Can I get out of being a guarantor for my ex girlfriend

Fire_Fox

Stop being bitter and make an appointment with a solicitor.

tbs624

eco-friendly wrote: »

You're only liable for the rent not any damages, your only get out would be to supply another guarantor, a trip to the moon is more likely.

Not necessarily - many guarantor agreements mean that the guarantor effectively underwrites all obligations of the tenant due under the contract, and that includes bills for damage that remain unmet by a tenancy deposit.

eco-friendly wrote: »

Keep in contact with her EA/LL if she fails to pay two months rent contact the council, they will probably send the LHA direct to them.

The guarantor cannot arrange for payment of LHA to be made direct to the LL: its is unlikely that the LHA officer would even enter into discussion with the OP without the consent of the claimant herself.

tbs624

eco-friendly wrote: »

You're only liable for the rent not any damages, your only get out would be to supply another guarantor, a trip to the moon is more likely.

Not necessarily - many guarantor agreements mean that the guarantor effectively underwrites all obligations of the tenant due under the contract, and that includes bills for damage that remain unmet by a tenancy deposit.

eco-friendly wrote: »

Keep in contact with her EA/LL if she fails to pay two months rent contact the council, they will probably send the LHA direct to them.

The guarantor cannot arrange for payment of LHA to be made direct to the LL: its is unlikely that the LHA officer would even enter into discussion with the OP without the consent of the claimant herself.

OP - you are stuck with your guarantor obligations until the LL agrees to release you from them ( and why would he) or until your former partner moves out.

You may however want to take the guarantor agreement along to a local law centre or CAB and ask for someone to look over the wording of it, in case it was poorly drafted.

DrScotsman

For a start, I second contacting a solicitor. They will know more than us, period.

Otherwise however, I'm surprised what I'm hearing here. I would assume a guarantor could give notice (during a rolling tenancy) to stop being a guarantor just like a tenant giving notice, and being able to absolve his responsibility for future non-payments, but not past ones. The first result on Google agrees with me, although I suppose that's every bit as reliable as the comments from everyone else.

G_M

You're only liable for the rent not any damages,

'fraid not. It depends on the wording on the guraantor agreement you signed. In most cases anything the tenant is liable for but defaults on, you become liable for.

she chain smokes in the house and the whole house stinks of fags.

If I wanted to be an !!!!, could I get her evicted on these grounds before she's able to run up a massive debt for me?

Unlikely a court would evict her for smoking even if the contract prohibits it.

Sorry.

RobertoMoir

tbs624 wrote: »

Not necessarily - many guarantor agreements mean that the guarantor effectively underwrites all obligations of the tenant due under the contract, and that includes bills for damage that remain unmet by a tenancy deposit..

Which of course should bring the OP back to getting advice from a solicitor about their specific situation based on the specifics of what they have agreed to.

houndofculaine

I've spoken to my Unions solicitors.

First I need a copy of the agreement.

But this issue of a rolling tenancy and the guarantors liabilty. They seem to think this is rubbish, of course the LL are going to say something else to cover their backs, but the advisor stated that a contract that stated you were liable forever is unlawful.

Depends how well written the contract I signed is. If it states a 'reasonable' time limit they can hold you to it. If it's open ended, that's an unlawful contract as it is unreasonable to maintain this sort responsibility for an indefinate period.

I notice on the LL website, they state that they have a fixed 6-12 month contract with their tennants, and at the end of the fixed period it is up to the owner as to whether they want to start another fixed period or move to a rolling tennacy. Surely that's a change of contract, and as I didn't sign anything to resign as guarantor I may be OK.

Now to get a copy of the agreement.

Jowo_2

houndofculaine wrote: »

A further point, the landlord stated the tennant had to be a non smoker, now she smokes about two packs a day. At first she'd smoke in the back garden, after a few weeks she'd sneak a crafty one in the lounge, this has now grown to the stage where she chain smokes in the house and the whole house stinks of fags.

If I wanted to be an !!!!, could I get her evicted on these grounds before she's able to run up a massive debt for me?

Clauses like this, and the stipulation on pets, aren't always legally enforceable. A landlord evicting a tenant for a minor breach like this isn't going to get possession awarded by a judge during the fixed term of the contract.

All that's going to happen is that you may get a steeper cleaning/decorating charge when she leaves the property and there are fag burns, the smell and yellowed ceilings to deal with.

tbs624

RobertoMoir wrote: »

Which of course should bring the OP back to getting advice from a solicitor about their specific situation based on the specifics of what they have agreed to.

Indeed - which is why it said at th ebottom of my post

tbs624 wrote: »

.....You may however want to take the guarantor agreement along to a local law centre or CAB and ask for someone to look over the wording of it, in case it was poorly drafted.

Jowo_2

houndofculaine wrote: »

I notice on the LL website, they state that they have a fixed 6-12 month contract with their tennants, and at the end of the fixed period it is up to the owner as to whether they want to start another fixed period or move to a rolling tennacy. Surely that's a change of contract, and as I didn't sign anything to resign as guarantor I may be OK.

For the tenant, when the fixed term expires, it automatically becomes a periodic tenancy as you've noted (rolling) but all existing terms and conditions remain the same (apart from the fact that housing law allows the tenant to give 1 months notice, or the landlord 2 months notice, timed to expire with the rental period). So its not really a change of contract, merely a continuance of it.

Depending on the wording of your guarantor agreement, you may have signed to say that you are happy for your obligation to continue when it becomes periodic.