Leaving Contract Early

BitterAndTwisted

vodouman wrote: »

I'm thinking of just leaving and not telling them. These people really don't seem like the type of people to take any sort of legal action because of all the dodgy goings on.

DO NOT even contemplate just leaving and not telling them! This could cause you so much heartache and unpleasantness. It's also against the terms of your tenancy agreement (most probably). As your granny used to tell you, two wrongs do not make a right. There are ways and means to end your tenancy which will not land you up in court or worse.

And by "worse" I mean that people who don't adhere to the laws about not entering rooms without permission and any other possible infractions may not pay any attention to the laws against harassment and intimidation either.

vodouman

I got our contract.

Item number 16 in the contract is added by hand and says '(16) One months notice to quit on both sides'

Does that mean I can just say 'Hi I plan to leave at the start of April. Cheers, see you later' <<< :P

Also, they've been charging us £780.00 per term (15 weeks per term) and the contract says £50.00 per week. So they've been over charging us, I assume we can claim that back from them? We all have our 'receipts' and obviously our bank statements will all show withdrawals for that amount on the same day.

dancingfairy

Hi - I don't have much constructive advice but I would report them to everybody - the council - letting them know he (or his partner come and go as they please and unlock locked doors), let the council know how many people are there re an HMO, also are you paying council tax as the council tax people should be charging him CTax if it's an HMO, I don't know whether you can report him to the police for harrassment as coming and going when you please is clearly harrassment, also perhaps the VAT man as it is unlikely he is declaring his income. He sounds absolutely shocking to be honest.
df

vodouman

I politely asked why in the contract it said we were supposed to pay £50.00 per week but were charged £52.00 and proceeded to ask for a refund of £60.00 since September. I was polite and didn't raise my voice or anything. She declined and said it had always been £52.00 and it was an 'old contract, some are updated and some aren't'.

I explained to her that it was irrelevant and it was a legal agreement we had both signed and therefore am due a refund. I also said that if I were to take the contract to a solicitor I am sure they would agree. I didn't threaten legal action at all. She then went mental and started shouting and asking why I was trying to catch her out and asking why I was 'Reading so deeply into the contract'. She continued to make excuses why she shouldn't pay me the money. She told me she was 'ill' when she wrote the contract, so I proceeded to read her the paragraph which discussed how people should be fully competent and healthy before entering into a legal agreement. She then told me that if I didn't like it then I could leave.

I told her I'd gladly finish out this term and leave. She then hung up on me. She rung back about 10 minutes later and told me I had one months notice and I'd have to be out and said she was upset about me calling her a thief and then she changed her mind for some reason and told me I could stay till the end of this term.

I don't think this is over, I just don't know what to do now....

BitterAndTwisted

Send your notice to the landlord IN WRITING confirming that following your telephone conversation you will be vacating the property at the end of term on whatever date it is. Send two copies by first-class post and mail them from two different post-offices retaining proof-of-postage for both.

Kiss goodbye to your two quid a week in overpaid rent and your "non-refundable bond" and be grateful that you got a narrow escape.

Then once you are safely out of there report them to every single organisation you can think of who might be interested.

G_M

BitterAndTwisted wrote: »

Send your notice to the landlord IN WRITING confirming that following your telephone conversation you will be vacating the property at the end of term on whatever date it is. Send two copies by first-class post and mail them from two different post-offices retaining proof-of-postage for both.

Kiss goodbye to your two quid a week in overpaid rent and your "non-refundable bond" and be grateful that you got a narrow escape.

Then once you are safely out of there report them to every single organisation you can think of who might be interested.

Do this. Exactly as B&T says. In WRITING.

As well as you £2 a week, you will have a fight to get your deposit back too I expect.

Wait till you're out, then WRITE again, requesting it, and reminding her that as it was not in a registered scheme (see here) she will be liable for 3 times the deposit.

Once you are safely out, and the deposit is sorted, contact:

HMRC (NOT VAT !) re income tax. If she insists on cash, she's not declaring this as income.

Local council re undeclared HMO. Go to their website and search 'HMO' for contacts. eg :

HMO Licensing Team - Birmingham City Council
Housing Department
Private Tenancy Services
Ground Floor
Waterlinks House
Richard Street
Aston
Birmingham
B7 4AA

Telephone: 0121 303 4009
E-mail: [EMAIL="houenforcement&#64;birmingham.gov.uk"]houenforcement@birmingham.gov.uk[/EMAIL]

Gas. Is there a gas boiler? Cooker? Fires? If so do you have a gas safety certificate? If not call Environmental Health at your local council. It's a criminal offence!

More troublesome, you could also pay £4 to download the Title documents for the property from the Land Registry. Section 3 (Charges Register) will show if there is a mortgage on the property, and which bank. Contact them and tell them the property is rented out. They may well not have granted permission and will be ... miffed!

Fire_Fox

Another vote for dealing with the landlord ONLY in writing, preferably by recorded delivery (keep the receipt safe). Don't try to wriggle out of the contract or do a runner or you may regret it for SIX years (CCJ) - chances are you have an ostensibly legitimate one, so "coming back my original point" suggests you are missing the key to the entire quandary. A legally-binding contact is a contract, it doesn't become less legal because you are a student or not local. Your financial history can - and will - go with you.