Letting Agent claiming back 8 months rent already paid to landlord

silvercar

dln wrote: »

The tenants left without notice two months ago.

jjlandlord wrote:

It is not clear whether they still leave at the property.

Tenants long gone, by the sound of it. It is the rent which is in question.

theartfullodger

dln wrote: »

..If you are right that the agent has the right to sue me, that seems very unfair. I simply cannot understand it. ....

I only stated agent was at liberty to sue you: I did not suggest they would win (or not..) - I haven't seen all the evidence (I mean ALL the paperwork, emails etc etc).

You are also at liberty to sue the agent for doing a cr*p job, for wasting your time & charging unfair/unreasonable fees.

I am at liberty to sue "Dave" Cameron for being a shiny-faced smug b&rst*d.. but that doesn't mean I will win eh??

dln

Thank you for your good advice.

It's difficult to keep a clear head when one has done nothing wrong and the future possibility is that I will have to repay 7 months rent. . .

The tenants paid seven months rent then I was paid 2 months by the rent indemnity insurance I had (well worth the £14 a month!). Then the tenants disappeared - about 3 months ago.

dln

Yes, your right. This has some way to go yet and I need to see how it plays out.

Re David Cameron. You might not have to take him to task, it may be that chappie on the far left who does it for you. . .

kinger101

I think you need to contact the LA and check whether they're doing everything possible to launch a counterclaim against this false Direct Debit indemnity claim. I believe there is only a 14 day window for doing this, and however small the chances are, it would be better than the alternative of chasing the tenants through the courts.

I can see why the agency would prefer a Direct Debit, as it gives greater flexibility and requires less administration. However, I think they ought to spell out the risks and benefits of DD and SO, and let the LL decide how they'd like the rent collected (and possibly charge extra for the admin associated with SO). Personally, if it were my property, I'd never accept accept DD payments. Reversible payments are not a sensible way of collecting rent IMO.

agrinnall

Regardless of how this turns out I think you need to seriously reconsider what level of involvement you have with your let, you seem to have no idea who your tenants are, whether they are paying the rent themselves, or how they are paying. I wouldn't want people living in my property without knowing that stuff (and more).

dln

Thank you for that sound advice.

I am beginning to wonder if it's something to do with a fraudulent housing benefit claim. I can't see how the bank would give them 8 months payment back (£3,800) without a thorough investigation into their claim.

kinger101

dln wrote: »

Thank you for that sound advice.

I am beginning to wonder if it's something to do with a fraudulent housing benefit claim. I can't see how the bank would give them 8 months payment back (£3,800) without a thorough investigation into their claim.

If it's DD, the bank must give the money back as soon as the account holder makes a claim. They have no right to refuse this, no matter how suspicious it may look.

dln

Thanks for your input.

I have tried the 'want to know everything' path i.e. I let the house myself and I collected the rent personally - even got invited in for cups of tea! Eventually they 'did a runner' owing me a month's rent - he being a mortgage adviser!

I chose a 'reputable' letting agent because I wanted a buffer between me and tenants and for the agent to sort out any problems. The agent does the checks against CCJ's, references, sufficient income to pay the rent, etc. I also took out rent indemnity insurance against non-payment or needing to evict them.

I don't want anything to do the tenants. I am prepared to pay an agency fee for them to deal with the tenants.

This incident seems to be something 'rare'.

dln

Thank you for that.