Security Deposit In Student Halls

ells90

Hi everyone!

Right, this might get confusing. If something's not clear, please ask me to clear it up. I'm better at answering questions than waffling on.

So, I'm 19 and I live in student halls, but the property is owned and run by UNITE. I live in a flat with four other people, but we rent out the rooms separately and share a communal area. I moved in last September and paid my deposit of £300 straight to UNITE.

So first of all, am I still covered by the Tenancy Deposit Protection Scheme? I never received anything from UNITE telling me how my deposit was protected and there's nothing in the terms and conditions that tells me. The terms and conditions are available on request by the way. Obviously, being 19 I have no experience or knowledge when it comes to dealing with landlords/letting agents so I wasn't aware that my deposit was even supposed to be protected let alone that I was supposed to be provided with evidence that it is.

I'm moving out next week, however one of my flatmates moved out today and had her flat inspection. We spent ages cleaning the communal area together, as charges incurred in the communal area will be split equally and taken out of our deposits. It was spotless by the time we were finished. She is barely here as she spends most of her time at her boyfriend's. She has now lost her entire deposit of £300 and now owes another £60 extra for 'damages'. I don't know everything she's been charged for but I know some of the most ridiculous. For example, we are being charged £69 PER WALL to be repainted. The inspector said we would be charged for three of the four walls in the kitchen and both long walls in the corridor. Two of the walls in the kitchen I would agree with, as one has tiny little holes in it that must have occurred at some point during the year, and the other has some food stains on it. The other wall is 80% covered by a fridge and cupboards, and the only thing wrong with the part that is visible is that it is slightly scuffed and the paint has faded. I would put this under normal wear and tear though, and I think that wouldn't come under the deposit. I would say the same about the corridor walls. To be honest I don't even remember the walls being newly repainted when I moved in in the first place.

We're also being charged £39 per kitchen stool because the screws have come out so they have to buy some new screws. I believe their reasoning for this was that they are 'industrial screws' and were 'hard to get hold of'. They weren't. In fact, my girlfriend's builder dad has reliably informed me that there is no such thing as 'industrial screws'. Other things we're being charged ridiculous amounts for are £30 for a new plastic bin as our one is cracked on top, and £40 for a new fire blanket, as ours went missing. In fact, for the fire blanket, when I look at all the receipts for payments throughout the year, we have already paid £9-something each for a new fire blanket, but we never received one. I wasn't even aware that I'd been charged, so I didn't expect a new fire blanket to arrive.

I have my inspection next week, so I need to know what my rights are in all this, and what I can do about it if they withhold my deposit unfairly and charge me even more.

I should make it clear that we have only had a couple of gatherings in our flat throughout the year and none of those were rowdy in any way. We only use the communal area to cook our food, and that's it.

Any advice is greatly appreciated, I really don't want these greedy !!!!!!s to take even more of my money.

Thanks! Sorry for the long post...

silvercar

I thought that UNITE generally let to students on standard ASTs. This is the standard tenancy given to most people. If this is the case then your deposit should be protected. If on the other hand UNITE are letting the halls on behalf of the uni, then you may fall under something different and there may not be proptection requirements. Check your tenancy agreement.

ells90

silvercar wrote: »

I thought that UNITE generally let to students on standard ASTs. This is the standard tenancy given to most people. If this is the case then your deposit should be protected. If on the other hand UNITE are letting the halls on behalf of the uni, then you may fall under something different and there may not be proptection requirements. Check your tenancy agreement.

Hang on, just found something on the UNITE website about my deposit. It's protected by mydeposits.co.uk apparently. Never received anything from UNITE about it though, and it took quite a a bit of searching to find it.

clutton_2

did you all sign an inventory of condition before/as you moved in ?

UNITE have a statutory duty to inform you which deposit scheme your deposit is registered with within 14 days of receiving the deposit from you, plus they have to provide you with the Prescribed Information" ... it is in your interest to not tell them that you know this at the moment.

Mydeposits is a scheme under which UNITE will have paid a fee to purchase an insurance policy should there be a dispute at the end of the tenancy. They have an arbitration service if there is a dispute.

First off - find your inventory... if you dont have a copy ask them for one... in writing.

do everything by letter from now on.....

RE repairs costs....... if walls need redecorating then buying paint, and paying a decorator for preparation, cleaning, sanding, painting, cleaning up etc means that it is often far more expensive than tenants think it should be....

ells90

clutton wrote: »

did you all sign an inventory of condition before/as you moved in ?

UNITE have a statutory duty to inform you which deposit scheme your deposit is registered with within 14 days of receiving the deposit from you, plus they have to provide you with the Prescribed Information" ... it is in your interest to not tell them that you know this at the moment.

Mydeposits is a scheme under which UNITE will have paid a fee to purchase an insurance policy should there be a dispute at the end of the tenancy. They have an arbitration service if there is a dispute.

First off - find your inventory... if you dont have a copy ask them for one... in writing.

do everything by letter from now on.....

RE repairs costs....... if walls need redecorating then buying paint, and paying a decorator for preparation, cleaning, sanding, painting, cleaning up etc means that it is often far more expensive than tenants think it should be....

We did indeed get an inventory, and we were told when we moved in that we should write everything that is wrong with the room on the inventory sheet and return it within 3 days. I did a quick whizz round to find everything I could but I was perhaps not as fussy as I should have been and I've found things over the course of the year that I didn't notice to begin with.

With mydeposit's arbitration service, do tenants usually have relative success going through this kind of thing? I know they're meant to be impartial, but I can't help thinking they would come down on the side of the landlord.

With the walls, £195 to repaint 3 walls? Really?!

clutton_2

""but I can't help thinking they would come down on the side of the landlord."

