tenancy ended by returning keys - advice requested

clutton_2

but do remember that a solicitor has no axe to grind when s/he gives you advice over teh phone... if they thought you had a great case they would have said so... as it would have been buisness for them...

we often dont want to hear what professionals tell us if it does not coincide with our own view of things....

jakeyd

Fire_Fox wrote: »

It may make a difference, it depends how clear the e-mails are about what each side expected of the other. "the gist" and "I imagine" and "that suggests" are not going to cut the mustard in my view. Do you have evidence (?dated screenshots) that the flat was not marketed as vacant until you threatened legal action?

I have an email from the lettings manager which says 'until last week we were marketing the flat to move in at end of May, as the Landlord wished to move back there for a short period. He has now instructed us to market it as vacant.'

I think that is pretty clear!

jakeyd

Fire_Fox wrote: »

Other that that honestly I think you should see this as a learning experience. I have learned the hard way to make a brief note of EVERY business/ formal telephone call I have, to send EVERY formal letter by recorded delivery and keep the receipt. I do not use telephone, e-mail or texting for anything important - it is a bit OCD, but I reckon it has saved me £4K in service charges alone (three year dispute).

I totally agree. I work as a journalist and I do keep a telephone log, which is signed and dated. In terms of my evidence being by email, in a rapidly moving situation, I will argue, it is impractical to communicate only 'in writing'. As soon as I realised that they were inveterate liars, I refused to communicate on the phone to Foxtons, making them write everything in email. It was funny how much less they had to say then!

jakeyd

clutton wrote: »

but do remember that a solicitor has no axe to grind when s/he gives you advice over teh phone... if they thought you had a great case they would have said so... as it would have been buisness for them...

we often dont want to hear what professionals tell us if it does not coincide with our own view of things....

Take your point. The precedent I'm using for surrender by operation of the law is a 2009 case, however, and it could be that they are not aware of it.

When I was much younger (19) I got into some trouble with the police. The rather pricey solicitor I was 'fortunate' to have employed (an expert in this particular field of criminal law) wanted me to simply plead guilty at the trial. I suggested an alternative which involved me taking some action and suggesting to the police that they may not want to pursue this with the CPS and instead offer me a formal caution (something my solicitor had originally said was 'extremely unlikely'. It worked (and I learnt a lesson!). Sorry this is vague for understandable reasons, but I hope you get my point.

clutton_2

i also have taken on court battles which others said were foolhardy - i won some and lost some...

i have spokent with many solicitors over the years, and it seems to me that there are as many opinions on the same legal point as there are solicitors mulling that point over......

Fire_Fox

jakeyd wrote: »

I have an email from the lettings manager which says 'until last week we were marketing the flat to move in at end of May, as the Landlord wished to move back there for a short period. He has now instructed us to market it as vacant.'

I think that is pretty clear!

Then maybe you should put a letter together quoting a few of the clearest choice phrases, heading it 'letter before action' and stating you will take the case to the small claims court. Perhaps they will not have expected you to have kept the e-mails.

I feel a bit like you are moving the goalposts throughout this thread, which perhaps demonstrates that you should take all your e-mails to a solicitor (as already suggested). You say you have already been given a negative response by the legal profession, but perhaps that is because you again chose to deal with them by telephone?

jakeyd wrote: »

I totally agree. I work as a journalist and I do keep a telephone log, which is signed and dated. In terms of my evidence being by email, in a rapidly moving situation, I will argue, it is impractical to communicate only 'in writing'. As soon as I realised that they were inveterate liars, I refused to communicate on the phone to Foxtons, making them write everything in email. It was funny how much less they had to say then!

In cases where it is impractical to communicate in writing, we usually suggest to follow up telephone calls with a letter confirming what was agreed. The part you don't seem to have a proper record of is you surrendering the property/ expressing a wish to terminate the legally binding contract you signed. That is a key part unfortunately. The e-mails can perhaps be used in the small claims court as supplementary evidence, but you absolutely cannot serve notice to quit via telephone or e-mail.

Don't get me wrong I wish you the best of luck.