No checkout - so can we demand deposit back?

moooose

Hi,

We left our rented flat about a month ago to move abroad.

I'm not used to the new rental laws (I've been owner-occupier for 7 years) and we were very busy with wedding plans and a move abroad, so we kind of 'dropped-the-ball' on researching our tenant rights before moving out.

I've softly-softly been asking our landlady for our deposit back (she has generally been reasonably with us) - she has delayed releasing the deposit because of an apparent dispute with the letting agent over who should have done the checkout. Net result is no checkout report, and we are abroad so it is a bit hard to go into a Citizen's Advice Bureau office.

My question is - if we took her to court, would we get all of our deposit back as no checkout has been performed? I would of course research this online but I'm on a dodgy internet link abroad.

Many thanks,


Paul

clutton_2

why not phone her and talk to her and try to sort it out first

Jowo_2

You haven't mentioned whether your deposit was lodged in a Tenancy Deposit scheme,in which case you can kick off the dispute process as I believe its supposed to be returned fairly quickly.

A month is a long time to not have a deposit returned and my rule of thumb is that anything over a few weeks in unacceptable. The dispute between the landlord and her agent is her problem. She ought to give the deposit back to you in full and seek redress separately with them, in my opinion - diplomatically suggest this to her as if they have breached the management agreement, then she should take legal action.

It's hard to see how any deductions could be made if no inspection was made after your exit and impossible if new tenants have subsequently moved in.

The following info is based on it being a deposit that didn't require to be in a TDS. Give the landlord one final week to complete the inspection (if practical and no other tenants have moved in) or elsewise return the deposit in full or that court action will be taken.

Shelter and the HM Court site have sample letters to send to a landlord (keep a copy) to give them a final chance to resolve it within a prompt timespan.

Generally, you will find the Shelter website excellent on how to follow up an outstanding deposit.