Tenancy Deposit Scheme

spikeheeledvamp

Ok. I should have done my homework beforehand, but I have just discovered several review sites about Thornley Groves and how bad they are as estate agents.
My tenancy ends at the end of March, and I have made sure that the property is how I found it. The place has been thoroughly cleaned, and the carpets shampooed as requested on my tenancy agreement. I am taking photo's to show Thornley Groves that the property is clean and is in the same state of repair as when I moved in.
My deposit is in a scheme so technically there shouldn't be any problems about getting it back, but having had a look at these review sites and how Thornley have kept hold of other peoples deposits for longer than necessary, and making claims against these deposits when the tenants have already stated that they had left the property pretty much how they found it worries me that I may find myself in a similar position.
I thought that when your deposit was in such a scheme then if there is no dispute that my money should be returned to me within reasonable time (10 days I've been told) and that you shouldn't have to spend weeks and in some cases tenants have been trying months to get their money back. Plus if there is a dispute it seems that the deposit schemes have favoured Thornley Groves' decision rather than the tenants (this maybe the case in some, but surely not the majority).
It also states in my tenancy agreement that when the agency/landlord makes an appointment to go over the inventory on check out that I must attend. Failure to do so results in their findings legally binding. Thornley Groves have not notified me of when this will be happening so I cannot make sure I am there. I have since written to them to find out when the inventory check will be made, but as yet they have not got back to me, and my tenancy ends on the 29th which doesn't leave me a great deal of time to organise time off work should I have to be there.
I can't seem to find a great deal of info on such sites like Shelter or Mydeposits.co.uk etc. apart from the dispute process.
I may be worrying unnecessarily, but I want to be armed just in case Thornely do start to get difficult and make claims when they don't need to. Does anyone have any advice on how I can get my full deposit back without chasing endlessly for it should it come to that?

Many thanks

pmlindyloo

The first thing you need to do is go through your check in inventory thoroughly and make sure that everything is as detailed save wear and tear.

Then you must make sure that you have photographed everything on the day of the check out. (and I mean everythingg - down the loo, inside the oven etc etc)

You do need to attend the check out if you have concerns about their professionalism. Chase them up for a date and time.

Who is your deposit protected with? The TDS?

If so then the LL/LA holds the deposit but you can raise a dispute with TDS following the procedure detailed here:

https://www.tds.gb.com/deposit-disputes.html

You did receive the prescribed information about your deposit protection didn't you?

If it is not this scheme then check the appropriate scheme's details.

Not much else you can do - sorry!

CreditCrunchie

You will end up chasing it for months if they put in a claim. That's just how it is. The TDS simply asks you if you agree with the amount requested for deduction, you say no and open a dispute, they send it back to landlord asking do you agree with their dispute, landlord says no and rejects dispute, it gets sent back to you do you want to dispute again? And so on and so on.

Last year we had 6 months of this rigmarole after a property we rented for only 6 months tried to take our entire deposit for replacing the carpets! Like you we had photos from departure, and also from the beginning (landlord was a scoundrel and had done same to previous tenants) so followed procedure of court action ie negotiation via letter, letter before action, letter of intention to pursue. At this point he have in and the TDS released the deposit in full within 24 hours. If it goes to a dispute there's really no way to avoid this lengthy back and forth.

If you use the deposit scheme adjudication service then you must abide by their decision and cannot take court action. I wasn't prepared to risk this and opted to go straight through the court route.

It depends on how quickly you want the money - TDS adjudication is quicker by far. But if you're not prepared to lose any of your deposit then go for legal route. Be aware this will take longer and involve fees (which you can get back if you win your case). Oftentimes it won't get this far as the threat of legal action is enough.

Let's hope it doesn't even come to this for you! Just clean and leave the place as you found it. Having a neutral witness there when you leave might also help.

spikeheeledvamp

Thank you for getting back to me. We are going to be taking as many detailed pictures as possible to help our case should one arise.
I do have documentation with an account number of where my deposit is held, which is TDS. Although it does say on my tenancy agreement that if a dispute arises and remains unresolved then the case will be submitted to ICE for adjudication and that all parties agree to co-operate with the adjudication. Does this mean that I have to follow the adjudication path? As I would rather go to court if it means I get the whole of my deposit back, even if it is a longer process.

CreditCrunchie

Yes it does mean that if you choose to go their adjudication route. If you prefer not to then after you dispute a proposed deduction and your dispute is rejected, the TDS will offer their dispute resolution service. This can all be done online and you just don't click the link to say you'll use the resolution service.

