Incompetent actions by management company

diggingforsilver

I’m seeking some advice regarding what action I can take against the management company currently responsible for the property I am renting.

At the end of last December my landlord was repossessed by his lender. The official receivers appointed a well known brand of estate/letting agents to administer the management of the letting. A quick bit of research by myself identified that the lender, receiver and letting agent are all owned by the same parent company.

The problems started almost immediately. The receivers were not called in until after I had paid the rent for January. I was assured by the new management company that this was ok and that they would recover the money. I sent the new management company copies of the January payment confirmation from my bank along with a copy of the existing tenancy agreement. I was also informed that they would be sending out details to me of how to pay my rent for February (due in the last week of January). Having not received any information by the second week of January, I chased the new management company with first emails, then phone calls (of which out of the 20+ times I called they only answered the phone once) and letters attempting to get this information. Eventually I managed to get the payment details out of the company, although they expressed their concern that it was now two days since they had expected payment! However I started to make my payments to the new company. I presumed everything was fine.

In late March 2009 I received a letter stating that I was in arrears with rent (I wasn’t). On calling the management company they seemed surprised that I had received such a letter. In the process of speaking to about four different people (and having to explain to each of them that I had paid my rent as instructed) it transpired that nobody at the company had looked at the previous evidence of me paying my rent for January to the original management company. The new management company requested that I send this information to their arrears department (some 400 miles away from their main letting office). The new management company apologised for their oversight and assured me everything was now correct with my account.

So I continued paying my rent as per my contract instructed and in no way was I in arrears. After three months of peace and no further correspondence I was shocked to return from holiday in June to discover that my management company had decided to set debt collectors onto my partner and me for an unspecified amount due to unpaid rent! I immediately contacted my letting agent to ask them what on earth was going on. Again I had to speak to four people (it became clear something was wrong when the third person I spoke to appeared to start panicking and put me on hold for five minutes) eventually I was put through to a manager who apologised and claimed that the management company “had accidently due to an administrative error, sent the details of a large number of their good customers to debt collectors”. I warned the management company that this was hardly fulfilling their expected duty as a responsible management company and that it could be considered as grounds for breach of contract.

So again we have gone three months in relative peace. Although at the beginning of July I was contacted by the management company to ask if we would like to sign a new tenancy agreement. Our existing tenancy agreement expired at the end of May and has merely been rolling over as per its original terms on a two monthly basis. Apparently they had previously sent us a new tenancy agreement (which we have never received). I instructed them to send it to us and reminded them again (as I have everytime I have spoken to them) that they have our address incorrectly recorded, and that I live in West Yorkshire, not North Yorkshire. This proposed tenancy agreement has never arrived.

However this morning after I went to work, a locksmith turned up at our property to change the locks as per the instruction of the management company. Fortunately my partner has been ill this week and was therefore in the property at the time. We have received no warning that this action is being taken and we have not received any correspondence (since those that were rescinded for being sent incorrectly) claiming we are in breach of our tenancy agreement.

I am now sick to the back teeth of having to cope with this incompetent bunch and am looking to move. However do you think the actions of the management company are grounds for me simply to tell them that I will move out when I wish and only pay them up until that date?

princeofpounds

This is all a bit confisuing as when you say mgmt company most people will think you are a leaseholder complaining about a freeholder?

However, it sounds like you are actually a tenant complaining about a landlord who has a letting agent (which are owned by the same entity)

However this morning after I went to work, a locksmith turned up at our property to change the locks as per the instruction of the management company. Fortunately my partner has been ill this week and was therefore in the property at the time. We have received no warning that this action is being taken and we have not received any correspondence (since those that were rescinded for being sent incorrectly) claiming we are in breach of our tenancy agreement.

You might consider reporting this incident to the police. Had they gone through with this it would have been illegal eviction, which is a criminal offence. You might not get a crime reference number, I don't know what the procedure is for crimes that would have been committed if the victim hadn't sorted it out, but at least get them to make a report in case you need to press a harrassment charge.

You should also write to the landlord company, copying in the lettings agent company. Write to anyone who has given you answers, and the managing directors or whoever is the head of the company.

State your experience to date, state the near-miss on illegal eviction, point out that any further actions with debt collection for non-existent debts or attempts to seize the property will result in you retaining a lawyer to sue for harrassment and/or illegal eviction, and request that they agree to surrender your tenancy, in writing, from the landlord before any more muck-ups occur. You can also give notice as per the normal procedure as well if you like at the same time.