Rented house - deposit

Kobe86

Hi guys,

Hope you can help me! I have recently moved out of a rented two bed house and telephoned my estate agents today chasing up my deposit. They have told me that there are cracks on the fridge shelves and that the shelves are going to need replacing. They are looking online for a price before they give any of my deposit back. The deposit is £625.00 and there are no other problems wih the property.

I have to say that the fridge was definately not new when we moved in and there was nothing that we did (other than putting food in the fridge) to cause the damage.

The fridge is in full working order and I do not see how I should be charged for this, surely it would fall under general wear and tear??

Any advice/info would be greatly appreciated!! Thanks

DannyboyMidlands

If anything sounds like wear and tear to me. Is your deposit held by one of the protection schemes?

Kobe86

Thanks,

They have never mentioned it but I think they must be..I wouldnt know how to check to be honest, its so frustrating that they think can take money from you for no valid reason!

DannyboyMidlands

They can't take money for no reason but you do have to look after yourself because they will try it on. You should have received notification from one of the schemes at the start of your tenency. Do you have this? If not then your deposit might not be protected which is another whole can of worms. There are other threads for information if this is the case.

Kobe86

I don't remember receiving any notifications but I did think it was compulsary to have the deposit protected. I'll take a look through some previous threads and see what I can find.

Thanks for your help!

princeofpounds

There are three schemes only. Ring them all, will take you max 20 mins.

ladyofelysium

You can check online to see if your deposit has been protected.

http://www.thedisputeservice.co.uk/
http://www.mydeposits.co.uk/
http://www.depositprotection.com/

G_M

1) check each scheme to see if your deposit is protected (assuming your are in Eng/Wales?)
2) if not, then write to the landlord (copy the agent) telling him the deposit was not protected as required by law and you could claim 3 times the deposit as a penalty in court (see here)
3a) The LL cannot claim 'betterment' ie ending up with a better fridge than to start with. So if the fridge cost £300 originally and was 3 years old when you moved in and you've been there say, 2 years, the fridge is now 5 years old. Lifespan for a fridge is, what? 10 years? so that's half way. Half £300 is £150 so that's the MAX they can claim.
3b)You could also argue that only the shelves need replacing as the fridge still works. Look on ebay - £10?
3c)OR you could argue it is wear and tear (Sounds like it) so NO deduction can be made.

Start with 3c, see what reply you get, then compromise to 3b, and finally if need be 3a ! Use the deposit scheme's dispute procedure if it is protected in a scheme, if not, go to court and claim 3 times the deposit AND the deposit AND your costs.

Write to the landlord a the address on your contract and copy the agent Keep copies of all letters. Do not do this by phone, text or email!

moromir

What are the shelves made out of? Glass or plastic?

These materials do not usually just disintergrate, if they crack or snap its usually due to undue stress be it through weight or flexing - which certainly isn't fair wear and tear. (I did it to my fridge trying to jam a really big pizza in a space that was far too small, my mum sheered off the side of her glass shelf with a turkey on a plate that caught the edge etc)

Kobe86

Thank you so much, I have checked with the three schemes and we were not registered with any of them. If we do get the full deposit back, can you still penalise the landlord for not registering the deposit in the first place? Would the responsibility lie with the letting agents or the landlord himself as the actual landlord lives abroad and we have never been given his address..

The fridge shelves were made of plastic, I appreciate that they would not break for no reason but the fridge is that old and we havent stored anything unusually heavy or odd in there

DannyboyMidlands

If your deposit is not protected then you can forget all about the shelves in the fridge. Others will have to confirm but I'm pretty sure you can sting them for 3 times the deposit. Happy days.