Landlord being unreasonable with deposit - dont think its even protected

ForzaFifer

Hi,

I moved out of my last flat on 2nd May 2015. 2 weeks later i finally get an email from saying he wants to take £464 from my £850 deposit, reasons: stain on mattress, wants me to pay 25% of the cost for a brand new one, slight water mark to bedside table, mould on walls in bedroom and bathroom, wants me to pay to have the entire rooms repainted, a few other petty things too.

I had been in that room for almost two years, so i was expecting him to deduct some money for cleaning etc... But i think hes being totally unreasonable.

Its a flat share with 6 other people, FYI. None of the furniture was brand new, and the mattress was already stained etc.

I spoke to him and he reduced the cost to £300, which i still think is too high. I then asked him for details of my deposit, where it was etc. On my contract it states it is being held with mydeposits.co.uk i have contacted them and they have no record of it. He got quite aggressive in his correspondence after I asked him for the info on my deposit, and now wants the full £464 again, he still wont tell me if its protected or not, and wont provide me any details (ive asked 5 times now). Ive never received a certificate, and like i say, they have no record of it either, neither do the other 2 schemes.

what advice can anyone give me, regarding getting my deposit back?

Now i feel as if i should politely remind him, if the deposit is not protected, he has broken the law, and in my eyes, breached the original AST contract which states my deposit is being held with mydeposits. Is this reasonable for me to propose this? I just want my deposit back, and as stated, id be willing to let him keep a £95 as a good will gesture from me. Ive read the deposit sticky here, and im aware i can claim 3x the deposits value if i pursue this.

Sorry for the long post, this is starting to stress me out now.

thanks for reading.

Pixie5740

Before you go in all guns blazing, make sure your deposit isn't protected anywhere. See G_M's guide to deposits for more information on where to check.

You say there were 6 of you living there. Did you have a joint tenancy together or did you have individual tenancies? If it's the former then the deposit could be registered under the lead tenant's name.

ForzaFifer

Thanks for the reply.

I was sharing with strangers, we didnt all move in together, we had individual tenancies.

I dont want this to escalate out of control, ive asked him 5 or 6 times now to provide me with proof of where my deposit is, he keeps dodging it.

I have already tried all the schemes and used their online checker to see if they have my deposit, none of them do. Maybe i should phone them to double check. But like i say, my contract states, quite clearly the deposit should be held with mydeposits, and it isnt.

I just find it highly suspicious that he keeps refusing to send me the information.

LolStevo

I'm having the same except my landlord just is not acknowledging my deposit or answering the phone!

I too checked all 3 schemes and none have details of the deposit, when my agency spoke to the landlord (it was only passed to agency recently) they got aggressive and said someone else deals with it!

The shelter website is good and has template letters to send! Was there an inventory when you moved in? Mine also didn't have one so I'm goin to go for all of my deposit back!

ForzaFifer

There was a very detailed inventory, but i thought that if he hasnt protected it it, he has to give it all back anyway?

I should also add, the new tenant moved in within an hour of me moving out and completed their inventory based on the state of the room as i left it. I don know if that makes any difference? Even if i let him keep 100% of my deposit, he wouldnt spend a penny on replacing anything or making any repairs. He certainly only made very minimal repairs when i was living there for 2 years.

Ive been thinking of using Piglord.com anyone had any experience of them?

mrginge

I have no experience of said company.
But their website states that they take a fee of 50% on any compensation element.
Sounds like a bargain.

LolStevo

Yes if it's not protected you can claim upto 3 times back from the courts you need to send a letter before action letter and then start the process!

agrinnall

Where in the UK are you? Your name hints that you could be in Scotland, if so the advice you get needs to relate to Scottish tenancy law, not English.

ForzaFifer

Also, my first contract i signed with him included all bills, including electricity, on a couple of occasions he didnt top it up and left us with no electricity. This i believe is a form of harrassment. I also know one of my flatmates who moved out before me, threatened him with harrassment, and got her deposit back within 3 days. Maybe i should use this as leverage too, i have proof that he refused to top up our electricity.

He was a live in landlord at the time, and i realise he did not need to protect my deposit under that contract, although it did say in my contract it would be. I then signed a new AST contract in November, i didnt recieve deposit details with any of the contracts.

ForzaFifer

agrinnall: I am originally from Fife, but i now live in London.

Pixie5740

ForzaFifer wrote: »

Also, my first contract i signed with him included all bills, including electricity, on a couple of occasions he didnt top it up and left us with no electricity. This i believe is a form of harrassment.

Was this when your landlord was living with you so he would also have been without electricity?

ForzaFifer wrote: »

I also know one of my flatmates who moved out before me, threatened him with harrassment, and got her deposit back within 3 days. Maybe i should use this as leverage too, i have proof that he refused to top up our electricity.

Why bother with threats? Send a Letter Before Action and if he still doesn't return your deposit take him to Small Claims Court.

ForzaFifer wrote: »

He was a live in landlord at the time, and i realise he did not need to protect my deposit under that contract, although it did say in my contract it would be. I then signed a new AST contract in November, i didnt recieve deposit details with any of the contracts.

So the deposit relates to when you were a lodger and not a tenant then? Perhaps he never had to protect your deposit. Maybe give Shelter a call to clarify.

I wonder, with 6 people living there, if this is a HMO that should have a licence?