Buyer not happy after completion

pslb_2

Hi, I need some advice on this. I've just sold a house and completion date was 2 weeks ago now. I've recieved a solicitors letter saying that they are very unhappy at the state the house was left in, there was dirt, grease everywhere (complete rubbish as I cleaned the house from top to bottom), and they are complaining about things being left in the shed which was my ex's responsibility to sort out but he obviously didn't. The buyers now want compensation for this but haven't said how much. What rights do the buyers have now that everything has completed? I'm tempted to ignore the letter and hope they go away!

Thanks

jimbo83

Can you not ask the ex to go around and clear the shed out?

With regards to the interior, are you even obliged to clean it before you move out?!

anselld

pslb wrote: »

What rights do the buyers have now that everything has completed?

Cleanliness - no rights so long as the place was reasonable and not actually damaged.

Rubbish left - depends on the sale contract but probably could sue you for the cost of storage and subsequent disposal. Any dispute on responsibility between you and your ex is not of interest to the buyer.

pslb_2

Well they are saying they want us to foot the bill for a skip (which I'll do) AND they want compensation! Can they do this?

anselld

pslb wrote: »

Well they are saying they want us to foot the bill for a skip (which I'll do) AND they want compensation! Can they do this?

They can only claim compensation for actual loss they have incurred and can prove. Eg cost of skip and hire someone to fill it.

Skips are expensive. You would be better to shop around for a local "man with van" rubbish clearance guy who will dispose the lot including labour. I just got upwards of a ton removed from an upstairs flat for £100.

GDB2222

First thing you need to do is refer them to your ex. The last thing anybody wants is for him to turn up later complaining that there was something valuable in the shed.

Apart from that, as Anselld said, a man with a van will clear the lot probably for less than the cost of a skip. Compensation is pushing things, and it sounds like a try-on.

cte1111

They can ask for what they like, it will be difficult for them to enforce it though. The cost and hassle of court action is likely to put them off. However I would try and get the shed emptied one way or another, as it was your responsibility.

ruggedtoast

pslb wrote: »

Hi, I need some advice on this. I've just sold a house and completion date was 2 weeks ago now. I've recieved a solicitors letter saying that they are very unhappy at the state the house was left in, there was dirt, grease everywhere (complete rubbish as I cleaned the house from top to bottom), and they are complaining about things being left in the shed which was my ex's responsibility to sort out but he obviously didn't. The buyers now want compensation for this but haven't said how much. What rights do the buyers have now that everything has completed? I'm tempted to ignore the letter and hope they go away!

Thanks

I sold a place once where I left the buyers a reasonably nice TV I didnt need as I thought at the time, a present. They ended up sending me a letter through their solicitor complaining about it and about some stuff being left outside that a house clearance guy should have collected before completion but didnt til the next day. They were obviously angling for me to incriminate myself by way of return.

It was all a bit of a learning curve for me. I think I wrote back and said words to the effect that there should have been no items remaining that I lay claim to 'to my knowledge' and that as far as I was concerned the house and all its fittings were now theirs. I never heard about it again (well, I heard about other things, they tried to rip me off for meter readings after that)

Your buyers assertion is nuts by the way, I have never seen a house moved into that didnt have left over bits and bobs in the shed and stuff in the loft. Unless you left it packed to the rafters with junk I wouldn't accept liability for anything being there that shouldnt.

duchy

Who sold the house? You or were you and your ex joint owners ?

pslb_2

Thanks for your answers. I will offer to pay for the skip but nothing else. I think they are trying their luck with compensation. I was joint owners with my ex in answer to your question, and no the shed wasn't completely packed, just a few tins of paint and a mower that was already there when we moved in

ruggedtoast

pslb wrote: »

Thanks for your answers. I will offer to pay for the skip but nothing else. I think they are trying their luck with compensation. I was joint owners with my ex in answer to your question, and no the shed wasn't completely packed, just a few tins of paint and a mower that was already there when we moved in

Be sure that if you do offer to pay for a skip you make it clear in writing that this is as a goodwill gesture and you are in no way accepting their assertion that you left items in the house that shouldn't have been there, otherwise the skip will likely not be the last you hear of this.