Deposit not placed in proper scheme

G_M

It's costing them money every time their solicitor writes to you, if you were feeling awkward you could ask a question, then when you get a reply you think of another question ..... :rotfl:

like it! :T

Fire_Fox

clowe74 wrote: »

Thankyou for replies.

We were their first tenants and TBH I dont think they realised the troubles LL have to go through eg deposits and also in the 19 months we lived there no gas checks were ever done.

I hae never had any "dealings" with them since I asked if everything was ok with the house as hadnt heard from them and was then told they had to spend £800 on decorating, the next letter came from the solicitor.
They probably would of had to give the house a lick of paint to cover damp patches, I scrubbed them (after moving all the furniture out the walls were black behind drawers and cupboards etc) but it was never back to perfect. I was told though that damp wasnt a tenant issue but maybe I have that wrong.
As for the carpet with hte marks, I really should of just replaced it but would of handed money back for that out of the deposit.
Im so worried by the whole case and its stressing me out so much

Mention lack of gas safety certificate in your letter.

What kind of damp? If it's rising or penetrating or a leak the landlord is responsible for repairing BUT the tenant is expected to promptly and formally report all faults with the property to the landlord (acting in a tenant like manner). If you failed to do this you could be liable for some or all of the damage. Did you write to the landlord about the damp? If so do you have a copy of the letter and proof of posting/ delivery?

If the damp was condensation that is partly or wholly down to tenant lifestyle and failure to ventilate effectively (again acting in a tenant like manner). Did you air dry laundry indoors? Did you open all the windows daily year round or use an electric dehumidifier? Did you shower with the door closed and window open? Given that there was mould behind furniture that is lack of air flow, and often denotes condensation damp. Next time use a mould remover and leave it on for a while instead of scrubbing.

TBH depending how much of the house needed decorating you could well find hundreds of pounds were spent, the landlords can employ professionals or they can charge for their own time not just materials. You have totally moved the goalposts mentioning this now.

clowe74

I didnt inform them as it was not picked up on until house was empty.
The damp was on outside walls only, she even saw it in the back porch and commented on that she thought it would have some damp.

No damp patches were in bathroom, yes windows were open regularly and we had a condensor dryer

N79

clowe74 wrote: »

I was told though that damp wasnt a tenant issue but maybe I have that wrong.

Damp can be a tenant issue depending on the cause. However, irrespective of the cause you have an obligation to report the damp. Did you?

It matters because if by failing to report the damp you stopped your LL taking prompt action to stop the damp before damage occurred then you are liable for any damage caused by the damp from the time you could reasonably have reported it to the time when you actually reported it / your tenancy ended.

Edited: Cross posted

clowe74 wrote: »

I didnt inform them as it was not picked up on until house was empty.

If this is the case then the fact that the damp was not reported does not mean you have any liability for the damage.

Fire_Fox

clowe74 wrote: »

I didnt inform them as it was not picked up on until house was empty.
The damp was on outside walls only, she even saw it in the back porch and commented on that she thought it would have some damp.

No damp patches were in bathroom, yes windows were open regularly and we had a condensor dryer

Outside walls tend to be colder than inside walls so condensation settles there. In my block the mould is in the window reveals - metal frames so are icey cold all winter. No mould in bathroom despite having no window and the world's most pointless extractor fan! Good that you were not air drying laundry, that releases so much water.

Mr_Pitiful

N79 wrote: »

To G_M a claim for the deposit non-registration is not a small claims track case. It will be fast track case which means that solicitor's fees can be claimed (by whichever party wins).

Deposit dispute claims (s214) will initially be allocated to the multi track, not fast track, and the court can re-allocate it to the small claims track if it chooses.