Landlord ignoring contact & failing to return deposit

hayley82

I moved out of a property almost 3 months ago. I have asked the landlord numerous times to repay the deposit but to no avail.

The last contact I made was almost 2 weeks ago, formally in writing, but still with no reply. This was the second letter that I have sent, the first was posted recorded delivery but they failed to collect the letter after they were left a card, so I hand delivered the next one.

The property was a shared house, with myself, the landlord and another tenant. I lived there happily for over 2 years and when I left there was no damage whatsoever, I cleaned the room thoroughly before I left and can think of no reason why the landlord would keep the deposit, but even if there is a reason that I'm unaware of they have ignored my leters etc and made no effort to let me know of any problems.

I feel I've been more than patient with them but feel that's getting me nowhere and so I'm looking for a little advice as to where I should go from here. For info, the deposit was NOT protected by a tenancy deposit scheme.

Any advice would be much appreciated, thanks for reading.

Hayley

BitterAndTwisted

If you lived in the landlord's property then you weren't a tenant but a lodger so the deposit would not have needed to be lodged in one of the deposit-protection schemes.

Did you receive a receipt from your landlord for the deposit or can you prove it was paid to them if needed?

theartfullodger

Think you'll have to sue him through small-claims procedure: Takes time, patience & a little money...


Do you feel confident the court will believe the evidence you give that you handed over the deposit in the 1st place & that you returned the place in a fair condition?? (eg receipts, photos, someone else would testify>??)

Cheers!

Artful

hayley82

Time and patience aren't a problem, I've waited long enough so waiting so more won't hurt

I've a contract that I signed when I moved in which states the monthly rent and the deposit paid.

I don't have any pictures unfortunately but the other lodger would testify the condition of the room when I left, as could the new lodger possibly as they moved in within a week or so, although I'm not sure about the new one as I'm not in contact with them.

I hadn't thought about the tenancy deposit scheme not applying when the landlord lives in the property also. Is this definitely the case?

Thanks

theartfullodger

Re..

I hadn't thought about the tenancy deposit scheme not applying when the landlord lives in the property also. Is this definitely the case?
think so see..

http://england.shelter.org.uk/get_advice/paying_for_a_home/tenancy_deposits/deposit_protection_schemes
- you presumably did not have an AST..
See also..
http://england.shelter.org.uk/get_advice/paying_for_a_home/tenancy_deposits/getting_an_unprotected_deposit_back

hayley82

Thanks so much for that

Unfortunately it's looking like I don't have a great deal of rights because the landlord was living in the property with me, making me an "excluded occupier" apparently.

I'll have a read of those links, thanks for taking the time to point me in the right direction!

theartfullodger

hayley82 wrote: »

I'll have a read of those links, thanks for taking the time to point me in the right direction!

Nae bother, that's kinda the idea of this place,,,,

BitterAndTwisted

Unless the landlord was waiting for utility bills to come in before returning your deposit (supposing that your rent didn't cover bills as well) what I would consider doing is sending them a letter headed "Letter Before Action" requesting return of your deposit within 14 days or you'll start proceedings in the Small Claims Court. Send two copies of the letter from two different post offices getting proof of postage for each. That way, a court would decide on the balance of probabilities that at least one letter arrived at its correct destination. Post Office could lose one but two would be most unlikely.

Then if no response or deposit is received go to the Small Claims Court and issue a Summons. It's relatively inexpensive and not a particularly frightening process. Most applicants to the SCC are ordinary individuals with no particular experience and the court will advise you on both how to fill in the forms and what the process is.