Sorry if my wording has led to confusion - in my last post I didn't mean to imply that you will definitely get all of your money back if you go the court route. You will still have to present your case and any necessary proof and then let the court decide. It's just a less informal process with (in my opinion) less room for error. I would not advise going this route if you have any doubts at all about how you have treated and left the property - if the court awards in favour of your landlord you may be liable for their costs. This is in addition to the fees you will pay to the court. The TDS process is free.

spikeheeledvamp

Whilst I don't have any worries about the state I've left the property in, I am a little conserned about the shower head and tap in the second bathroom as they weren't on the inventory as damaged. I hadn't noticed them myself as I had an ensuite off my bedroom, so didn't need to use the other bath/shower. The tap was noted as damaged by Thornley several months ago (well after I'd moved in) when they did an inspection, and I only noticed the shower head in Jan this year. I pointed it out to Thornley who said that they don't check shower heads so it should be fine. They might come back and bite me on the backside if I should go to court.

Why can't people just be honest, instead of causing unnecessary stress. :mad:

CreditCrunchie

The way it works is that the landlord will propose a deduction for say the showerhead. The onus is on them to prove any losses they have incurred, so they would need to prove that anything they believe to be damaged now was not damaged before you moved in, or that they have incurred a loss by replacing or repairing it I.e receipts for repairs carried out. You are entitled to ask for an itemised breakdown of any proposed deductions to your deposit and what they are for. You are also entitled to provide your own offer to replace or repair items and obtain quotes for this. The landlord cannot try to deduct anything more from your deposit than they can prove is reasonable, otherwise this is known as betterment I.e attempting to take £1,000 for a replacement shower when only the shower head is damaged and could be replaced for £20.

What I'm trying to say is that you won't lose the whole of your deposit based on one damaged item which may be down to you. There will be proposed deductions which if you feel you have a liability towards, you can do the above (make sure the landlord's costs seem reasonable and can be proved) then allow this deduction to be made.

If you don't agree you have caused damage to the shower head all is not lost. The onus as I said is on the landlord to prove that it wasn't. If the court does feel the landlord is justified in claiming for the showerhead (or any other thing), they will go through the same process as above by making sure it is reasonable and can be proved. This will not affect their decision on ordering the landlord to pay back the remainder.

If it does turn out to be the showerhead though I really wouldn't bother going to too much trouble over it. They can be replaced quite cheaply and easily, and any court cost would certainly outweigh this!

Pandilex

The ONLY thing that is important is the inventory. I lost a claim because despite cleaning the property and it being sparkly I allegedly missed something tiny on the inventory and had to pay a fine. The tenancy deposit people don't care about anything except the inventory paper you signed, so check everything matches perfectly, take photos of every single item on the inventory to show the condition is the same, and you will be OK.

spikeheeledvamp

Many thanks for your replies.

The property is pretty much in the same state as when I entered it, and the 48 hours I had to go through the inventory before handing it back, I had pointed out on my copy that there was a scratch on one of the surfaces in the second bathroom and also some discolouration on the wall in the small bedroom. Thornley Groves should have made a note of this on their copy but I've never seen it.

I have since found out that Thornley Groves are not doing the inventory check out either and have told us the ll has organised another inventory company to go in on the 31st March, without contacting us to agree a date and time that is suitable for all of us to attend. Thornley Groves have stated in their tenancy agreement that if we do not attend then if there are any findings they will be legally binding. Now, I find this unfair as we were never given the opportunity to arrange such a meeting, they just told us it's on the 31st of March. I want to be at the check out but having been given so little time, am finding it difficult to take time off so I can attend. I spoke to Shelter yesterday, and they mentioned that that particular clause in the contract is unreasonable if they haven't contacted us to arrange such a suitable time. I have also emailed Thornley Groves several times now asking them if any decision is legally binding if we do not attend, and they are avoiding the question, which is making me even more apprehensive. They haven't got back to me yet to tell me who the inventory company is that will be performing the check out. I'm beginning to wonder if they do plan on causing me problems.

spikeheeledvamp

Ok. OUr inventory check out was taken on the 31st Mar. Luckily I was able to make it despite being given only a couple of hours notice. The company that did the check out said at the end that everything was fine (he even complimented me on how clean the dishwasher was ), and I was told that they will let the landlord know and I should get my full deposit back within 10 working days.
On the 14th Apr I emailed Thornely Groves stating that as there had been no issues at the time of check out and that no one has been in touch regarding any then could the please send me my full deposit back asap. I received an email from them later that day saying that they are waiting for the landlord to get back to them with regards to releasing it.
It might have only been 2 days since emailing, but they've had 16 days already to get their acts together, and it's my money. What right do they have to keep it if everything was fine at check out.
If I've not heard anything by tomorrow then I'll be in touch with TDS and will also write a letter threatening court action. I have bills to pay like everybody else.