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Rental Issue after leaving University
JoyfulOne
Posts: 3 Newbie
Hello there!
My partner is having a rental issue with a student accommodation company. This is the series of events leading up to the problem in question…
He signed a contract for September 2015 for a year, but his results/student finance meant he wouldn’t be able to return to University (without running up a massive debt) so he chose to leave and told the company. They informed him that he had a month (until September) to look for a tenant otherwise he would lose his deposit, then they would look for a tenant. He was unable to find anyone to fill his place and then communication ceased for a few months until now.
He received a phone call out of the blue last week from the company insisting he had to pay £1,300 (and respectively the rest of the year when the next term starts) and when he said he and his guarantor (his mother) have no money to pay it, the woman on the phone mentioned court action could be taken.
After sending out two emails explaining their situation and trying to negotiate, they’ve had no response back from the company. My partner called them the other day as we expected to hear back from them this Monday, and the woman who phoned him previously wasn’t there. He was simply told by someone else that he should look for a replacement tenant. From what we understand from their website is that a contract can only be shortened/cancelled if a new tenant is found, and that the company would do their best to look as well.
The main issue at hand however is that my partner and his guarantor have been given no copy of the contract/tenancy agreement. The only document they have from this company is a piece of paper saying that the guarantor has to sign a contract with a witness and have a credit check. Neither my partner nor his mother remember the details from the contract itself unfortunately.
Some helpful folk at TheStudentRoom told us that if a guarantor does not have a copy of the contract, then it is an illegal guarantor, and the company can't take them to court. I wanted to verify this as the company have been incredibly poor with any correspondence, as my partner had asked for a copy of the contract and has heard nothing back for nearly a week now.
I hope all of this is clear, and I’m happy to explain anything further if necessary!
Thank you.
My partner is having a rental issue with a student accommodation company. This is the series of events leading up to the problem in question…
He signed a contract for September 2015 for a year, but his results/student finance meant he wouldn’t be able to return to University (without running up a massive debt) so he chose to leave and told the company. They informed him that he had a month (until September) to look for a tenant otherwise he would lose his deposit, then they would look for a tenant. He was unable to find anyone to fill his place and then communication ceased for a few months until now.
He received a phone call out of the blue last week from the company insisting he had to pay £1,300 (and respectively the rest of the year when the next term starts) and when he said he and his guarantor (his mother) have no money to pay it, the woman on the phone mentioned court action could be taken.
After sending out two emails explaining their situation and trying to negotiate, they’ve had no response back from the company. My partner called them the other day as we expected to hear back from them this Monday, and the woman who phoned him previously wasn’t there. He was simply told by someone else that he should look for a replacement tenant. From what we understand from their website is that a contract can only be shortened/cancelled if a new tenant is found, and that the company would do their best to look as well.
The main issue at hand however is that my partner and his guarantor have been given no copy of the contract/tenancy agreement. The only document they have from this company is a piece of paper saying that the guarantor has to sign a contract with a witness and have a credit check. Neither my partner nor his mother remember the details from the contract itself unfortunately.
Some helpful folk at TheStudentRoom told us that if a guarantor does not have a copy of the contract, then it is an illegal guarantor, and the company can't take them to court. I wanted to verify this as the company have been incredibly poor with any correspondence, as my partner had asked for a copy of the contract and has heard nothing back for nearly a week now.
I hope all of this is clear, and I’m happy to explain anything further if necessary!
Thank you.
0
Comments
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The helpful people were absolutely correct.0
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Thank you very much for a speedy response!
And thank you once more for helping to verify that, it resulted in a collective sigh of relief!
Do you know where we can find this kind of information to show the company? Google can a bit vague (or in other words, I have little knowledge about the law...) If not, you've still definitely helped out a lot!0 -
Why bother?
Let them waste time on court fees etc. and then enter the defence that the guarantor agreement isn't valid as the guarantor was not shown the terms of the tenancy.
They have to prove they did send her a copy. Not vice versa.0 -
Why bother?
Let them waste time on court fees etc. and then enter the defence that the guarantor agreement isn't valid as the guarantor was not shown the terms of the tenancy.
That would mean paying for their own solicitor also, even if re-paid when winning they probably don't have it to toy with the housing agencyMortgage (Nov 15): £79,950 | Mortgage (May 19): £71,754 | Mortgage (Sep 22): £0
Cashback sites: £900 | £30k in 2016: £30,300 (101%)0 -
Thank you very much once more!
We'll just sit and wait if they respond now, it's been nearly a week since we heard anything. From what you've said I'll be surprised if we hear anything back!0 -
Thank you very much once more!
We'll just sit and wait if they respond now, it's been nearly a week since we heard anything. From what you've said I'll be surprised if we hear anything back!
You might get a few letters, but I doubt it would go any further.
Make sure all communication is written. Pen, paper and a stamp.0 -
Some helpful folk at TheStudentRoom told us that if a guarantor does not have a copy of the contract, then it is an illegal guarantor, and the company can't take them to court.
Hi JoyfulOne,
There is no such thing as an "illegal guarantor". They can be sued, but if the guarantee was not executed correctly, or they did not know what they were guaranteeing (e.g. because they did not see the tenancy agreement) then they can defend on the basis that there is in fact no binding guarantee.
If you think that they are serious it might be worthwhile to take legal advice and to get a solicitor draft a reply.
Sometimes a letter from a solicitor is enough if they know that their case is weak.0 -
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Why bother?
Let them waste time on court fees etc. and then enter the defence that the guarantor agreement isn't valid as the guarantor was not shown the terms of the tenancy.
They have to prove they did send her a copy. Not vice versa.
Just because a guarantor agreement cannot be enforced doesn't mean the debt disappears.
If there is a legitimate action for the debt then the OP is on the hook for it.
So it would only be a waste of time if there was no valid claim.
However, given it sounds like the tenancy had not commenced, there wouldn't be a valid claim.0
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