Looks like Letting Agent may not have protected our deposit

RabbitMad

there is one on LLzone and it appears the wording is still a bit of a mess as (I believe) only the words "and also" were deleted. This still means that in the case of a returned deposit it can be argued that as the judge can't order a he can't order b.

I can see this being a very expensive case for the OP given the reasonable offer on the table. Its not one I would progress if my money was at stake, but if they get legal aid or can find a no win no fee solicitor then its up to them

skintandscared_2

RabbitMad wrote: »

Do you really think any judge would award more - how much is at stake and how much was the deposit.

I would even suggest that if it got to court the judge might be forced to award the 1x deposit but would not award costs and as this would not be the small claims track it would be very costly for the OP.

Take the money and forget about it.

The standard award was 3x during all three occurrences when the deposit should have been protected. Why shouldn't a judge award that much? The LA have already admitted fault and I see no reason why it's automatically assumed that the OP would not be awarded their costs too. Legal protection on house contents insurance is also an option to cover it. As the LA have admitted fault already it may well not even get to court and the LA may make an offer of settlement way before that stage once they are aware that the OP actually knows their rights.

skintandscared_2

RabbitMad wrote: »

there is one on LLzone and it appears the wording is still a bit of a mess as (I believe) only the words "and also" were deleted. This still means that in the case of a returned deposit it can be argued that as the judge can't order a he can't order b.

I can see this being a very expensive case for the OP given the reasonable offer on the table. Its not one I would progress if my money was at stake, but if they get legal aid or can find a no win no fee solicitor then its up to them

What's the reasonable offer? Just to return their own deposit without a deduction for "referencing" fees (whatever that is) that they are not entitled to take anyway?

jjlandlord

skintandscared wrote: »

Not necessarily. As of 6th April 2012 the financial penalty for not protecting a tenant's deposit within 30 days of the tenancy commencing (or new agreement being entered into) is between 1 and 3 times the deposit. No wonder they want you to drop it and just walk away with your deposit. You could be entitled to anything up to triple your deposit for non-compliance!

Return of deposit does not impact non-protection penalty. In addition OP would need to specifically sue in court (not small claim) to claim this penalty.

If they offer to refund all disputed amounts, OP would be reasonable to take it and move on.

N79

skintandscared wrote: »

The standard award was 3x during all three occurrences when the deposit should have been protected. Why shouldn't a judge award that much? The LA have already admitted fault and I see no reason why it's automatically assumed that the OP would not be awarded their costs too. Legal protection on house contents insurance is also an option to cover it. As the LA have admitted fault already it may well not even get to court and the LA may make an offer of settlement way before that stage once they are aware that the OP actually knows their rights.

Only the most recent tenancy benefits from the revised wording. The failure to protect for tenancies 2 and 3 would be dealt with under the original housing act 2004 wording which the courts have ruled does not apply once the tenancy ends. Since these tenancies have ended there would appear to be little chance of a successful claim for tenancies 2 and 3.

It is the changes incorporated by the localism act 2011 that give the OP a claim on the final tenancy, but these changes are not (pending reading the full final text) retrospective.

N79

RabbitMad wrote: »

there is one on LLzone and it appears the wording is still a bit of a mess as (I believe) only the words "and also" were deleted. This still means that in the case of a returned deposit it can be argued that as the judge can't order a he can't order b.

Any chance of a link - I failed to find it with a quick search?

skintandscared_2

Cool. 1-0 to yet another shoddy letting agent then. Why do these laws even exist...

tbs624

jjlandlord wrote: »

Return of deposit does not impact non-protection penalty. In addition OP would need to specifically sue in court (not small claim) to claim this penalty.

If they offer to refund all disputed amounts, OP would be reasonable to take it and move on.

OP may wish to formally remind the LA that they have failed on three separate occasions to comply with the law and that the courts have no option but to award a penalty. LA/LL may just decide that an additional goodwill payment is in order.

OP - you may also want to consider:

(a) letting the local Council's private scetor tenancy relations officer know about this LA and their shortcomings
(b) putting up a review at www.allagents.co.uk
(c) checking whether the LA is signed up to ARLA, NAEA, NALs etc and raising a formal complaint there - each has a code of practice to which member firms are supposed to adhere
(d) writing to your MP and to the Housing Minister ( easily done via
http://www.theyworkforyou.com/mp/ )
(e) copying your letter to Shelter and to the CAB

Ts should let campaign groups and our lawmakers know how the law continues to fail them on tenancy deposit registration.

Here's a thought - why not make it the law that Ts deal with their own deposit registration and can charge the LL a fee for doing so......

RabbitMad

http://www.landlordzone.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?47176-Localism-act-2011-ammendments-to-housing-act-2004

claaire98

Thanks for the fast responses guys!

There was no mention at all regarding referencing fees (reference was provided in January!) All we received with the deposit cheque was a hand written compliments slip stating minus amount for reference fees. We would have been happy to receive the amount disputed and let it go, but having found out the have not complied with legislation 3 times is just really annoying (for want of a better word!)

The LA has been shoddy throughout the tenancy and we have been less than happy with the way they operate.

Would shelter/citizens advice be able to provide details of solicitors that may be able to help? I think it might be worth at least booking an appointment and seeing what advice they have to offer.

After all if they have done this to us, how many others have they done it to?