Landlord threatening to withhold deposit due to damp

Gordon_Hose

You can use the processes provided by the DPS, but it doesn't guarantee you your full deposit back and it'll take ages.

roger196

1 Were you advised by the landlord to ventilate the flat at least once per day.
2 Can landlord prove that the mould was not present prior to the start of your tenancy.
3 Have you checked that this is not rising damp, caused by faulty damp proof course or poor pointing
4 What are the landlords qualifications in identifying the causation of damp.
5 Have you the name and address of previous tenants so that you can find out if they suffered similar problems.
6 Did the landlord or his agent carry out any inspections of the property, how often and on what dates.

TrixA

Maybe this is because I'm not British and I find the winters here really cold, but the idea of requiring tenants to leave windows open in winter because the house is not adequately damp-proofed seems unreasonable to me. I also don't think it's reasonable to expect tenants to buy expensive appliances like dehumidifiers, when tenancies are normally only 6 or 12 months. If the landlord had provided a dehumidifier and the tenants were refusing to use it that would be different.

pmlindyloo

roger196 wrote: »

1 Were you advised by the landlord to ventilate the flat at least once per day.
2 Can landlord prove that the mould was not present prior to the start of your tenancy.
3 Have you checked that this is not rising damp, caused by faulty damp proof course or poor pointing
4 What are the landlords qualifications in identifying the causation of damp.
5 Have you the name and address of previous tenants so that you can find out if they suffered similar problems.
6 Did the landlord or his agent carry out any inspections of the property, how often and on what dates.

I am not disputing that this may be the OP's 'fault' but I do believe that too much emphasis has been put on the tenant's responsibility.

The landlord has a responsibility too so I agree with checking roger's points.

If the OP has acted in a tenant like manner and done everything that could reasonably be expected of them and did not have this problem in previously rented properties (ie their life style has not changed), then it seems likely that this is a property that is 'prone' to dampness. As such, my personal opinion is that 1) other tenants may have experienced the same problems and 2) the landlord should have made the tenants 'aware' that this property was 'prone' to dampness/condensation problems and suggested ways to combat it.

Of course such an argument would eventually have to be argued out in court with all the evidence needed.

Unfortunately, most people haven't the energy to go through all this hassle and end up paying the price.

Useful article (bit old!) here:

http://www.landlordzone.co.uk/pdf/Mould.pdf

ruggedtoast

As an aside to this, if you are renting and you notice condensation or mold, its a good idea to report it the landlord in writing as soon as possible. It makes it much harder for them to make a deduction from your deposit when you leave, and they may even solve the problem with some anti mold paint.

:money:

Annie1960

PensionTech wrote: »

Granted that if we manage to get the landlord to bear the cost himself, he might just put the rent up for later tenants. As callous as it sounds though, that's not my concern. My concern is whether we personally should be liable to pay. And I consider a vital part of that question to be whether we have lived in an unreasonable or negligent way that we should have known would cause damage to the property. Have we?

I can't believe some of the answers on this thread.

I don't think you have done anything wrong. It is ridiculous to suggest you should have to open the windows in winter - I certainly don't.

One of the main causes of mould is very old windows that need to be replaced. My neighbours had their windows replaced a couple of years ago, and all the mould problems disappeared immediately.

Of course slum LLs will try to convince you that you are the problem.

You seem to be in a basement flat, and these are notoriously damp. In your shoes I would call the local council and get them to come and inspect the flat and identify the cause of the damp and mould.

Definitely challenge if your slum LL tries to keep your deposit.

Also, after you have moved out, fill in a review of your property, hopefully so others don't have to live in these conditions.

http://rentalraters.com

WestonDave

TrixA wrote: »

Maybe this is because I'm not British and I find the winters here really cold, but the idea of requiring tenants to leave windows open in winter because the house is not adequately damp-proofed seems unreasonable to me. I also don't think it's reasonable to expect tenants to buy expensive appliances like dehumidifiers, when tenancies are normally only 6 or 12 months. If the landlord had provided a dehumidifier and the tenants were refusing to use it that would be different.

Damp proofing has nothing to do with it - damp proofing prevents damp from getting in from outside. Condensation damp comes from within the property and gets stuck there. If you take a clean dry glass from the fridge and breath out (exhale) into it for a minute or so (breath in through your nose) you'll see condensation starting to form on the inside surface even though the glass is entirely damp proof. Swap the glass for your bedroom at night with all the windows shut and the same will apply!


At present we are in a transition where frequently draughty properties are being made more air tight for energy saving reasons - but its happening without people thinking about where the moisture that human living produces is going to go. If it doesn't go then its like the glass above - it will eventually condense on the nearest cold surface.

WestonDave

Annie1960 wrote: »

I can't believe some of the answers on this thread.



One of the main causes of mould is very old windows that need to be replaced. My neighbours had their windows replaced a couple of years ago, and all the mould problems disappeared immediately.[QUOTE]


Single glazed windows transmit cold so will make warm moist air deposit water as condensation - they do not of themselves cause mould. Mould arises when condensation is left in place for long periods of time so that airborne spores can start to breed on the nice wet surface. Old windows may make mould more likely but I lived in an old draughty house at Uni with single glazed windows and we never had mould because the house was always too cold for it to breed!


The bigger the temperature difference between air and surface the more likely it is to cause condensation.

WestonDave

I am not incidentally trying excuse poor landlords etc - the point behind these comments is to try to assist by dispelling some of the myths around condensation damp and the potential problems we will all face as we move from the draughty cold houses of years ago to warm air tight ones. Yes we will save energy but if we don't deal with the humidity we simply replace a heating bill with a cleaning/repair bill.

jjlandlord

One day landlords will be expected to remind their tenants to breath every minute just in case they get blamed if someone suffocates...

Annie1960 wrote: »

I can't believe some of the answers on this thread.

I don't think you have done anything wrong. It is ridiculous to suggest you should have to open the windows in winter - I certainly don't.

One of the main causes of mould is very old windows that need to be replaced. My neighbours had their windows replaced a couple of years ago, and all the mould problems disappeared immediately.

Of course slum LLs will try to convince you that you are the problem.

Here we go again... All landlords are monsters.

What causes damp is lack of aeration. There is nothing wrong with opening windows, which is standard advice.