Evicting a lodger who won't pay rent

G_M

someanonbloke wrote: »

Good point, from now on I'll do 1 month rolling contracts.

My advice with lodgers would be weekly.

There is nothing worse than having to share your own home with someone you actively dislike or who dislikes you, or with whom you are constantly arguing, or who is in some way taking the p*ss and making life miserable.

It's your home.

Weekly rent with 1 weeks notice either way.

I accept that means the lodger can also leave with minimal notice, giving you limited time to re-advertise etc, but a few weeks lost rent is far better than an unpleasant long-drawn-out eviction.

theartfullodger

someanonbloke wrote: »

Hi, I let rooms to lodgers; the legal term is 'excluded occupier'.

I've written the contract, which is for 3 months with all the details and terms of the contract, which we both signed, and he gave me the deposit.........

As mentioned, daft to give 3 months to a lodger but, to check, you do live in the same property & have done since he moved in?? (If not it would be an AST not a lodger agreement, regardless of what paperwork says..)

For the avoidance of doubt, Guest a valued and reliable poster...

FBaby

Giving the deposit he might think he's given the first month's rent and you're now demanding more (next month's).

You haven't responded to this which is the most likely situation considering what you stated in your first OP

He was supposed to pay his rent on the day he moved in for the following month

What do you mean by following month? So he paid the first month and now you wanted to pay for month 2 when he moved in? That would indicate that the money is given you wasn't a deposit but month 1 then.

Is the 'deposit' clearly stipulated in the contract?

moneyistooshorttomention

G_M wrote: »

You've given him a 3 month fixed term contract? To an Excluded Occupier?

Are you bonkers?

Option 1 - wait till the end of month 2, give notice, and evict at the end of the fixed term.

Option 2 - wait till he goes out. Change the locks. Pack up his belongings and text him to arrange a time he can collect them (when you have 3 strong mates present).

Option 3 - sit down and find out why the rent is late. Negotiate a payment plan if that seems possible /appropriate, or agree o wait till his monthly salary goes in tomorow (or whatever)

Option 4 - (loosely based on Option 3) is what I actually did in similar circumstances some years back. Lodger was refusing to pay rent agreed and telling me lies about not having the money to do so (I found the proof of this fact actually). What I did was give them a VERY short notice period as to when they would pay by or the tenancy would end and they would leave immediately.

They chose to do neither. That was not an option on the table. When I saw they intended to continue lying to me and not paying the rent due - I packed up all their stuff and put it outside for them to collect. Tenancy over. The End.

This is your own home that we are talking about. I would be astonished if any Court (then or now) tried to force someone to keep a lying/unco-operative stranger living in their home against their will in such circumstances. You might not be a small, middle-class little woman (like I am) - ie expecting to be protected and believed in these circumstances. But - even if you're a hefty great bloke etc etc - I'd still follow that course of action.

deFoix

Is it REALLY a criminal offence to physically evict someone in this instance? Even if it is in all circumstances what tyically could you expect to happen, for example if you simply pushed them out of the door? I mean would the police really care?

Guest101

Boler1985 wrote: »

Is it REALLY a criminal offence to physically evict someone in this instance? Even if it is in all circumstances what tyically could you expect to happen, for example if you simply pushed them out of the door? I mean would the police really care?

Yes it really is.


Yes the police would care, it's common assault.

Slinky

Why would you need/want to touch them when changing the locks when they are out would achieve the same result?

csgohan4

make sure you get a go pro camera to record everything in case of any come back

deFoix

Guest101 wrote: »

Yes it really is.


Yes the police would care, it's common assault.

Hmm, I've been pushed around in front of the police and they just gave a stern warning to the offending party. My point being that it's a matter of degree. I think in some situations it's better to ask for forgiveness rather than do everything by the book?

moneyistooshorttomention

Guest101 wrote: »

Yes it really is.


Yes the police would care, it's common assault.

No the police don't care - at least about the person in the wrong (ie the lodger).

I called the police myself - and, as expected by me, they ensured my safety whilst the lodger left.

EDIT: Yep...and change the locks whilst the lodger is out.