Disclaiming interest - what does this mean?

elljay

I received a letter yesterday from the OR saying that he has disclaimed interest in the business property that I leased up until I became bankrupt and that the interest in this lease is disclaimed for a period of 5 years. The letter is accompanied by a form NODIS which is in 2 parts, 1 a general statement and part 2 seems to be addressed to the landlord.

Can anyone tell me what this means in English and do I have to do anything? What happens in 5 years, can the landlord then come after me for breaking the lease early or the unpaid rent?

I never legally signed off the lease, just handed the keys back to the landlord and he now uses the building for his own purposes.

Thanks

debt_doctor

Hi,


The lease will have automatically vested in the trustee as an asset. The OR looks at the lease to decide whether it has a value (can s/he sell it?) or whether it is 'onerous' - a liability.
If it is onerous, then the OR must disclaim asap, as until done they hold the responsibility for everything to do with the lease. So, the OR is just saying "no thanks".
If you were a sole trader then you liability for the lease has formed part of your bankruptcy, the whole amount of the lease will be covered.
DD

elljay

Well thank you DD. That's very clear and I understand perfectly. Why on earth didn't they say so in their letter? I've tried to contact them but the original OR is no longer on my case and the long term team don't seem as approachable.

No need now, thank you again.

EJ