Tenancy Agreement lost by Letting Agent

akaleon

Hi,

I started my tenancy in September and I've just been offered a new job in another city which I'm thinking about taking. The only problem is that my tenancy doesn't end until August this year. About 1 month ago the letting agent contacted me telling me I needed to sign my tenancy forms again because he had lost them.

Does this mean I can end my tenancy early, or am I still bound by the original contract? If I am, does this then mean that I would be able to renegotiate the terms to include a break clause?

Any help would be great.

Thanks

Pixie5740

You are still bound by the terms of your original tenancy agreement.

The fact the LA has lost the copy your originally signed does not void your tenancy agreement.

G_M

akaleon wrote: »

Hi,

I started my tenancy in September and I've just been offered a new job in another city which I'm thinking about taking. The only problem is that my tenancy doesn't end until August this year. About 1 month ago the letting agent contacted me telling me I needed to sign my tenancy forms again because he had lost them.

Does this mean I can end my tenancy early, or am I still bound by the original contract? If I am, does this then mean that I would be able to renegotiate the terms to include a break clause?

Any help would be great.

Thanks

Why don't you simply photocopy your own copy (perhaps charging the leting agent your administration costs if you wish!) and give them that? There's really no need to sign a new one.

As Pixie says, the contract still exists, with its original terms (rent, length, break clause or not, access rights etc) whether the original bit of paper is in a dusty draw somewhere, eaten by the dog, used as a substitute for..... whatever, or faded by sunlight.

Bob_Bank_Spanker_2

What if two burly blokes turned up one day, and turfed you out of your home. Upon protestation, they disclose that they lost the contract so are not bound anymore. You probably wouldn't like it.

Contracts bind both parties.

kinger101

Check for a break clause. Sometimes they have one mid-way through. Other than that, all you can do is offer to surrender your tenancy early in exchange for a partial refund. I might contact the LL directly about this, because letting agents are generally not reasonable people.

da_rule

As they've opened the dialogue and they want something from you (to re-sign the agreements), you could use the situation to your advantage and talk to them about potentially needing to leave early and see if you can come to some sort of agreement.

As the others have said, the agreement exists, regardless of whether it was lost or not, and it would probably be in their standard form so they would know roughly what the terms are. But it can't hurt to ask and see if you can use the situation to your advantage.

davidmcn

da_rule wrote: »

As the others have said, the agreement exists, regardless of whether it was lost or not, and it would probably be in their standard form so they would know roughly what the terms are. But it can't hurt to ask and see if you can use the situation to your advantage.

I would guess that they know exactly what the terms are, as they'll have entered the relevant dates, rent etc on their system, they're just lacking the signed document. I doubt the OP can play funny b*ggers to a huge extent.

akaleon

Thanks everyone.

To be clear, I'm not trying to screw anyone over. I just wanted a clear answer. It looks as though I will have to try and explain the situation to the LL. If he doesn't agree I'll have to stick out the rest of the tenancy.