Does he need to pay the rent?

cobbingstones

Hi all,

My son moved into a room a couple of months ago and has had numerous problems there. First the shower didn't work (this took three weeks for them to fix it) then he was broken into ( his friend called on him at the time and disturbed the intruder) his lock has not been changed and yesterday he found it on the latch when he returned from seeing a friend. The person who manages the property (440 a month) very rarely answers the phone and is hard to get into contact with. Anyway, my son lost his job last week and owes about £500. He has not signed any contracts at all, and I was wondering if he should leave the property and get somewhere else without paying? I know this is morally wrong but would appreciate your advice, as to whether he would get into legal trouble over this, if he did a runner so to speak? His nan has agreed to lend him the £500. The landlady has said that she will serve him with notice on Friday if he hasn't paid the rent.

Adice welcomed.

thesaint

Hmmm, should he pay what he owes, or should he do a 'Runner'.

As his mother are you seriously thinking of advising him to 'do one'?

CB1979_2

well written contract or not, he surely had a verbal contract, therefore could get into trouble.

will his landlord bother trying to get their cash off him? probably not.

but like thesant, I'm shocked as his mother you're suggesting he upsticks in the middle of the night.

sounds to me, that he was content with being there, but now he has no job, he thinks fook this, and then tries to justify why he wants to do a runner.

sorry but the problems you list, he should've negotiated at the time for a rent reduction, rather than calling on it when it suits him.

pay up, if his landlord does decide to take legal action and get a black mark against his name was it really worth affecting his credit history for £500?

noyk

Why not offer £250 and see what the landlord says as a compromise.

AJolly

He has no contract thus there is no prove he ever lived there, hes quite within in rights to just pick up and leave and with the problems hes had i wouldnt blame him.

Always always sign a contract though, it covers yourself and the landlord.

pinkshoes

If there's no contract and he hasn't signed anything, then he can just move out and find himself something else straight away without paying.

As for the rent he owes, if the shower didn't work for THREE WEEKS (!), then I think he's quite entitled to withhold rent for this period. If the landlady actually bothers to chase him up for the rent, then he could offer her £170 (the £500 he owes her minus 3 weeks of rent where the shower didn't work).

If this was the landlord writing to ask how to get money from a tenant that hadn't signed a contract and owed £500, then i'm sure most people would say that they didn't have a leg to stand on if nothing was signed.

Did he have his name on any bills or the council tax thingy?

olly300

OP unfortunately for your son whether he signs a tenancy agreement or not in law he has a contract simply by moving into the property, which means he has both rights and responsibilities. A written contract does not protect you from anything if a landlord or tenant wants to be dodgy they will regardless of the form of contract.

You are suggesting your son does a runner but have you considered that the landlord may have YOUR address and may come after him using this address to give him a CCJ.

It is not the landlord's fault that he was broken in to. If your son was unsure of who had the keys to the property he has a right to change the locks as long as he informed the landlord and didn't destroy the door. Landlords cannot keep tabs on who has keys however good ones ensure they know the number of keys they give out and use keys that are difficult to duplicate.

If the shower wasn't working and there was a bath he could use, yet again the landlord can get away with it legally because not all UK houses have showers.

dannyboycey

CB1979 wrote: »

he surely had a verbal contract, therefore could get into trouble.

I hardly think a 'verbal contract' will hold up in court. :rotfl:

silvercar

dannyboycey wrote: »

I hardly think a 'verbal contract' will hold up in court. :rotfl:

But the fact you have paid rent will.

inmypocketnottheirs

dannyboycey wrote: »

I hardly think a 'verbal contract' will hold up in court. :rotfl:

Verbal contracts do hold up in court.

And for your information, many millions of pounds per day change hands on verbal contracts.

Buying and selling shares for example. Try to do this and not keep your word. You would end up in court, and probably lose.

A contract is a contract, whether written or verbal.

CB1979_2

dannyboycey wrote: »

I hardly think a 'verbal contract' will hold up in court. :rotfl:

great work boycey, how's delboy & rodney? you plonker!