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Receiving DVLA documents re Landlord

SeduLOUs
SeduLOUs Posts: 2,171 Forumite
Hi guys,

My LL still has his car registered at the address I am renting from him. In the last week we have received a congestion charge notice, and a letter from the DVLA. I haven't opened either, but the first letter is obvious what it is and the latter looks as though his photo license has expired.

I have emailed LL who has asked me to forward them on to him which I will.

But. After months of arguing with him about a boiler replacement (and having no heating for months), and after forwarding several other bits of post at my cost, I am now getting bored/annoyed with being his redirection service, and I thought it was illegal to not update your address with the DVLA (we have lived here for over 3 years).

I am going to make sure to send the post to him quite late to ensure his congestion charge doubles, but is there a way of anonymously notifying the DVLA that he hasn't updated his address? I understand he could be fined £1000 for this. When forwarding tax disc renewal notices in the past I have included a note asking him to update DVLA but he just hasn't bothered.

What would you do?

Thanks.
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Comments

  • zzzLazyDaisy
    zzzLazyDaisy Posts: 12,497 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture Combo Breaker
    SeduLOUs wrote: »

    What would you do?

    Thanks.


    It depends on whether you wish to continue living there, since you have few rights if the Landlord decides to terminate the tenancy once the fixed term has expired.

    If you are not concerned about looking for somewhere else to live, then I would simply write 'please return to sender, no longer at this address' on the envelope and put it back in the post box.
    I'm a retired employment solicitor. Hopefully some of my comments might be useful, but they are only my opinion and not intended as legal advice.
  • SeduLOUs
    SeduLOUs Posts: 2,171 Forumite
    Hence the question about informing DVLA anonymously. I guess there isn't a way to do it without it being obvious it was me, so deliberately delaying the congestion charge notice to increase the fine is about al I can do and hope it is a lesson enough that he acts on it himself.

    Do want to live elsewhere probably soon, but I expect he's the type to not want to return my deposit. I am fully aware he has never protected my deposit, and has never done gas safety checks and other stuff so it is likely I could get 3 times my deposit back, but I'm not quite ready to start that battle just yet.
  • peter_the_piper
    peter_the_piper Posts: 30,269 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper
    If he does get arsy when you leave, dob him in to the council about the safety checks, they get quite upset about this sort of thing.
    I'd rather be an Optimist and be proved wrong than a Pessimist and be proved right.
  • Cornucopia
    Cornucopia Posts: 16,373 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    edited 6 June 2014 am30 11:38AM
    SeduLOUs wrote: »
    ... and after forwarding several other bits of post at my cost...

    It doesn't cost anything to send unopened mail on to the "correct" address. Just write the address on the envelope and put it in a post box.

    And this has nothing to do with your other problems with the tenancy, which sound quite worrying in their own right.
  • topdaddy_2
    topdaddy_2 Posts: 1,408 Forumite
    Id bet they havent got consent to let either. If the bank find out you may be looking for somewhere else quickly. Personally I wouldnt forward anything.
  • colino
    colino Posts: 5,059 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    Strange set of affairs when you are still living there but desperate to find a way of causing your landlord grief. None of your business what address he uses for correspondence (he does own the place) and of zero interest to DVSA.
  • SeduLOUs
    SeduLOUs Posts: 2,171 Forumite
    edited 6 June 2014 pm30 12:38PM
    topdaddy wrote: »
    Id bet they havent got consent to let either. If the bank find out you may be looking for somewhere else quickly. Personally I wouldnt forward anything.
    Well he originally used a lettings agency to set up the contracts etc so we have 'proper' paperwork i.e. the contract and receipts for the deposit, but he then decided to manage it himself. He's been absolutely fine about everything until recently but he turned a bit sour when the boiler finally needed replacing after 2 years of it playing up and nursing it along.

    I imagine because he used a letting agency in the first place he let his mortgage company etc know and everything was above board at that point, but we never received any paperwork to tell us where the deposit was being held and searches of the 3 agencies proved fruitless. He has never visited the property or sent anyone to inspect it the entire time we've been here.
    colino wrote: »
    Strange set of affairs when you are still living there but desperate to find a way of causing your landlord grief. None of your business what address he uses for correspondence (he does own the place) and of zero interest to DVSA.

    I don't want to be vindictive for the sake of it, but should he ever get into trouble with the DVLA it would be my door that gets knocked on - I would rather him just update his address as there's not even a charge to do it, and keeping your details up to date is a legal requirement.

    With a double congestion charge, and a probably expired photo license, he should hopefully have all the incentive he needs to update it now, especially if he has to renew his license anyway. If I do receive anything else in the future I'll probably have to send him an email telling him that further post will be returned to sender.

    The other stuff re deposit and gas safety haven't been mentioned to him yet. I'm planning on just 'playing nice' for now and keeping it as ammo should he become problematic as and when we decide to move.
  • colino
    colino Posts: 5,059 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    His details are still correct, it just so happens you are temporarily in residence.
  • zzzLazyDaisy
    zzzLazyDaisy Posts: 12,497 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture Combo Breaker
    colino wrote: »
    His details are still correct, it just so happens you are temporarily in residence.

    I hope you are not a landlord, as that is completely wrong!

    The house is the tenant's home for the duration of the tenancy. He is entitled to quiet enjoyment, and this does not include acting as his landlord's forwarding service. Further the address on the licence is required to be the place where the driver actually resides, not some other house that he happens to own but does not live in.
    I'm a retired employment solicitor. Hopefully some of my comments might be useful, but they are only my opinion and not intended as legal advice.
  • Marvel1
    Marvel1 Posts: 7,359 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper
    edited 6 June 2014 pm30 3:10PM
    colino wrote: »
    None of your business what address he uses for correspondence (he does own the place) and of zero interest to DVSA.

    Your right it wouldn't interest the DVSA as they only deal with the Driving Tests and Vehicle Identity Checks.

    The tenent doesn't have to forward the mail on either, I wouldn't be an an unpaid postal forwarding service.

    Look up the difference between owning and living in a place.

    Nothing to say about the no gas safety or not protecting the depoist?
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