legal proceedings for deposit back

kanari

Hi,

new update : I recieved a letter from the court as follow:

notice of returned document
take notice that the court has sent the claim form by post and the envelope has been returned to the court marked "not at this address"
the document is nevertheless served unless the address given on it is not the relevent address

I am sure that I have given the correct address for both defendants , and now one of them has returned the document and I think is the landlady !! because the other defendant is the agent and the document was sent to the office on the name of the company

I am trying to call the court to make sure which defendant has returned the document and what I have to do but they dont answer all the day

I know the work address of the landlady can I give it to the court instead ? or can I give her the document by hand ? if yes how can I proove that she got the claim document ?

any advices or help pllllllllz

thank you

kanari

can I send to the landlady the claim by fax ?

Benji

You can serve the document on the landlady at her work address - if you ask the court, and they agree (it is not an uncommon issue). However, if the address the original was sent to is the address in your tenancy agreement for the service of documents (as required under section 47 of the 1987 Landlord & Tenant Act) then the court will accept that it has been served anyway, no further action required from you.

Can't send by fax as you have to serve it at the defendants address and you would not be able to do so with fax.

may_fair

kanari wrote: »

I am sure that I have given the correct address for both defendants , and now one of them has returned the document and I think is the landlady !! because the other defendant is the agent and the document was sent to the office on the name of the company

I am trying to call the court to make sure which defendant has returned the document and what I have to do but they dont answer all the day

You don't have to do anything if you know the addresses you gave for both were correct (see the list below). N.B. for the LL, assuming she's an individual (not a company etc), then you can serve the claim at her residential address OR at the address for serving notices (under s.48 LTA1987) which is usually stated in the tenancy agreement.

I know the work address of the landlady can I give it to the court instead ? or can I give her the document by hand ? if yes how can I proove that she got the claim document ?

You don't need to prove that she received the claim. It just has to be served to the correct address - that's why the letter says the claim is 'nevertheless served unless the address given on it is not the relevant address'.

* * * * *

The civil procedure rules (Part 6.9) set out the correct place to serve the claim (if the defendant hasn't given you another address, such as their solicitor's, for service of the claim):

1. Individual: Usual or last known residence.
2. Individual being sued in the name of a business: Usual or last known residence of the individual; or principal or last known place of business.
3. Individual being sued in the business name of a partnership: Usual or last known residence of the individual; or principal or last known place of business of the partnership.
4. Limited liability partnership: Principal office of the partnership; or any place of business of the partnership within the jurisdiction which has a real connection with the claim.
5. Corporation (other than a company) incorporated in England and Wales: Principal office of the corporation; or any place within the jurisdiction where the corporation carries on its activities and which has a real connection with the claim.
6. Company registered in England and Wales: Principal office of the company; or any place of business of the company within the jurisdiction which has a real connection with the claim.
7. Any other company or corporation: Any place within the jurisdiction where the corporation carries on its activities; or any place of business of the company within the jurisdiction.

(There are a bunch of other rules which aren't relevant to you if you know you have the right address as per the above list. You can't serve a claim by post at an individual's work address without the permission of the court).

kanari

thank you soooo much Benji for the reply

yes the landlady address I have given to the court is the same one on the tenanacy agreement, the problem that I keep calling the court and they dont answer

on the notice of issue sent to me by the court the defendants have until 1 August 2011 to replay , today is 28 and still not recieved any replies or calls from the defendants

kanari

thank you soooo much May-Fair for the reply that help me a lot

now I undestand that I dont have to do anything as for the court the claim was served

may_fair

kanari wrote: »

the Claimants asks that the court make an order:

1. That the person who appears to the court to be holding the deposit do repay it to the Claimants, in accordance with section 214(3) of the Housing Act 2004.

2. That if the Defendant ( new LL name ) appears to be holding the deposit do pay to the Claimants, within 14 days of the making of the order, a sum of money equal to three times the amount of the deposit, in accordance with section 214(4) of the Housing Act 2004 , as the deposit was not paid into an appropriate tenancy deposit scheme (in breach of section 213(1) of the Housing Act 2004

I've only just seen this post.

As I said in post #5 and #11, you cannot claim against LL (or agent) under s.214 Housing Act 2004 after the tenancy has ended. You can only claim for return of the deposit.

may_fair

You should withdraw the claim and start again. If you proceed with this claim, your claim will fail, and you could end up being ordered to pay the LL/agent's legal costs.

DVardysShadow

may_fair wrote: »

I've only just seen this post.

As I said in post #5 and #11, you cannot claim against LL (or agent) under s.214 Housing Act 2004 after the tenancy has ended. You can only claim for return of the deposit.

may_fair wrote: »

You should withdraw the claim and start again. If you proceed with this claim, your claim will fail, and you could end up being ordered to pay the LL/agent's legal costs.

Claim 1 still stands. I don't see that a valid claim will be struck out alongside an invalid claim.

may_fair

DVardysShadow wrote: »

Claim 1 still stands. I don't see that a valid claim will be struck out alongside an invalid claim.

No, claim 1 doesn't still stand. It's a claim under s.214(3) Housing Act 2004 and that subsection only applies if subsection s.214(2) applies, which it doesn't, because the whole section doesn't apply to a tenancy which has ended.