Advice on dealing with LL

Emmenelle

Quick history. We have been in the property for 5 years, have always paid the rent on time and have been good tenants.

Unfortunately our LL lives next door and after a hunting trip, much to my utter horror my husband stowed 3 deer heads in the garden to eventually use as trophies. LL has seen them gone mad (can't blame her) and my husband removed them. She said she would have to get the lawn 'treated' and we would have to pay. I was willing to pay for this treatment although I didn't agree it was necessary . Anyway we come home from work 2 days later to find an emergency plastic fence erected across the garden but nothing else has happened and she let herself in a few days later and left a bill for £80 for the fence that has achieved nothing and that we didn't need..she also says she will let us have a quote for the turf (my son has worn that end of the garden away playing football) we don't want new turf, as I am more than happy to replace if and when we leave.


What can we do? I don't really want to move as our credit isn't the best but I can't bring myself to pay for the fence. The managing agent says although keeping the heads on the property wasn't on,she can't carry out unauthorised work, she shouldn't be in or on the property and she agreed that with regards to the turf, that's what the deposit is for.
Not sure how to proceed?

jamesd

Hard to say what to do here because the landlord seems to have done something that's completely pointless. No point in replacing turf now when it may well need to be replaced again at the end of the tenancy either. It's just another way to throw money away. She's acted improperly by letting herself into your home unless she gave you advance notice or it was an emergency, which it clearly wasn't. Did she give any clue about what sort of treatment she thought might be needed?

Arrange a meeting between her, you and the letting agent to discuss things. While the letting agent will want to keep her as a customer so will try to be nice to her, they may also agree to have a word with her before the meeting to discourage her from unnecessary work.

sequence

The LL has absolutely no right to ask you to do anything to the lawn. It's yours for the duration of the tenancy.

Refuse to pay any treatment, re-turfing or anything like that. I can't believe the LL would have the cheek to try and tell you what you can do in your garden.

Emmzi

let's go back to the bit where you have bad credit and hubby is wasting money on taxidermy...

If I were LL there would now be nothing you could say to me that wouldn't result in notice being served. If your LL feels differently and you do not want to move then suck it up, find the cash and stop moaning about it.

Emmzi

ps I would want the turf replaced as it has had dead deer on it, nothing to do with football. No, it isn't logical. But it is what I would want.

G_M

This has to be a Christmas wind-up!

Nice one!

willing2learn_3

It appears as a tenant you have very little rights. I don't agree with what your husband has done to those poor animals - but that aside, the whole issue of the LL telling you what to do in your own home (and yes it's your home if not your house) is unfair....but there's little you can do, if you upset LL then they can serve notice.

They have the power to serve notice on a whim and without having to explain themselves.

I found this out recently - my landlady is trying to recruit me to go to church with her, has visited on numerous occasions to tell me to clean the place (my friends would tell you it is clean - i resent the implication that i am unclean also)....has said that the cream cupboards in the kitchen should be white - no they are cream and were cream when i arrived and if i keep scrubbing at them i will cause the material that they are made from to rot.....

it goes on and on....

and there is nothing i can do apart from find somewhere else to live.

I am however keeping a record of the harassment as there is a law that says that you should be able to have quiet enjoyment of the property.

Whilst there are many good landlords i think the laws on this one need revision as tenants have very few rights.

willing2learn_3

if this is a christmas wind up - re dead deer, etc....i'm too tired today to pick up on it...lol (and it's very late)

Ulfar

How does a dead deer head kill off the grass unless they have been left there for a very long time, in which case they would rot and would probably be beneficial to the grass.

suited-aces

Emmzi wrote: »

ps I would want the turf replaced as it has had dead deer on it, nothing to do with football. No, it isn't logical. But it is what I would want.

:rotfl: I'd love to see the arbitration process on such a silly whim!

G_M

My cat caught a blackbird and left the body on the lawn.

I had to pay the landlord to have the entire lawn re-turfed.

The dispute arbitration process ruled that this was justified as the bird was black and the grass was yellow (yup - long hot summer).

What colour deer was it?