agent.
They cannot just say they are retaining deposit for cleaning and thats the end of it.
Was the deposit protected?

silvercar

Use the depost protection schemes abitration service - that is what its there for.

KILL_BILL

yes they have to detail what was wrong with the property when shemoved out

- there should have been a moving out inspection where her and the landlord/agent was present to note any damage to the property or cleaning

send a 14 days letter requesting the information in full or you will proceed with legal action

Geenie

KILL_BILL wrote: »

yes they have to detail what was wrong with the property when shemoved out

- there should have been a moving out inspection where her and the landlord/agent was present to note any damage to the property or cleaning

send a 14 days letter requesting the information in full or you will proceed with legal action

This is the thing as KILL BILL states. She and her flatmate should have been present for the final inspection, then they could have argued any points raised, and if necessary cleaned while the agent was watching! And then signed the final inventory.

There does seem to be an exceptionally high standard expected by some LL's when tenants leave a property, ie it is returned brand spanking new, when fair wear and tear is part of living and should be included as part of the LL's income. That said, I have had tenants leave a place like an absolute pig sty, thinking they had done enough to get their deposit back in full.

tbs624

rowdyp wrote: »

My sister rented a house from an agent while she was at uni. She moved in to the house in July 2007.

She left the house two weeks ago. The house was cleaned and she moved all of her things out.

Today she got a letter telling her she will not be getting back her £250 deposit because the kitchen needing cleaning :mad:

Its nonsense. The house was cleaned. It was cleaner than when she moved in.

No doubt her housemate has also lost her deposit. So £500. But, she'll confirm this with her.

What can she do?

1. Is this property in Eng/Wales?

2. If yes, was the tenancy deposit paid to the LL after 6 Ap 2007?

3. If yes, were your sister & her fellow T told whether their tenancy deposit had been scheme registered?

4. If yes, did the LL provide what is called "prescribed information" from the scheme?

The property has to be returned in the same condition as when let, save for fair wear and tear ( does not include dirt or damage). If the deposit was scheme - registered then your sister needs to notify the scheme admin folk that there is a dispute and take it from there.

If it was not registered then your sister can proceed to the county court (under small claims) for the return of her deposit plus interest, court costs and a penalty payment of 3x the deposit amount. Your sister can check for herself whether the deposit was registered by contacting each of the 3 schemes Link = she should ask for written confirmation either way.

serious_saver

tbs624 wrote: »

1. Is this property in Eng/Wales?

2. If yes, was the tenancy deposit paid to the LL after 6 Ap 2007?

3. If yes, were your sister & her fellow T told whether their tenancy deposit had been scheme registered?

4. If yes, did the LL provide what is called "prescribed information" from the scheme?

The property has to be returned in the same condition as when let, save for fair wear and tear ( does not include dirt or damage). If the deposit was scheme - registered then your sister needs to notify the scheme admin folk that there is a dispute and take it from there.

If it was not registered then your sister can proceed to the county court (under small claims) for the return of her deposit plus interest, court costs and a penalty payment of 3x the deposit amount. Your sister can check for herself whether the deposit was registered by contacting each of the 3 schemes= she should ask for written confirmation either way.

On the subject of the Deposit Protection Scheme

From April 2007 it became a legal requirement for all landlords to protect their tenant’s deposits in one of two types government approved scheme. I think there are only three suppliers. (I won't go into too much detail - a quick google search should find you everything you need to know.)

Both schemes provide free arbitration should the landlord and tenant disagree with the amount that should be paid back.

As it is now law that deposits MUST be protected, there is a penalty against landlords who do not protect the deposit. Rather than summarise it I've just cut and pasted this from the website of the Deposit Protection Service (one of the government approved schemes)




Where a Landlord fails to comply with Tenancy Deposit Protection, there are two sanctions:-

1. Unable to use Section 21 notice

Currently, a landlord can serve two months' written notice in the prescribed form under Section 21 of Housing Act 1988 on a tenant in order to terminate a tenancy at the end of a fixed term, or after a fixed term has expired. If necessary, a landlord can obtain an order for possession of an AST in the County Courts under Section 21 of the Housing Act 1988. However, where a landlord fails to comply with Tenancy Deposit Protection, no Section 21 notice may be given in relation to the tenancy until such time as the legislation is complied with.

1. Payment to the Tenant

Tenants can make an application to a County Court under Housing Act 2004 if they believe that their deposit is not being safeguarded, or where they have not been given the prescribed information about the scheme in which the deposit is safeguarded within 14 days of the landlord receiving the deposit.

Where the court is satisfied that the landlord has failed to comply with these requirements, or the deposit is not being held in an authorised scheme, the court must either order the landlord to repay the deposit within 14 days of the making of the order, or order the landlord to pay the deposit to the custodial scheme administrator.

The court must also order the landlord to pay the tenant three times the deposit amount within 14 days of the making of the order.



It could be worth going to your sister’s agent/landlord and pointing out that if you take legal action it could cost them 3 times as much. It might persuade them to give you a breakdown of the cleaning costs or to arrange arbitration. Obviously this is only something that would work if she paid her deposit after April 2007.

zzzLazyDaisy

A lot of landlords of student accommodation were quite cute that year - they insisted on the deposit being paid in the second term, to secure the place from the end of the third term. This meant the deposit was handed over before the protection scheme came into force.

I'm told by my student nephew that many landlords don't even ask for a deposit now - they have increased the monthly rent to include 1/12th of the lost deposit, and so get to keep all the 'deposit' now anyway. Some then give a 'bonus' or 'cashback' if the place is handed back in a satisfactory condition..... but it is never equivalent to the full amount of what the deposit would have been had it been paid separately in a lump sum up front. Having said that, he and his mates who he house shares with do prefer it that way.