Tenancy Deposit help please (further update as landlord now wants more money)

folkestonelisa

Hi, after a little bit of help please.

A friend is trying to get a case together against her landlord as he is withholding her deposit due to issues he feels the flat has.

(trust me, ive seen the pictures and there is no way it was left in the state he said it was. )
He is charging for 11 hours deep cleaning for a 2 bed flat.
£650 for changing a wooden worktop that has no draining board and has water marks by the tap.
£70 to change a cupboard door that has some peeling paint (very minimal) which is caused by the cupboard being very tight fitting.
£135 to buy and fit a blind as the cord has caught at the top of the blind.

He also is waiting to get costs for deep cleaning the oven (its cleaner then mine and mines only 10 weeks old. lol, he has even provided pictures that show the glass door, very clean that you can see the lino underneath it, very clearly.)

We have also found out that the deposit was with the DPS but in the insurance scheme, so the deposit has been returned back to the landlord before she can dispute his costs.

He is really trying to rip this young couple off and I would appreciate any help to help them get the money back. I am happy to post the pictures that he has provided to back up his claim.

We were under the impression that he shouldnt have put their deposit in the insurance scheme, if anybody can confirm if this is correct or not.

We have drafted a letter, looked at shelter website and other websites offering advice, but would appreciate others views.

G_M

Read

* Deposits: payment, protection and return

There's nohing wrong with an insurance scheme (provided it's one of the government approved ones!).

Put in a claim to the scheme for the full deposit. Their website will say how.

folkestonelisa

Thanks GM, they have advised the scheme, but they have already paid the landlord and said that they will have to compile a case which they will send to the landlord and ask him to return their money. This doesnt seem right.

G_M

Makes no sense.

If it's an insurance scheme, then the scheme did not hold the money in the first place- so could not return it.

Your friends need to read up on how the scheme works!

always_sunny

folkestonelisa wrote: »

Thanks GM, they have advised the scheme, but they have already paid the landlord and said that they will have to compile a case which they will send to the landlord and ask him to return their money. This doesnt seem right.

Doesn't make any sense; before LL is allowed any money the ex-tenant needs to agree or funds are held till there's a case. It's usually the LL responsibility to justify the cost?

folkestonelisa

They were given a log in for the deposit protection service, which yesterday was displaying closed. They contacted them and were told that the account was only an insured account and the landlord had the money.

On the tenancy agreement it says

'Six weeks deposit of X held via the dps'

G_M

How long ago did the tenancy end?
What did they do when it ended?
Did they receive any communication from the deposit scheme?
Did the scheme have their correct contact details?
Have they raised a dispute with the scheme?

folkestonelisa

G_M wrote: »

How long ago did the tenancy end?
What did they do when it ended?
Did they receive any communication from the deposit scheme?
Did the scheme have their correct contact details?
Have they raised a dispute with the scheme?

The tenancy ended on the 12 November 2016
They had a checkout on the 12 November and the landlord wasn't happy with a couple of bits and suggested he'd be keeping about £150, they wasn't happy about it but having just brought a house the additional money would come in handy. The landlord said he would be in touch. Thursday night (10.30pm) he emailed them with an inventory, full of pictures of his complaint and the cost ( I think the pictures will help them as it shows how clean it was)
They had a log in from the DPS at the beginning of the tenancy, but nothing to say the account had been closed. I believe it was with my deposits, which logged it with the dps.
The scheme had their correct details.
They informed the landlord last night of their intention to appeal his claim and will raise a dispute today if it's open otherwise Monday. They are following the info on the DPS site on how to present their argument.

Thanks very much for your help GM, there has been a lot of tears over this. :mad:

G_M

Glad to hear they're getting their act together.

No need for tears, just need to learn how the proces works, gather their evidence, and follow the proess methodically.

always_sunny

folkestonelisa wrote: »

They were given a log in for the deposit protection service, which yesterday was displaying closed. They contacted them and were told that the account was only an insured account and the landlord had the money.

On the tenancy agreement it says

'Six weeks deposit of X held via the dps'

Hard to follow; but I thought it was illegal for the LL to keep the money and they must lodge it as a deposit? This deposit cannot be disbursed unless there's an agreement from both sides and/or at the very least notifications. All my DPS deposit worked like that and were always returned in full.

If the LL did not lodge the deposit all together it's a different issue!

booksurr

always_sunny wrote: »

Hard to follow; but I thought it was illegal for the LL to keep the money and they must lodge it as a deposit?

read GM's post at #2

there are 2 types of scheme: the custodial (the scheme holds the money) and the insured (the LL holds the money)

presumably your experience has been based on custodial schemes only. So you need to learn about the other type as well