Nightmare Student Housing Company

LeedsStudent13

On the 1st July 2014, i moved my belongings into my new rented student home. upon entering the house it was apparent it had not been cleaned and there were many issues.
- All Carpets were filthy, we put a piece of paper on the floor applied slight pressure and it had gone grey and filthy
- Downstairs bedroom, carpet was unhygienic, i was supposed to be moving in from the second but couldn't due to the place not being ready for us and the fact there are growths in the carpet as well as mold, posing health risks as i suffer from serious lung conditions
- this was further heightened by dust around the place
- All rubbish from "Cleaners" has been left in front of the property and in garden, not in bins
- Kitchen was untidy and barely cleaned with several broken items, including drawers
- Sink was left in a poor condition
- Mattress in downstairs room has several broken springs again unsuitable as i have serious back and spine problems
- Utility room was disgusting, fridges unclean and smell - not been cleaned behind or around
- same for the dryers and washers
- The boiler room hadn't been touched and contained dirty underwear from prev tenants
- Upstairs bathrooms weren't at an acceptable standard of cleanliness
- Cleaners were seen cleaning the place with fairy liquid
-Dishwasher didn't work and still contained moldy utensils
All of this was after the "Cleaners" had been to the property. it was not until august that these jobs were completed. leaving all of July's rent wasted as we could not stay at the property. as well as this the "Cleaners" stole £500 worth of my possessions, with the housing company's insurance only willing to pay £180.
All this left me almost £800 out of pocket, and the housing company refuse to help.

Can anybody shed some light as to my rights and/ or what i can do to get some of my money back?

Sorry for the long read hope you can help..

ali_hire

A landlord has no legal obligation to let you a clean property unless it was agreed as part of the negotiations prior to moving in. Even if you were told it'd be cleaned you'll have a tough time proving it unless you have it in writing.

As for the missing items I would ask the agent for the cleaner's details as you intend to report them to the Police. A responsible agent should ensure that any contractor they send in has the appropriate insurance (public liability and professional indemnity) before allowing them access to a property.

stator

They do have an obligation that the property be fit for human inhabitation, which it sounds like it wasn't. In the first instance you need to complain to the landlord/agents and request a refund of your first months rent. I don't know what options you have after that, maybe none.

LeedsStudent13

stator wrote: »

They do have an obligation that the property be fit for human inhabitation, which it sounds like it wasn't. In the first instance you need to complain to the landlord/agents and request a refund of your first months rent. I don't know what options you have after that, maybe none.

I tried this however the response from the landlord was poor and riddled with mistakes in which they pain themselves to be a wonderful housing company that did everything they could to rectify the issue (this obviously wasn't the case)

they also stated that the contract says: (i) “In any event the landlord is only responsible for ensuring the property is habitable at the commencement of the tenancy and not that it is clean.” - would this apply though seeing as though all the carpets needed replacing, and having mould growing (bad for health)

they also said that they came down to the property out of ours to make sure the problems were rectified. however this happened once and only so i could show the manager the state of the house so they could take photos.

LeedsStudent13

ali_hire wrote: »

A landlord has no legal obligation to let you a clean property unless it was agreed as part of the negotiations prior to moving in. Even if you were told it'd be cleaned you'll have a tough time proving it unless you have it in writing.

As for the missing items I would ask the agent for the cleaner's details as you intend to report them to the Police. A responsible agent should ensure that any contractor they send in has the appropriate insurance (public liability and professional indemnity) before allowing them access to a property.

The problem is that the housing company hire HIVE the cleaning company to provide maintenance people, and as there were numerous people doing this "cannot pinpoint a specific person" However i wondered if the principle of vicarious liability would arise seeing as though the cleaners are the employee of Hive, and the cleaners job is to clean the rooms from which the items were stolen. in this case there is a clear scope of employment and a close link between the job and the theft? maybe i'm just clutching at straws but i find it hard to believe that i cant do anything to get at least some money back

ali_hire

You'll need to prove the loss in the first instance. If it really is £500 worth of personal belongings then I would absolutely have contacted the Police and reported to the agent that they (as the company instructing whoever entered the property) will be hearing from the Police in due course.

With regard to the cleaning I doubt you have any recourse. By all means write and request a refund of rent, but don't hold your breath.

LeedsStudent13

ali_hire wrote: »

You'll need to prove the loss in the first instance. If it really is £500 worth of personal belongings then I would absolutely have contacted the Police and reported to the agent that they (as the company instructing whoever entered the property) will be hearing from the Police in due course.

With regard to the cleaning I doubt you have any recourse. By all means write and request a refund of rent, but don't hold your breath.

The crime has already been reported to the police however as i do not have cctv in my home there is nothing further they can do apparently and thus ended the case almost immediately. Again which is why i assumed the principle of vicarious liability would be the most suitable way of regaining compensation for my assets. Sorry if law isn't your area of expertise, making the vicarious liability bit sounding a bit strange

Pixie5740

What about making a claim on your contents insurance?

ali_hire

I'm not a lawyer, I own an estate agency and property management company.

However, I understand the principle of vicarious liability. The person employing them could/should be liable but I imagine that if you land accusations of theft at their they will refer to their insurance company. And if the Police are dismissing it then I don't see it going anywhere.

LeedsStudent13

ali_hire wrote: »

I'm not a lawyer, I own an estate agency and property management company.

However, I understand the principle of vicarious liability. The person employing them could/should be liable but I imagine that if you land accusations of theft at their they will refer to their insurance company. And if the Police are dismissing it then I don't see it going anywhere.

I have evidence of the theft ie. some items that were dropped/ left behind and it was not that the police dismissed the case which they didn't they just didn't do any further investigations as to finding a culprit. i can prove that my belongings were in the property prior to the attendance of the cleaners and that they weren't afterwards. surely this coupled with the case falling well within the scope of vicarious liability would give me a case right?

i dont know though as i havent dealt with housing companies before and from my experience this time they arent the most helpful

LeedsStudent13

Pixie5740 wrote: »

What about making a claim on your contents insurance?

i tried that but they could only compensate upto £180 which isnt a scratch on over £500