How to agree a compensation amount through a contract??

tpbullets

Hi Guys,

Thanks everyone for your help before in giving me advice on where I stand when given a 1 month notice after being in a Short Term Agreement only 6 weeks.

The letting agent has confirmed they are willing to offer me;

-£2,000 compensation
-Agency fee returned
-Deposit returned

The agency fee - they said they are happy to pay in to me in cash on the day I leave.

The deposit - they said I need to get through the DPS (I have the details).

The £2,000 compensation - They said they are going to write a contract and once I leave they will pay me this.

the problem is, I don't really trust them. What can I do to ensure I won't be screwed over and more so, what order shall I do this. I'm assuming they won't pay me anything up front?

Thanks for your help guys.

(fyi, staying is not an option. I have committed to elsewhere but they don't know that).

tpbullets

How do I make sure the contract is full proof. That it's not something they can just refuse to pay.

I'm not clued up enough about the legalities of writing a contract or reading one.

Thanks

G_M

Just get a letter (proper written letter) from them detailing their proposal.

It should show the date they want the tenancy to end and all the conditions you've listed.

Once you have it, signed, you can post it here for opinions if you want before writing back to accept/reject it.

If they fail to pay later, you sue.

I assume:

* this is England/Wales?
* an AST?
* 6 o 12 month fixed term?
* the letting agent is named as the landlord's agent>
* The landlord's name is on the tenancy?

jjlandlord

By all means get a written agreement, but also tell them that they should have paid everything in clear funds on the day you leave before you hand the keys over.

Regarding the deposit, if you have it in writing that they agree to return it in full then it should be no problem to get it back from DPS.
I would also want the agreement to include that they agree not to pursue you for any dilapidations (just agreeing to return the deposit is not the same as calling it quits regarding dilapidations).

You also probably want to ensure that any rent you paid in advance will be refunded pro-rata.

eddddy

Or if they don't write a letter, you could write a letter to the agent specifying what has been agreed, and ask them to confirm that it's correct.

That letter would then form part of the contract (and you could present it in court as evidence, if you eventually had to sue them).

The letter (or a contract) does not have to be in any special legal language. It just needs to be clear (i.e. so that nobody could say they thought it meant something different.)


In fact, in these type of circumstances I would prefer to write the letter myself, so that I can make sure that no 'sneaky' conditions are slipped in by the agent or LL.

tpbullets

Hi guys,

Yes, to all of the above;

this is England/Wales?
* an AST?
* 6 o 12 month fixed term?
* the letting agent is named as the landlord's agent>
* The landlord's name is on the tenancy?

I guess my concern is, I have a lot of money tied up in this place and I've just paid a full month rent which I have been told will be returned when I leave. But it's difficult for me to find a new place when I need a deposit, month rent and another agency fee, before I get this back.

Is it normal for companies to only pay once you have left?



Finally,
I also found out that my DPS is not protected. I mentioned that I wanted compensation for this as well but the amount scared them and they said they would go to court. So my plan now is to agree on compensation to terminate early. Get out the place, get a new place and safe and then sue them for not protecting it. I'm assuming signing a contract offering compensation for terminating the contract won't cover the DPS issue as well?

Pixie5740

Do you mean that your deposit hasn't been protected anywhere? DPS stands for Deposit Protection Scheme which is one of the schemes where your deposit could be protected.

tpbullets

It wasn't protected for about 3 months until I asked. "Where is my DPS ID?"

They then put it into the DPS scheme and sent me the details, but they have to legally do this in 30 days.

It took them 3 months and only because I asked.

bap98189

tpbullets wrote: »

How do I make sure the contract is full proof. That it's not something they can just refuse to pay.

I'm not clued up enough about the legalities of writing a contract or reading one.

Thanks

Tell them you want them to also pay your legal costs to get a solicitor (of your choosing) to check the wording of the contract before you sign it. It shouldn't cost a fortune for an hour of a solicitor's time. If they are offering you £2000, they clearly want you out and will most likely pay another £100 or so to cover this.

cr1mson

Sorry how come deposit not protected for 3 months and you have been asked to leave 6 weeks into agreement?

G_M

cr1mson wrote: »

Sorry how come deposit not protected for 3 months and you have been asked to leave 6 weeks into agreement?

well spotted.

Answer?