deposit scheme.

p_joker

just a quick question, Im a bit confused , could you tell me if the depost scheme is something that we were meant to opt into or do all landlords have to do this? because we have phoned the 3 holders of this scheme and non have our money?

Suzanne_Louise

All landlords have to do this by law. The details of which scheme has been used has to be passed onto the tenant within 14 days of them moving in.

p_joker

Does that mean that we should have done something after we moved in then? I didn't know at the time that we should have had any paper work I just asmued it was something they had to do and we didn't need to worry. They phoned us up yesterday saying that the house needs to have carpets shampooed etc b4 we move out and with 2 kids under 4 I hope they dont expect the house to look like a show home

BitterAndTwisted

The property MUST be returned in the same state as at the beginning of the tenancy. Whether you have nippers or not is not your landlord's concern.

Was there an inventory at the start of your tenancy stating the condition of the property and its contents? Needing to have the carpets shampooed to return them to their original condition of cleanliness is very common

tbs624

BitterAndTwisted wrote: »

The property MUST be returned in the same state as at the beginning of the tenancy. Whether you have nippers or not is not your landlord's concern.

For clarification, that's "same state" , save for "fair wear and tear"

Note that FW&T does not include dirt and damage - for guidance see here and here

BitterAndTwisted wrote: »

Was there an inventory at the start of your tenancy stating the condition of the property and its contents? Needing to have the carpets shampooed to return them to their original condition of cleanliness is very common

The LL can only ask for the carpets to be cleaned to the same standard as that in which they were supplied ( and has to be able to verify this) - if they had not been shampooed prior to the tenant moving in then the LL cannot expect the T to shampoo them on exit. That signed inventory is obviously important.

OP - get it "in writing* from each of the 3 schemes that your deposit has not been scheme registered and then write to your LL asking them to register the deposit immediately. Keep a copy of your letter and send it with a cert of posting being obtained.

If you don't have your LLs name and address & they are using an LA, ask the LA for it *in writing* - they have to supply the info within 21 days of a request for the info or they will be committing a criminal offence ( this only applies whilst you are still a T).

Leory

full of a cold today......so i could have missed it!
but, have you said that you do have an inventory? without one the LL cannot really enforce any cleaning etc as there is no proof of the condition when your tennancy started.

tbs624

Leory wrote: »

full of a cold today......so i could have missed it!
but, have you said that you do have an inventory? without one the LL cannot really enforce any cleaning etc as there is no proof of the condition when your tennancy started.

Lack of inventory makes it harder but not impossible for LL to prove condition. Carpets may have been brand new and LL has delivery note and receipts, carpets may have been cleaned and LL has dated receipts for the cleaning....

p_joker

I can clean carpets etc the best I can but to be honest my question was more about the deposit scheme? has anyone else had problems in this area?

BitterAndTwisted

Yes, we get posters asking about their deposits not being lodged in one of the schemes almost every day on here.

Please write to your LL/agents as TBS has suggested.

p_joker

In regards to the carpets, we have access to a shampoo'er and we know someone with a 2 grand vacuum... if we cant shift stains with that, they wont be able to either so where do we stand there? Can they bill us for a new carpet?

We've contacted the LL and just casually mentioned that as they had brought up about the deposit, which of the schemes is the deposit being kept in and do they have the id for it? At this point i'm willing to let them hang themselves on this. At the same time i'd like to think its just a mistake on our part and they really have kept it in a scheme as we wont necesicarily have to go through the courts if it comes to that.

BitterAndTwisted

If you can't bring the cleanliness of the carpets back to the state they were in at the start of the tenancy (bar fair wear and tear) the landlord would only be able to charge you for the second-hand value of said carpet, not the full replacement value. Although many think they can.

If you accept for argument's sake that the useful life of a carpet in a rental property would be ten years, that it was five years old at the start of your tenancy of two years then the landlord could only charge you for 3/10 of the replacement value. If the landlord is a sensible one who keeps proper records for his tax affairs, they should be able to provide the receipt for the original purchase.

You need to do two things:

Ensure that the property is returned in the same condition as at the start.

If the landlord has not lodged your deposit in one of the three approved schemes you will need to take his to the Small Claims Court to secure its return. The fees for making the claim can be reclaimed from the LL. In some cases, but it's certainly not guaranteed, courts have awarded tenants three times the deposit as a penalty. I have a feeling that once your landlord is made aware of this fact they will be extremely keen to get it lodged before your tenancy ends.