Landlord withholding deposit - am I responsible for this bill?

Guest101

I still believe the threat of legal action is the way to go

dancingfairy

I think the only way you will get your money back is through court. As already said you can use the fact that your deposit was not protected as is the law and you can sue for up to 3x for failure to protect as leverage but ultimately if this fails you can (and may have to)
1) sue for the actual deposit (about 50 pounds in costs I think) and let a judge decide
2) you also have the additional option of pursing the penalty for non protection (of up to 3 x the deposit) although this can cost 1,000 as it is through a different part of the court system.

df

thequant

diavolina wrote: »

So it doesn't make any difference that the management company couldn't bill me without the landlord's permission and he didn't give them that permission?

I think this is a very crucial part of the matter.

Terms in tenancy contracts re. utilities are usually pretty useless. They usually fall into 2 kinds.

1) "Tenant is responsible for utility bills", Of course they are! if your name is on the bill you are legally responsible. A waste of paper and ink

2) "Landlord can deduct from deposit any amount from deposit for unpaid utilities", No they can't! if the bill is between a tenant and a utility company the matter is between them. This is an unenforceable term and again a waste of paper and ink.

The TDS backs this up by not getting involved in disputes over utilities. As far as the TDS is concerned the name on the bill is the person responsible. if there's any disputes re dates, then the parties can take it to court.

Re shared heating/boilers they are not that unusual, as I have lived in one and I know others who have. The bill has never been passed on to the tenant, although the LL has pointed out upfront that the rent includes this (usually to justify the higher rent they charge)

From what I can see, despite this being a utility and the tenant has been "using" this utility, this looks to be no different to the service charge to the LL.

Quick questions for OP.

1) have you seen the bill ?
2) Is the amount a fixed charge or does it vary on your usage?

The LL has no chance here with TDS (if he eventually places it in there), he could take it to court, courts are unpredictable but on the face of it (without further facts) it looks to me that you have a strong case.

diavolina

thequant wrote: »

Quick questions for OP.

1) have you seen the bill ?
2) Is the amount a fixed charge or does it vary on your usage?

Yes I've seen the bill. It includes both fixed charges and variable ones based on my usage.

Update: my landlord has now returned my deposit minus the amount of the bill - a grand total of £20!

I've drafted the following letter to send to him; does this sound ok?

Dear _______

I am writing to request that you return my full deposit to me as soon as possible.

I did not agree to the deduction you made from my deposit to pay a heating bill that I dispute responsibility for. It was never explained to me that there was an additional heating charge payable to Revolution on top of the usual utility bills, nor did you make arrangements for me to be billed by Revolution as per their request; therefore I do not accept responsibility for these charges.

As you did not protect my deposit in one of the Government-backed schemes as required by law (or at least did not give me the details of the scheme you used), you denied me the chance to refute the deductions you have made.

If the full amount is not received in four weeks from the date on this letter, I will pursue a claim via the courts to recover my deposit in full.

Yours sincerely

_________________

Mallotum_X

Just pay what you owe. Sorry but you give tenants a bad name.

DaftyDuck

Over £20? Seriously? Is it for the "principle"?

Are you sure it's worth the hassle?

room512

I think they mean that they have received only £20 of the deposit back.

Miss_Marple_2

DaftyDuck wrote: »

Over £20? Seriously? Is it for the "principle"?

Are you sure it's worth the hassle?

I think she is saying she was returned £20 - the deduction was £600 that took the remainder down to £20

DaftyDuck

Oh... in that case, screw principles and chase the blighter all the way.

My apologies to the OP!

DRP

Op why are you giving him 4 weeks to return your deposit?

You have already given him sufficient time. Personally I would give ten working days.

I would make the letter much less descriptive.

Make sure you add the header: Letter Before Action.

Mention you will go to the small claims court for the money after ten working days. Mention that the judge will award you with 3x the deposit for his failure to protect it. Mention whichever law provides for this (someone will be along to quote the appropriate Act, no doubt)

That's basically all you need.

Send the letter from 2 post office sand get proof of postage (free). Also copy in the estate agent and possibly email it as well to get a quicker response.