Rent problem!

swanswan1

Hello!

I've had so many issues with the people I used to rent from- I used to live in a student flat, rented via a company who I won't bother naming and shaming quite yet. Since trying to cancel my tenancy with them, I've had so many issues.

As of January I didn't live in the flat, yet they took that terms rent (Technically, upon reading my contract they could do this as the new tenant hadn't signed 100% of the paperwork yet). I was reimbursed nearly all of the money I paid, apart from the months she wouldn't be living there.

I paid a cancellation fee to get all the admin work done. It took over a month for them to actually send the cheque reimbursing me, and they only did it in the end because I rang them up every few days asking for it. And now, 3 months later, they tried to take one and a half grand out of my account for this terms rent.
I paid money to have that direct debit cancelled. They sent me a letter saying that my contract with them had ended. I cancelled the direct debit on my end. Barclays thankfully didn't let the money go through, the reference was UNP which I assume is unpaid? Surely they have no legal right to do this!

Anyway, here's my question:
1. Will Barclays charge me for bouncing back their direct debit- Which took me well past my overdraft?
2. Do I have a right to getting my cancellation fee back, seeing as they have hardly sorted any of the financial side of cancelling my tenancy out, which is what they claimed that money was for?

G_M

It is difficult to comment as you do not make clear what kind of tenancy you have/had. When it started, for what fixed term, and the precise terms agreed for ending it early.

However the good news is that all banks, including Barclays, operate the Direct Debit Guarantee scheme:

The direct debit guarantee applies to all banks and building societies taking part in the direct debit scheme. It says that:

• if there is a change in the amount to be paid or the payment date, the person receiving the payment (the originator) must notify the customer in advance.
• if the originator or the bank/building society makes an error, the customer is guaranteed a full and immediate refund of the amount paid.
• customers can cancel a direct debit at any time by writing to their bank or building society.

swanswan1

Thanks for your reply!

My apologies for the lack of information. The tenancy was from September 2010 until August 2011, but I ended it in early January. To cancel the tenancy, I had to pay a cancellation fee to cover the administration of cancelling my tenancy (About £85, if I remember correctly- I do have this in writing just not to hand) and fill out a cancellation request, which was granted by the company. I was told I would be liable for the rent until I found a new tenant to take over the rest of my contract.
I quickly found a new tenant, who took over my tenancy from about 3 days after I left.

It just seems as though they've been very slow/incompetent in dealing with the administration side. I've paid them £85 to do a job which they haven't done- Cancelling the payment from their side, along with refunding the existing money which took about a month to do (All the while, with them making interest on the amount). They also supplied the DPS people with incorrect information which meant it took another month again for me to get my security deposit back.

Surely I've paid them for a service which I haven't recieved?

Emmzi

they have done the majority - you had your cash back.

you should have cancelled the DD with your bank. if you do have a bounce fee I'd go for that, but nothing else, and get the DD cancelled now.

G_M

So :
1) You were released early from a binding contract.
2) You have received back your deposit (albeit it took a month)
3) You only had to pay 3 days rent after you left before a replacement tenancy started
4) Your direct debit for £1500 was not paid, and in any case is covered by the DD guarantee

OK - things could have been a bit faster/more efficient but there's really not much to complain about here.

taerand

These things looked pretty good, and some that I can learn, and I hope to learn more on it!

swanswan1

G_M wrote: »

So :
1) You were released early from a binding contract.
2) You have received back your deposit (albeit it took a month)
3) You only had to pay 3 days rent after you left before a replacement tenancy started
4) Your direct debit for £1500 was not paid, and in any case is covered by the DD guarantee

OK - things could have been a bit faster/more efficient but there's really not much to complain about here.

1. Yes I was released from the contract, by following the rules set about in my contract when I signed it. This was always in the contract, I wasn't given any special treatment here.
2. I recieved back my deposit only because I had to keep chasing it up, the company had given the deposit protection scheme the wrong details.
3. I paid 3 days rent for when the new tenant moved in. She was supposed to take over the remainder of my tenancy but instead has only been contracted up until July, meaning I have had to pay an extra months rent for when I am not allowed to live in the property as I am not a student.
4. The DD was not paid only because the bank stopped it. I paid a cancellation fee so that all of this would be cancelled with the company, which they have not done.

I cancelled the DD from my end months ago, and have placed a block on my account from today onwards so they can't touch my account. I rang up the company to ask why the money was taken and they had no explanation, all they would do was put a note on my file.

I just don't feel I should have paid an admin fee for all of this when they have done as little work as possible to cancel my contract. 4 months on I shouldn't still be having hassle from their finance department.