How easy to get deposit back instead of rent

missymugwump

Hi all

New development
Despite making it clear as day in writing about the chq that was sent then returned by LA ,and that LL should apply for & keep deposit making up total rent due

SIL today has received 8 calls from a debt collection agency on his work number
His boss is really peed off and SIL is not sure what to do now
They have threatened that unless they pay all the rent now by card they will take legal action ?

Any ideas please surely this would have to go to court to be enforceable & any judge with half a brain would see the position they are in :-(


I tol SIL if they ring again tell them that council told them to sit tight till April and if they don't back off they may well do it !

(it was an 0800 number and SIL googled it to a debt collection firm)

BitterAndTwisted

I'm bumping this back to the top of page 1 in the hope that Clutton, ArtfulLodger or any of our other professional landlords on here can advise further.

Looks like things are coming to a potentially nasty head here

Fire_Fox

Debt collectors are not allowed to contact you at work, pop over to the DFW board and run a search for advice on how to stop this. My advice would be not to discuss anything with them by telephone as debt collectors are know to make all sorts of wild claims in order to put the frighteners on people. If you do not answer any security questions they are not able to discuss ANYTHING about the debt with anyone, even confirming that there is a debt!

How to deal with debt collectors if your boss has a sense of humour:
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=741653

missymugwump

Thanks I will pass that on to them
I think he was caught off guard as the LA nor anyone else has never phoned his work place before (only his mobile)
He works in an open plan office & was trying to deal with it quietly

She also said at the end of the conversation all our calls are recorded !
I told him that is deffo illegal :mad: they have to tell you first

They are saying they want the rent in full + a check out fee + a fee because they declined to let LA in for an inspection last week (They did request in writing daughter replied in writing that it was inconvenient) + interest on LL's loses ? what ever they may be,a fee to cover their costs etc.....

Surely LL's have to have insurance don't they ?

Anyway naturally they are now even more upset,these LA's and the LL have been bloody ignorant throughout

Question is can they really do much to them in the time left

Would it have to go to court before they could be forced to pay anything ?
Do they have to pay all these fees ?

It all seems so very unfair

BitterAndTwisted

If they want to sit tight until the end of the AST without the LL offering any reasonable inducement to leave before the end of the contract they should do so but in that case they must pay the rent. Sitting tight should give them every opportunity to save up for their new deposit. I would seriously consider withholding the last two month's rent and getting the landlord to offset it against their deposit held. No inducement and the contract ended by mutual agreement in writing, no moving out

missymugwump

BitterAndTwisted wrote: »

If they want to sit tight until the end of the AST without the LL offering any reasonable inducement to leave before the end of the contract they should do so but in that case they must pay the rent. Sitting tight should give them every opportunity to save up for their new deposit. I would seriously consider withholding the last two month's rent and getting the landlord to offset it against their deposit held. No inducement and the contract ended by mutual agreement in writing, no moving out

Thanks

Rent to the exact value of the deposit has been witheld

They have found a new place and are all set to move out within the time requested by LL
So why is he being such an !!!!
He must be in dire straights financially and a total selfish pig mentally not to see that he is lucky that they are going quickly & quietly
They could dig in and cause him chaos if they were that way inclined

We shall be photographing the whole place thoroughly before leaving just in case,not that he will have a forwarding address

BitterAndTwisted

They need to put everything in writing in case the LL tries to chase them for any money in future. Like telling the LL they know that the S21 giving them notice to quit before the end of their signed tenancy agreement was incorrectly served and therefore not enforceable. That they are leaving the property as requested to show goodwill and to demonstrate their willingness to be cooperative under the circumstances.. That they are offsetting the last two months rent against the deposit because the LL has not offered them any inducement to end the contract early and because they need that deposit to secure a new property at short notice and they are not confident that their deposit will be returned in full without spurious deductions. That they do not appreciate being harassed at their place of work by debt collectors when a civilised agreement could have been reached if only the LA and the LL cared to discuss this in a spirit of mutual cooperation.

Something of this nature MUST be sent to the LA and the LL in writing by recorded delivery before they leave.

missymugwump

Have already sent this as we saught some advice will this cover them ?
It was sent recorded deliver early Jan to LA & LL

We were shocked and surprised to receive a section 21 notice with no pre-emptive phone call or any explanation
two days before Christmas.
We were further appauled at your total lack of any offer to help us relocate leaving us feeling confused at your
motives for ejecting us and annoyed. Common decency should merit a phone call at least.
We have taken expert legal advice on the matter and wish to inform you of the following facts.
1) Your section 21 is invalid for contractual reasons
Whatever the provisions in a clause requiring notice about where the notice must or may be served, they
cannot, Must, be such that they require or allow the notice to be served at a place where any reasonable
assessment is that the notice has no reasonable prospect of coming to the recipient's notice at that place at
or shortly after the time of service, and certainly not if that place is under the control of the person serving the
notice or anyone representing him and/or to which the recipient has no right of entry. Even though in certain
circumstances the law deems a notice to have been served even if the recipient has not received it, the
whole point of a notice is that the recipient should receive it. In this case a notice to be served on a tenant by
or on behalf of a landlord has to be served at the office of the landlord's agent; that cannot possibly be
reasonable. The provision falls foul of the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations if not of the
general law.
Further, where the notice provisions are mandatory (as they are here) a notice is only properly served if the
provisions are strictly complied with.
The draftsman of clause 32.2 has therefore created a situation where the only notice that can be served is

an invalid one.

Because of the error in the drafting whereby notice is to be served on T c/o the letting agent rather than at
the rental property address.
We have the oddity that the clause, if not deemed unfair, may be valid, but cannot effectively be exercised.
In other words, valid, but worthless.
We would basically be safe until the end of the fixed term should we choose to stay.
2) Despite this we have decided to vacate the property.
3) We shall not be attending any check out inventory

4) The keys will be returned to your office on the 22 nd Feb 2010 (you do not hold a current set as we were instructed by your office to have the locks changed as the previous tenant did not surrender all sets) .

5) We have forwarded a chq which with our deposit forms the last two months rent, the landlord should

apply for and accept our deposit as that rent
6) The landlord’s actions have forced us into this unfortunate circumstance as we were ill prepared
financially for a sudden house move with a new baby; we took this property as we were assured the LL
was looking for a long term tenant!
7) Persistently ringing us will be deemed as harassment you have bought this breakdown in
communication upon yourselves and this process will now be carried out at our convenience and in
writing only
We can see no need for any further contact on this matter and we shall not be offering a forwarding address
A copy of this letter will also be forwarded to the landlord

Yours Sincerely