Cant pay my rent.....landlords advice needed

xx_Jo_xx

theartfullodger wrote: »

Hhmmmmnn interesting.... Landlord & Tenant Act 1987 Section 48 requires that the tenant must be given an address in England where notices can be served on the landlord – the address does not have to be that of the landlord. Rent is not lawfully due until this is complied with.

See..http://www.landlordzone.co.uk/landlord%27s_address.htm

So, check your paperwork and see if you were given this. It is quite common & legal for the address to be given c/o the letting agent.... but this might give you some breathing space if the rent ain't due...


Cheers!

Lodger (A Landlord)

Hi and thanks for this.....I have two addresses for my landlord.

One is C/O the estate agent, and the other is a PO Box in Singapore.

So technically I do have a UK address, but thanks, that would have been handy! xx

xx_Jo_xx

Pee wrote: »

I would pay as much as you possibly can - on the grounds that a home is a priority.

I will, that is my plan.

Im going to phone everyone else and see if I can arrange payment breaks etc, so that I can pay what I do have to the rent.

Fire_Fox

Sorry to hear about your job.

I would strongly recommend you confirm the earlier conversation in writing and send the letter recorded delivery. Also look into applying for as many benefits as possible ASAP as claims may be backdated in some circumstances - you may find working but not being paid is one of them (you never know!). Also nip onto the Debt-free Wannabe board for advice on budgeting and prioritising bills, they are a really friendly and supportive bunch.

Thrugelmir

Why are unsure as to whether you employer has gone into administration. If an administrator has been appointed you would have been informed.

xx_Jo_xx

Thrugelmir wrote: »

Why are unsure as to whether you employer has gone into administration. If an administrator has been appointed you would have been informed.

There has been no formal annoucement to us of any kind, other than (and Im paraphrasing here.....) "You are aware that you havent been paid this morning, we are unable to tell you anything at present. We are legally bound not to share information with you at this time, and when this is finalised this afternoon, we will make a formal announcement then"

My suspcions are that they are folding/going into administration or something similar, but like i say, this hasnt been confirmed yet. Im still in the situation that I have no salary to pay my rent, but am techincally still employed.....so unable to claim benefits until I know more.

Sorry, does that all make sense?

xx_Jo_xx

Fire_Fox wrote: »

Sorry to hear about your job.

I would strongly recommend you confirm the earlier conversation in writing and send the letter recorded delivery. Also look into applying for as many benefits as possible ASAP as claims may be backdated in some circumstances - you may find working but not being paid is one of them (you never know!). Also nip onto the Debt-free Wannabe board for advice on budgeting and prioritising bills, they are a really friendly and supportive bunch.

Hi thanks for this,

Do you mean the conversation I had with the estate agents, and send it to the estate agents recorded delivery, saying that this is my understanding and what I expect to do?

TIA

Jo xx

Thrugelmir

xx_Jo_xx wrote: »

There has been no formal annoucement to us of any kind, other than (and Im paraphrasing here.....) "You are aware that you havent been paid this morning, we are unable to tell you anything at present. We are legally bound not to share information with you at this time, and when this is finalised this afternoon, we will make a formal announcement then"

My suspcions are that they are folding/going into administration or something similar, but like i say, this hasnt been confirmed yet. Im still in the situation that I have no salary to pay my rent, but am techincally still employed.....so unable to claim benefits until I know more.

Sorry, does that all make sense?

Yes it does. Doesn't sound hopeful.

Here's some factual information.

From the first day that the company enters into Administration, the administrator has a maximum of 8 weeks to review the company's affairs and produce a report stating what is going to be done to rescue the business or if it is deemed that a rescue is just not possible, why this is.

The impact on the company's employees on entering into administration will really depend on the decisions made by the administrator. During the administration process, wages (i.e. PAYE and NI payments) must still be made by the company. If a decision is made that part of the business can be saved but some of the employees are no longer required, then they will be made redundant and will be paid redundancy according to the contractual obligations of the company.

If any part of the company is sold, then under European TUPE (Transfer of Undertakings and Permanent Employment) law any employees within this part of the business must be transferred to the new owner under the same contractual terms as they had with the old business. This does not mean that the new owner has to continue to employ these people. It can make them redundant if they are deemed unnecessary for the new business. However, the redundancies must be carried out in accordance with the contractual obligations of the old company. Most importantly the time that employees worked for the old business before they were transferred to the new one must be taken into account.

Where the administrator decides that the business cannot be saved, then they will initiate the process of closing the company. This will generally be done by the process of Creditors Voluntary Liquidation. In this situation, if employees are owed money (i.e. wages due) they will only be paid if the business can afford the payments. If not, employees will have to have to make a claim for a statutory redundancy payment from the government National Insurance Fund (NIF). Unfortunately these payments are very limited. Employees, who are owed more than they are able to claim from NIF, will rank as preferential creditors, which means that once the company is closed and any assets liquidated, they will be paid after payment of the insolvency's expenses but subject to a maximum of 800 pounds. Any balance owed will be treated as unsecured debt in the same way as the company's trade creditors, and it is unlikely that employees will recover more than a small proportion of what they are owed.

Overall, the outcome of a company administration can be that all or part of the business is saved and the employee's jobs are preserved. However, more often than not, radical change will be required and unfortunately this will lead to employee redundancies. Given this situation, if you believe the business you work for is considering administration or has entered into it, it is important to hope for the best but also prepare for the worst and review your options for employment elsewhere if only for peace of mind.

Fire_Fox

xx_Jo_xx wrote: »

Hi thanks for this,

Do you mean the conversation I had with the estate agents, and send it to the estate agents recorded delivery, saying that this is my understanding and what I expect to do?

TIA

Jo xx

Yes. It looks very hopeful for you that the agents/ landlord will be sympathetic, but if you need to claim benefits these sometimes take a while to come through. It's helpful to have a paper trail for every formal conversation you have so the other party cannot deny it later .... I would then suggest you keep in regular contact with the agents, even if you have nothing to report, just to assure them that you have every intention to pay your rent. And as others have said, if you are able to make part payment do so. Your priority bills are rent, council tax, food and utilities. If there is anything else you are unable to pay (credit cards, phone contracts) then there are template letters on the DFW board to offer token £1 payments. Again this is to demonstrate willingness to pay.

Whether or not you do get paid, if the company has gone bust contact the benefits office ASAP. Claims often start from first contact, so don't wait until you are sure of what is happening - you can always withdraw any claim if your job is secured for a time.

PasturesNew

Sorry to hear that. I've been laid off loads of times, only once without being paid.

I hope this link helps you to start to understand where you stand:

Workers who lose their jobs when their firm falls into administration are advised to contact two different government bodies - the Redundancy Payments Office and HM Revenue & Customs.
The Redundancy Payments Office, part of the Insolvency Service, handles claims from workers for unpaid wages, and redundancy money.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7755555.stm

xx_Jo_xx

Hi and thanks to everyone for all your help.

At just after 4pm it was announced that the company has gone into administration and that they were unable to pay us. We were dismissed instantly and told me need to try and claim both our pay and any redundancy monies from the government, as well as compensation for not being given any notice.

By the time I had cleared out my office, the girls in the accounts department had already gone home for the day so I left a message with the office telling them what had happened and that I would speak to them again on Monday.

Ive applied online for what I can over the weekend, but will need to wait till Monday to talk to Housing Benefit people....which will obviously be one of the first calls I make.

Once Ive been there, I think I will go into the estate agents and talk to them face to face and ask for a letter when I am in there.

Thanks for all of the links and all of the information. Its been really helpful and useful. Thanks again xx