Council flat query...

benoit

Fire_Fox wrote: »

Since when did the OP's friend's father die? It could be viewed he has simply handed his notice in and terminated the contract.

I wasn't replying to the OP's post - i was replying to the one above mine claiming that most councils do not allow properties to be succeeded by a child. I'd be interested to hear which councils that applies to if it includes 'most'.

Thought that was clear by me quoting what i was replying to?

Pigletto

The only way that a Council tenancy can be handed over to a member of the family who is not a tenant (where the current tenant has not died) is by deed of assignment.

As your friend's father did not do this your friend would now be classed as an unauthorised occupant and has no legal rights (as far as I know) over the property.

Unauthorised occupants do not have to be moved into suitable alternative accommodation. Instead they have to apply to be housed through the homeless dept and there is no guarantee that they will be accepted.

mad_bad_spender

Can i ask OP, when did she move into the flat?

if it was just as he was leaving that could well be the reason behind their decision, it would be classed as unfair that she moved in to take over the flat due to him moving out, and rightly so.

if however she has been there a while i would certainly speak to shelter for advise

squinty

This person has no right to remain in the property, and the council have a repsonsibility to everyone else who is seeking accommodation to remove her from the property and let it to someone else.

Why do you think that you friends father has the right to make this decsion?

The law is very clear. It is not posssible to assign (sign from one person to nother) a secure tenancy apart from in very limited prescribd cicumstances as laid out in the 1985 Housing Act. The only one that may have applied is that it is possible to assign a tenancy to somone who would be qualified to suceed to the tenancy if the tenant had died (ie family member, lived with the tnant for at least 12 months, and no previous succession, and if the property was to large the council may have offered a different property)

However, as the tenant has chosen to leave the country rather than deal with this properly an assignement can no longer be considered. By leaving the property and writing to the council - the council can argue he has, in effect, ended the tenancy or at least proved the tenancy is no longer secure.

The comments from other posters about suitable accommodation are misleading. The suitablity of accommodation is only likely to figure if the council have accepted the person as homeless and are offering accommodation to discharge thier duty. Assuming this person is childless and in good health it is very unlikley she will be accepted as homless from the council. The councils may only have a duty to offer advice for her to obtain accommodation elsewhere.

Rather than getting angry withthe council - get angry with her dad. It appears to be almost entirely his fault she is in this mess.