Revenge Eviction

spadoosh

mrkjd wrote: »

We have been pushing our Landlord to carry out repairs to a dangerous wood burner/chimney and damp issues. Let me add that my wife and I are both professionals and pay the rent on time, every time for over 2 years as well as maintain the house/garden as if it was our own.

After months of inaction we sent an email saying we were not happy with progress and were considering escalation to the Local Authority. Within hours the Agent hand delivered a Section 21 Notice for possession! A clearer case of "Revenge Eviction" is hard to imagine! We are obviously gutted by the implications of this. Without getting into specifics right away, do any members have any advice / know any good online forums on how we should approach this. If anybody is knowledgeable in this area of Property Law I am happy to elaborate on the details

What are you hoping to achieve?

It sounds like you want to carry on giving money to someone who doesnt want to fulfill their part of a service?

How about going to find a new place with a landlord that offers a safe house.

Sounds like hes doing you a favour?!

Why make a threat if your going to be gutted if they call it.

Are you David Cameron?

mrkjd

Wow - a lot of replies very quickly so I will elaborate. The reason to stay is logistical. It is unlikely we will find somewhere that suits as well within 2 months (we have been looking and that is why the tenancy rolled on to periodic rather than fix for another period). We are looking and will move - but in our timeframe - not some shyster landlords. It is also important that Landlords and Agents are not allowed to get away with this behaviour and the hazards are addressed before another tenant signs up for the same problems. In fact we suspect the previous tenant may well have mirrored our experience and this is an ongoing tactic by this landlord. To specifics.

The tenancy rolled on from 12 month fixed to monthly periodic Dec 15. The question of whether we are covered by the Deregulation Act posed by Pixie 5740 is unclear to me. On the one hand the tenancy started BEFORE Oct 2015 but if the roll on to Periodic Tenancy is classed as "New" then we ARE covered. There is also a view in law that a rolling periodic SHOULD be considered new. See landlordlawblog.co.uk/2013/08/05/why-a-periodic-tenancy-is-a-new-tenancy (sorry - can't post links). This was an outcome of the "Superstrike" case law which had landlords jittery and some aspects were subsequently watered down but the prima facie issue re definition of "new" remains.

We did request the Local Authority to intervene before the Agent hand posted the Notice (under the Tenancy Agreement any such notices are deemed received the next working day). So the LA were informed beforehand but no Improvement notice issued yet. We are chasing up the LA to act. My understanding is that if the LA do issue a notice then the Section 21 will be voided for 6 months which will give us plenty of scope to move but this is a moot point if the Deregulation Act does not apply.

There are also inconsistencies in the Notice of Possession which we believe would make the Notice invalid when/if it comes to a court date for eviction. This is our "Plan B"

ThePants999

mrkjd: it's clear you understand the s21 process, so why talk of "within 2 months"? As you know, it'll be significantly longer than that before you're actually successfully evicted.

theartfullodger

mrkjd wrote: »

.........

There are also inconsistencies in the Notice of Possession which we believe would make the Notice invalid when/if it comes to a court date for eviction. This is our "Plan B"

Many landlords get s21s rong... probably about 30% of those issued.

Wanna tell us what the inconsistencies are (eg if minor name misspelling probably OK) or check with Shelter 0808 800 4444

Pleased to hear you are endeavouring to get this disgrace of a landlord sorted!

Artful (Landlord btw..)

moneyistooshorttomention

As you say you are both professionals - then I guess that means the income coming into the household is somewhere upwards of £60,000 pa?

Are you in the London area - ie too expensive even for many professionals or somewhere cheaper in the country?

As you have a reasonable to good income then you will have a decent income to borrow for a mortgage on. Do you have any savings for a deposit? - in which case you could forget about the rented sector.

mrkjd

FBaby wrote: »

What is the problem with the wood burner and how did damp happen. As it stands nothing you've written indicates whether your demands were reasonable or not. Has anyone come to look at the chimney and agreed that repairs were essential? Do you have evidence that the dump want caused by condensation ie your fault?

,
The damp has been an issue for over 12 months, photos taken and pointed out to them on repeated Agent "Inspections" until escalating it to a written complaint 6 weeks ago to which the reply was " nothing can be done this year". The suggestion from us that the progress has been insufficient and we needed to consider escalating further to the Local Authority seems to have prompted the Section 21. The damp is confined to the 4th bedroom iand isolated patches downstairs in a modern extension. The 200 yr old single layer stone part of the house is slightly damp but to be expected and not subject to complaint from us. The window is opened to air the room. The damp appears to be caused by ingress through a rotten gutter board and some deeper roof problem. It looks to have been many years in the making. The agent has acknowledged this as the likely cause.

We requested the wood burner and chimney be checked prior to moving in. A technician appointed by the agent came within our first week and told us there were "issues" and he would be be submitting a report to the agent for action. We chased this up verbally a couple of times but no reply. We finally again requested the chimney / appliance be inspected after 18 months (chimney cleaning is only our responsibility if the initial clean was carried out by the landlord under the tenancy agreement). This technician issued a Warning Notice and said we couldn't use the burner. It seems very likely (certainly under the balance of probability) that the first technician informed the agent / landlord of the issues (or they should reasonably have known the heating appliance and chimney were unsafe after the technicians report / before letting). This raises issues of the landlord / agents Duty of Care towards tenants. The stark fact is that the chimney / appliance were not fit for purpose and hazardous. This could have resulted in fire/death/injury. It is critical that landlords are not allowed to act in this way and this forms the core of our dispute. The legislation is unclear as the stove is old. Many landlord orientated sites suggest HSE obligations only apply to gas / electric / newer appliances. I am not so sure - the Housing Regs for instance quote "heating appliance" so this COULD (and should) mean ANY heat source. The requirement for a Duty of Care under the HSAWA also still applies. I would be interested to hear views on this. We are pursuing action through the Environmental Health but it remains to be seen how "on side" they will be. We are also considering a counter-claim for compensation as we cannot use the 4th bedroom as advertised due to mould and have no wood burner!

theartfullodger

Solid fuel fires now need Smoke & CO alarms fitted by landlord - so for coal & wood fires of any nature...
http://www.aico.co.uk/landlordlegislation2015.html
Fine up to £5k

The Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (England) Regulations 2015
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukdsi/2015/9780111133439/pdfs/ukdsi_9780111133439_en.pdf

Have you asked local Fire Service their views? They often come out on a free visit (cheaper than a call out, fire engine, fatal enquiry... )

Are there any??

mrkjd

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

As you say you are both professionals - then I guess that means the income coming into the household is somewhere upwards of £60,000 pa?

Are you in the London area - ie too expensive even for many professionals or somewhere cheaper in the country?

As you have a reasonable to good income then you will have a decent income to borrow for a mortgage on. Do you have any savings for a deposit? - in which case you could forget about the rented sector.

Yes we have good income though I am self employed and currently "between contracts"! We moved into rented after selling up and now find that we can't get a bloody mortgage. I believe 50 - somethings unable to get mortgages is a growing issue - we are those people. But this is off topic

moneyistooshorttomention

I believe there are building societies that will now give mortgages to 50-somethings. I have an idea I read recently that the Nationwide is now prepared to accept people having mortgages up to 85?? Couldnt swear to that - but it could be worth investigating (and then you would be out of this position). Worth a look perhaps once you've got your next contract?

MobileSaver

theartfullodger wrote: »

Thatcher's 1988 Housing Act. Remember that at the next election.

This may come as news to you but Mrs Thatcher died in 2013 and so she won't be standing for parliament in the next election.