Section 13 Notice!!!!. Landlord raised rent under a section 13 Notice

limerick12

Hi, my landlord raised my rent for september 2011 under a section 13 notice which i only received by email 4 days before my rent was due, even though he said that he had hand posted it through my door months prior which I had never seen.

I subsequently paid the increase because I had falling behind in rent and the landlord took me to court, rent arrears paid of before court hearing and the Judge ordered I pay my next rent by 15/01/2001, and i felt under so much pressure.

My landlord sent me another section 13 notice this year to take effect from September again, I appealed to the Rent Assessment Committee who has stated the section 13 notice was invalid because the landlord had only attached 5 motes and not the prescribed 17 notes.

This has brought to my attention that the 1st section 13 notice from 2011 was also not in the prescribed format, because there was only 5 notes and not the 17 as required.

I have subsequently paid £6,788 in extra rent, can any one please tell me if I am legally able to ask my landlord for this over payment back, what is the law on serving a section 13 notice without the prescribed notes and notice duly served, also because I have paid the increase have I accepted the increase even though it was incorrect or can i n ow challenge it ?.

Thanks for any advice you may be able to give me.

Mr_Pitiful

limerick12 wrote: »

I have paid the increase have I accepted the increase even though it was incorrect or can i n ow challenge it ?.

Paying the increase is considered to be acceptance, so don't think there's any hope of a refund.

lighting_up_the_chalice

But the reason for the prescribed information is that the tenant is given information on what alternative actions, including a challenge to the increase, are available to them. Payment would only be considered acceptance IF the tenant was served the prescribed information and, as a result, made an informed decision.

G_M

A S13 Notice is not required where both LL and tenant agree a new rent.

By paying the new rent, you implicitly accepted the LL's proposed new rent, thus agreeing.

And by continuing to pay for a whole year....

lighting_up_the_chalice

G_M wrote: »

A S13 Notice is not required where both LL and tenant agree a new rent.

By paying the new rent, you implicitly accepted the LL's proposed new rent, thus agreeing.

And by continuing to pay for a whole year....

But he didn't necessarily agree. He complied with a defective notice which may (or may not) have stipulated his right to challenge the increase.

limerick12

I was not aware the the 1st notice was a defective one untill I was told the second notice was defective for the reasons stated, also this was only brought to my attention a couple of weeks ago by the Rent Assessment Committee.

tbs624

OP - a couple of your comments don't seem to make sense to me. Perhaps you could clarify?

limerick12 wrote: »

Hi, my landlord raised my rent for september 2011 under a section 13 notice .........
I have subsequently paid £6,788 in extra rent.

????? Over 15 months, ie up to date? By "extra" rent, wouldn't you simply mean the difference between the original rent figure and the one sought by the first s13? £6788 over 15 months equates to around £452 per month.

I subsequently paid the increase because I had falling behind in rent and the landlord took me to court, rent arrears paid of before court hearing and the Judge ordered I pay my next rent by 15/01/2001, and i felt under so much pressure.

If the matter was settled *before* the court hearing where does a judge's/court order come into it?

limerick12

I pay mt rent quartely in arrears, and the figure of £6,788 is for 12 months.

My rent was £2,203 per quarter and under the section 13 notice it went to £3,900 per quarter, an increase of £565.66 per month

I had gone to court for rent arrears but had cleared all by date of court hearing which was December 2011, my next rent due was 25 Decmber 2011 but the judge ordered I pay that rent by the 15th January 2012.

I then received the rent demand for the december rent early January 2012 and it was for £3,900 which I queried and that is when i was sent the section 13 notice by email with only 5 notes instead of 17 on the 11th January 2012, and only 4 days before my rent was due under the court order.

The landlord still wanted to go to court even after i had cleared the rent to get possession.

I had no idea what a section 13 notice was and felt under pressure to pay the rent because of the court order.

I would aslo like to say this has bean my family home since 1966 and i had succeeded the tenancy when my mother passed away in May 2009, so i was very concerned what could happen if i did not pay the rent by the 15th January 2012 as ordered by the court.

Once again thanks to all who can help

tbs624

Edited to avoid confusion - see Mr P's post below by way of explanation/correction

Mr_Pitiful

tbs624 wrote: »

As your tenancy predates Jan 15 1989 it sounds as if your tenancy is a Regulated Tenancy, presuming that you have not signed any new replacement Fixed Term contract at any point.

Has the original Fixed Term expired and is your tenancy now "running on" under statute?

IIRC rents for Regulated Tenancies cannot be raised more often than once every 2 years, once a Fair Rent has been set by the local RAC.

It would probably be best for you to either speak to the housing charity Shelter 0808 800 4444 and/or to try to get a Fixed Fee appointment with a suitable experienced local solicitor. It is important that you find one who is familiar with LL&T law generally and Regulated Tenancies specifically.

As the succession took place in 2009 they would not succeed as a regulated tenant, only as an assured.

tbs624

Thanks for the correction Mr Pitiful - I failed to notice that relevant part of the OP's post.

Suggestion to contact Shelter for guidance and/or get a FF interview with local solictor still stands