Problems with getting deposit back. Lead tenent a waste of space.

Syn

My girlfriend and I moved house a few months ago.
It was a student let. Joint tenancy agreement.
The landlord is proposing to make a number of deductions from our deposit. I won't go into these here but IMVHO they range from fair through unfair all the way to dishonest. I intend to dispute those that I believe unfair and dishonest, they total about £500.
I have spoken to the Landlord and he's told me I must talk to the deposit protection service and gave me the ref. number.
I phoned up the dps and apparently they can't even talk to me about it unless I am the lead tenent.
The lead tenent is not interested in helping.
How can I go about getting my money back?

Thanks!

Fire_Fox

You will need to submit a dispute in writing, can't you do all the legwork and get the lead tenant to sign?

princeofpounds

I believe you would still be able to go through the court process, although you would need a good argument for skipping arbitration (it may be you have one).

Why is the lead tenant not interested in helping? You may be able to claim against them in court if they are being deliberately obstructive, although I've not seen one before myself.

princeofpounds

OK, reading around it looks like you might have to make enquiries about 'single claim procedure' in your scheme and if it applies to your situation.

I don't think it is right that the lead tenant has a total monopoly on dealings with the scheme and this procedure is meant to be a way to sort out problem situations, although it is naturally designed for when one or other party goes missing.

However, even if the lead tenant is not cooperative it is the landlord's responsibility to return your deposit, not yours to claim it. I have thought about this and i'm pretty sure that if you went to court with written evidence from the DPS that they couldn't deal with you, and that you can't find/deal with the lead tenant, then the court would treat it as a normal case and you could sue for the deposit back.

princeofpounds

https://www.depositprotection.com/Public/FAQs.aspx?section=SingleClaim

may help, although the rules don't mention tenant claims when lead tenants disappear.

clutton_2

i think it is most unlikely that DPS will agree to discuss anything wiht anyone who is not the lead tenant - the whole point of the lead tenant is that the DPS only want to have one point of contact with the tenant (or tenant's representative) - this is obviously the most efficient way to do things.

if the tenants, as a group, cannot communicate, you cannot blame either the LL or DPS for this - you have to find a way of communicating with the Lead tenant - or take him to court - but that would only be worth it if you felt that you have a watertight case against both him and the landlord

either persuade him to sign the documents necessary if you do the legwork - or write it off as one of lifes little annoying situations