Tenancy deposit schemes assume that the deposit money belongs to the tenant and it is up to the LL to prove that the tenant has either caused damage or not paid enough rent....

But tenants must also submit their own evidence as to why the LL should not be allowed to deduct monies from their deposit

""I was perhaps not as fussy as I should have been " - then next time no doubt you will take more care with it.....

since you have not provided us with the size of the walls and the type of wall covering and the type of damage is it impossible for anyone to comment on here as to the fairness or otherwise of the amounts claimed for redecoration

Redecorating kitchen walls in particular takes a lot of time to degrease and prepare... Decorators can charge up to £30 an hour where i have property so costs soon mount up.....

ells90

clutton wrote: »

""but I can't help thinking they would come down on the side of the landlord."

Tenancy deposit schemes assume that the deposit money belongs to the tenant and it is up to the LL to prove that the tenant has either caused damage or not paid enough rent....

But tenants must also submit their own evidence as to why the LL should not be allowed to deduct monies from their deposit

""I was perhaps not as fussy as I should have been " - then next time no doubt you will take more care with it.....

since you have not provided us with the size of the walls and the type of wall covering and the type of damage is it impossible for anyone to comment on here as to the fairness or otherwise of the amounts claimed for redecoration

Okay awesome, so they're the ones that need to prove that they own the money, whereas I prove that they don't. I'm gonna take lots of pictures of the flat for evidence, so I should have some backup. Is there any way I can get some kind of independent witness to provide more evidence?

I can't really explain the size of the walls, but don't worry about it. Don't think they really need repainting anyway. Even if they do, I don't think we could be considered to be the cause.

Why is it that I have to do everything from letter from now on by the way? Does email count?

Thanks

tbs624

ells90 wrote: »

...So, I'm 19 and I live in student halls, but the property is owned and run by UNITE. I live in a flat with four other people, but we rent out the rooms separately and share a communal area. I moved in last September and paid my deposit of £300 straight to UNITE.

So first of all, am I still covered by the Tenancy Deposit Protection Scheme? I never received anything from UNITE telling me how my deposit was protected and there's nothing in the terms and conditions that tells me. The terms and conditions are available on request by the way. Obviously, being 19 I have no experience or knowledge when it comes to dealing with landlords/letting agents so I wasn't aware that my deposit was even supposed to be protected let alone that I was supposed to be provided with evidence that it is.

Most universities give out plenty of general info to students on tenancy deposits etc, and the NUS also does. If you didn't get specific info from Unite on what was happening with your deposit then you should have followed that up early in your tenancy, for your own protection.

ells90 wrote: »

. For example, we are being charged £69 PER WALL to be repainted. The inspector said we would be charged for three of the four walls in the kitchen and both long walls in the corridor. Two of the walls in the kitchen I would agree with, as one has tiny little holes in it that must have occurred at some point during the year, and the other has some food stains on it. The other wall is 80% covered by a fridge and cupboards, and the only thing wrong with the part that is visible is that it is slightly scuffed and the paint has faded.

On costings for damages - most Universities, companies like Unite and many private LLs have set charging rates and 60-70 quid seems to be the going rate for repainting a wall, if damage necessitates such work. However, if paint has simply faded then that is "wear and tear" as is minor scuffing that may have occurred because the painted surface of the wall was due for renewal and therfore more likely to mark easily. Small holes in walls though should have been reported/repaired by you during your tenancy.

ells90 wrote: »

. To be honest I don't even remember the walls being newly repainted when I moved in in the first place.

Never mind what you remember, what does it say in the inventory about paintwork to walls when you moved in?

ells90 wrote: »

We're also being charged £39 per kitchen stool because the screws have come out so they have to buy some new screws. I believe their reasoning for this was that they are 'industrial screws' and were 'hard to get hold of'.

When the screws became loose you should have tightened them up - it's a pretty straightforward job and prevents further potential damage. If you didn't have a screwdriver, you could have reported the issue *in writing* to the buildings supervisor.

ells90 wrote: »

Other things we're being charged ridiculous amounts for are £30 for a new plastic bin as our one is cracked on top, and £40 for a new fire blanket, as ours went missing. In fact, for the fire blanket, when I look at all the receipts for payments throughout the year, we have already paid £9-something each for a new fire blanket, but we never received one. I wasn't even aware that I'd been charged, so I didn't expect a new fire blanket to arrive.

When(and how) did the bin become cracked: if not inventory-listed as cracked then you should have reported it and arranged to replace like for like, which would probably have cost you less. You sound a bit sloppy with your paperwork regarding the fire blanket. If you paid for it but didn't receive it then you and your flatmates should have followed that up before now. You can still try arguing the toss, but your lack of previous action may count against you if Unite simply say that they *did* provide the new fire blanket and that you have now all mysteriously lost it.

ells90 wrote: »

.I have my inspection next week, so I need to know what my rights are in all this, and what I can do about it if they withhold my deposit unfairly and charge me even more.

You have a right to full information on any proposed deductions and then you can choose to either use the deposit scheme's arbitration process or the county court if agreement cannot be reached. In the meantime they must return any undisputed part of your tenancy deposit to you promptly.

Before you move out take good clear photos, with close ups, of both your own room and the communal areas. Make your own list of anything that is damaged or dirty and do what you can to put it right *before* you move out.

Use the NUS or look at Shelter's guide to getting your deposit back plus reading up the deposit scheme's own rules.

00ec25

ells90 wrote: »

Why is it that I have to do everything from letter from now on by the way? Does email count?

you need a record of what you said, therefore it must be in writing do not use text or phone
emails are regarded as insecure because anyone can tamper with the content after receipt and simply reprint it and say in court this is what we received, hence strictly speaking you are best advised to use old fashioned letters on paper