Trouble paying landlord

amiehall

I'm so frustrated with my current landlord. I'm not sure there's anything anyone can do to help but maybe you'll think of something.

I really like my current house and it's very affordable. I'd like to stay here as it's better than anything else I could find for the price. However, my landlady is very bad at collecting the rent from me. I'm sick of literally chasing her around with wads of cash.

I approached her and said, due to the hours I work often not being compatible with her hours, it'd be easier for me to set up a standing order and just pay her every week but she won't get back to me with her bank details. I'm often behind with my rent, simply because I can't get hold of her to give her the money.

At the moment, I'm reduced to withdrawing cash when I'm due to make the payments and hoping I bump into her before I get too far behind. She doesn't seem too bothered by this but it's very inconvenient for me and I'm worried that she may later try to claim that I have been unreliable with rent which wouldn't be true.

Does anyone have any ideas as to how to address this? I don't want to be pushy and demand her bank details if she doesn't want to give them to me but I can't keep running after her with cash every week.

DVardysShadow

Write a cheque. Does she give you receipts for the cash?

tabskitten

troll methinks

Fang_3

tabskitten wrote: »

troll methinks

Why do you think that?

Fang_3

amiehall wrote: »

I'm so frustrated with my current landlord. I'm not sure there's anything anyone can do to help but maybe you'll think of something.

I really like my current house and it's very affordable. I'd like to stay here as it's better than anything else I could find for the price. However, my landlady is very bad at collecting the rent from me. I'm sick of literally chasing her around with wads of cash.

I approached her and said, due to the hours I work often not being compatible with her hours, it'd be easier for me to set up a standing order and just pay her every week but she won't get back to me with her bank details. I'm often behind with my rent, simply because I can't get hold of her to give her the money.

At the moment, I'm reduced to withdrawing cash when I'm due to make the payments and hoping I bump into her before I get too far behind. She doesn't seem too bothered by this but it's very inconvenient for me and I'm worried that she may later try to claim that I have been unreliable with rent which wouldn't be true.

Does anyone have any ideas as to how to address this? I don't want to be pushy and demand her bank details if she doesn't want to give them to me but I can't keep running after her with cash every week.

I know exactly what you mean. My old landlord was exactly the same, and now I'm still waiting for him to return my deposit and I moved out at the start of May!

amiehall

Excuse me? I've been a member of these boards for over 2 years and have much better things to do than imagine issues with a fictitious landlord :S

This has all come to a head now because I'm going on holiday and would like to pay in advance for the period I'll be away or be able to set up a standing order before I go. I really can't work out why she's dragging her heels. Every landlord I've dealt with in the past has been very payment oriented.

Yes she does sign my rent book when I pay so there shouldn't be an issue later about what has and hasn't been paid.

Fang_3

Could you give her a post-dated cheque?

Old_Git

perhaps she wants cash to avoid the taxman

G_M

It's very simple. You have her address yes? It's on your contract.

If you don't have her address, you don't have to pay rent: Section 48 of the Landlord & Tenant Act 1987 states that an address must be supplied for service of notices, failing which rent is not legally due.

So send her a cheque at her address each month. In the accompanying letter, request a receipt, but if you don't get one, don't worry, a cheque is tracable proving you have paid her rent.

Is your deposit protected?

caeler

I understand if you don't want to give a cheque. It will be a nightmare if she doesn't cash it, or saved them up, etc. I dislike temptation so I pay my rent 24 days early each month! Good luck, I hope you manage it convince your landlord that a standing order is the best way forward for all concerned.

G_M

bluefuzzybug wrote: »

I understand if you don't want to give a cheque. It will be a nightmare if she doesn't cash it, or saved them up, etc. I dislike temptation so I pay my rent 24 days early each month! Good luck, I hope you manage it convince your landlord that a standing order is the best way forward for all concerned.

If she doesn't cash the cheque, well, you've done everything you can and have in fact paid her. Keep copies of your covering letters as well as your cheque stubs.

If over time you find they are not cashed and fear she might cash them all at once, you could open a separate 2nd current account just to put your rent into and send the cheques from this. Then you know the money will always be there whenever she chooses to cash them. But hopefully it won't come to this