Landlord trying to reclaim deposit after repaying

Hetfield_Rules

Hi,

I recently moved out of a rented flat after buying a property.

My deposit was registered with SafeDeposits Scotland.

In the notice letter I gave the landlord I said I want the deposit to be returned within 30 days of me leaving the property.

This didn't happen, they ignored my emails for 45 days, so I started the ball rolling through Safe Deposits Scotland and claimed the full deposit back, which gave the landlord 30 working days to claim any deductions. Again they ignored this and I was repaid in full.

This morning the landlord emailed saying they want the full deposit back for a load of random costs most of which are baseless and things they'd said they'd fix but never did.

Could somebody please tell me if I need to repay this, they could take me to court or can I just tell them they had there chance and were taking an unreasonable amount of time?

AdrianC

Don't reply - just ignore them completely.

If they do issue a court claim, then your defence is simple - you requested repayment under the rules of the scheme, and were awarded it. They will lose.

glasgowdan

Don't respond. At all. Ignore the fool.

Miss_Samantha

AdrianC wrote: »

If they do issue a court claim, then your defence is simple - you requested repayment under the rules of the scheme, and were awarded it. They will lose.

The landlord apparently, and for whatever reason, did not reply to the scheme and the scheme therefore returned the deposit to the tenant.

The landlord is still entitled to compensation if they can prove their loss.

We cannot therefore really say whether the landlord will lose in court based on what was said, although OP has suggested that their claim was 'baseless'.

Hetfield_Rules

Thanks for the responses. They're trying to claim for work they'd promised to carry out whilst we were tenants but they never actually got carried out, got e-mails etc. to demonstrate the conversation.

AdrianC

Hetfield_Rules wrote: »

Thanks for the responses. They're trying to claim for work they'd promised to carry out whilst we were tenants but they never actually got carried out, got e-mails etc. to demonstrate the conversation.

What the...?

No, that wouldn't be claimable off you ANYWAY, even if the deposit hadn't already been repaid.

davidmcn

The fact a deposit has been repaid doesn't mean that landlords can't claim for their losses - but the onus is on them to prove it. In theory they could take you to court, but from what you say I can't see that they'd have any chance of winning, so they're unlikely to spend their time/money on it.

saajan_12

AdrianC wrote: »

Don't reply - just ignore them completely.

If they do issue a court claim, then your defence is simple - you requested repayment under the rules of the scheme, and were awarded it. They will lose.

I would agree with the 'ignore them' plan - a LL who doesn't bother to present their claim to the Deposit Scheme in time is unlikely to file a court case with all the evidence required. Without this there is no way the LL can recover any money off you.

However IF/when they do file a claim, and IF the LL can prove damages to the property then they may be able to recover these costs from you. They might need an explanation for failing to observe the timelines set out by the scheme / the tenancy agreement, but as far as I know, deposit protection issues don’t affect whether a tenant is liable for damages.

eddddy

Hetfield_Rules wrote: »

Thanks for the responses. They're trying to claim for work they'd promised to carry out whilst we were tenants but they never actually got carried out, got e-mails etc. to demonstrate the conversation.

Depending on what you mean... perhaps an extra piece of clarification...

If you agreed to pay the LL for doing something (perhaps minor changes or improvements to the property), and the LL did what was agreed - you are still liable to pay the LL for them. Even now after the deposit has been returned.


Obviously, if the LL didn't do whatever was agreed, you wouldn't have to pay.

Hetfield_Rules

eddddy wrote: »

Depending on what you mean... perhaps an extra piece of clarification...

If you agreed to pay the LL for doing something (perhaps minor changes or improvements to the property), and the LL did what was agreed - you are still liable to pay the LL for them. Even now after the deposit has been returned.


Obviously, if the LL didn't do whatever was agreed, you wouldn't have to pay.

Thanks, for example the day we met the landlords they assured us the garden would be cut down to a maintainable standard and from then we would be responsible for maintaining it - it was extremely wild when we visited. For the first 2 months they did nothing, then they said they had arranged for somebody, that person didn't show so I said is it ok if I just do it myself - no reply.

Now they're asking for me to pay for the gardener that had to clean up what was a much more trimmed garden than when I moved in and claiming that they paid for someone to cut it down whilst I was in the property which they never did and haven't provided any proof of doing

fishpond

Do not respond in writing or open any dialogue with the ex LL.
Summing it up:-
Ignore them as they have ignored you.:)