Nightmare Letting agents!

foreversomeday

Hello!

We have just moved into a new build flat and have had some problems with our letting agents.

- It took them between 3 and 4 weeks to set up the Standing Order dealing with the rent, they also set it up on my partner's account even though there was only my signature present on the form! (Or is this an issue to take up with the bank...?)

- Whenever we phone up or pop in to speak to our advisor, if he is out, they never seem to pass messages on and when we speak to him later he has never even heard that we've been in/phoned.

- We have had a number of issues to do with the building itself which we've been told different things about by different members of the team. (Details below)

- It took them about 3-4 weeks to get us the second set of keys, in which time we'd had a second set cut at our own expense, and we find out that the key for the balcony door is missing, which means we will have to have a new lock fitted - no mean feat seeing as we are on the 3rd floor and the door is locked! Plus keep being told different things about who will pay for lock to be fitted.

- Our details seem to have been leaked by (apparently) the company who did our credit checks, to an insurance company who have sent us literally about 50 identical letters to my old address, my partner's old address
and our new house, despite the fact we already have insurance. We get about 5 or 6 a day. I'm dreading when the postal strike ends and we get backlog O_o;

- Another flat in the block had an electrical fire and they promised us an electrical safety check, we had it done (After MUCH pestering) while our other flatmate was in, but I'm not happy with what they checked as apparently they only looked at the immersion heater and other tenants have said they managed to blow up a socket with hair straighteners! Dodgy electricals??

- Every time I go in to speak to our adviser I get this annoying woman who talks down to me like a child, manages to make me lose any assertiveness I might otherwise have had and feeds me lies about what information/services I'm entitled to as their client.

- They keep ignoring our requests to have our loft hatch sorted (It won't stay in the ceiling, just falls out) and as it's getting colder we really do want it sorted - the heating bills alone will cost us because it's pointless heating the roofspace!

- They expect us to do our own running around after them, e.g. pop in to pick up the keys, contact the site office ourself etc. They even gave us the form to give to the bank to set up our own standing order for the rent, claiming if they posted it it wouldn't have got there in time (They had 6 days, and they have a fax machine, and their office is just down the road from the bank!) which I wouldn't mind doing, in all honesty, but I don't drive, I work full time, and it ought to be them running round after us anyway.

We've considered writing to the manager, but not sure if it will help, also we'd quite like contact details for the landlord as notifying him what the agency are up to, we think, might have a good effect and in fact he may bypass them altogether so we can rent privately from him and possibly save money.

We have paid them £175 as a non-refundable tenancy fee, which is supposed to cover them sorting stuff like this out. Has anyone else had similar problems and/or managed to get any of that tenancy fee back?

coal9011

Your right, it does sound like a "nightmare".

Me thinks your situation is not going to get any better without a change of LA's.

If it was me I would take photo's of all the faults now and supply them to the LA. In the mean time start looking for somewere else to live and as soon as your tenancy agreement allows, give the correct notice and leave using your deposit to pay your final month's rent. If they are stupid enough then to say that you owe them any money then let them pursue you for it and prove it!

pinkshoes

foreversomeday wrote: »

Hello!

We have just moved into a new build flat and have had some problems with our letting agents.

- It took them between 3 and 4 weeks to set up the Standing Order dealing with the rent, they also set it up on my partner's account even though there was only my signature present on the form! (Or is this an issue to take up with the bank...?)

- Whenever we phone up or pop in to speak to our advisor, if he is out, they never seem to pass messages on and when we speak to him later he has never even heard that we've been in/phoned.

- We have had a number of issues to do with the building itself which we've been told different things about by different members of the team. (Details below)

- It took them about 3-4 weeks to get us the second set of keys, in which time we'd had a second set cut at our own expense, and we find out that the key for the balcony door is missing, which means we will have to have a new lock fitted - no mean feat seeing as we are on the 3rd floor and the door is locked! Plus keep being told different things about who will pay for lock to be fitted.

- Our details seem to have been leaked by (apparently) the company who did our credit checks, to an insurance company who have sent us literally about 50 identical letters to my old address, my partner's old address
and our new house, despite the fact we already have insurance. We get about 5 or 6 a day. I'm dreading when the postal strike ends and we get backlog O_o;

- Another flat in the block had an electrical fire and they promised us an electrical safety check, we had it done (After MUCH pestering) while our other flatmate was in, but I'm not happy with what they checked as apparently they only looked at the immersion heater and other tenants have said they managed to blow up a socket with hair straighteners! Dodgy electricals??

- Every time I go in to speak to our adviser I get this annoying woman who talks down to me like a child, manages to make me lose any assertiveness I might otherwise have had and feeds me lies about what information/services I'm entitled to as their client.

- They keep ignoring our requests to have our loft hatch sorted (It won't stay in the ceiling, just falls out) and as it's getting colder we really do want it sorted - the heating bills alone will cost us because it's pointless heating the roofspace!

- They expect us to do our own running around after them, e.g. pop in to pick up the keys, contact the site office ourself etc. They even gave us the form to give to the bank to set up our own standing order for the rent, claiming if they posted it it wouldn't have got there in time (They had 6 days, and they have a fax machine, and their office is just down the road from the bank!) which I wouldn't mind doing, in all honesty, but I don't drive, I work full time, and it ought to be them running round after us anyway.

We've considered writing to the manager, but not sure if it will help, also we'd quite like contact details for the landlord as notifying him what the agency are up to, we think, might have a good effect and in fact he may bypass them altogether so we can rent privately from him and possibly save money.

We have paid them £175 as a non-refundable tenancy fee, which is supposed to cover them sorting stuff like this out. Has anyone else had similar problems and/or managed to get any of that tenancy fee back?

Most of the above seem to be (typical???) lazy LA stuff, and I think you'll find the £175 tenacy fee is for credit checks etc... Lots of LAs never answer calls, never reply when you leave a message, take FOREVER to get anything done and always make you do all the running around!

The lock is not an issue. The missing key is nothing to do with you, it's not YOUR flat, so it should be paid for either by the person who owns the flat, or perhaps the LA if they lost the key!! The owner should have a spare at least... coz they're a muppet if they haven't!

Have you got a certificate for the electrics?! They SHOULD have been tested before the flat was signed over for sale. The sparky probably checked the main electrical stuff. Just make sure you have fuses in all the appliances you use, just in case...!!

clutton_2

""They even gave us the form to give to the bank to set up our own standing order for the rent""

banks will not set up s/o s for third parties - if the LA had taken it into the bank, the bank would need to contact the tenant anyway to check if the tenant had agreed the s/o and that the s/o mandate was not forged. This is for the account holders protection.

there is no legal requirement for a landlord to provide a tenant with an electric certificate. a landlord has a "duty of care" towards his tenants and it is up to him to choose how to prove that - providing a certificate is one way - but not the only way.

paintpot

Put your complaints to the letting agent in writing including all the outstanding maintenance issues and keep a record of all your correspondence. Tell them they have 7 days to resolve all of your queries satisfactorily or you are going to contact the landlord directly. The landlord's details should be in the tenancy agreement. If they are not, ask the letting agent for them, they legally obliged to supply the landlord's details to you and so cannot legally refuse. The electrics seem to be your major concern. You could point out that as there has been a fire in the block which you have pointed out to them and you are experiencing problems with the electrics, if anything happens to you or your co-tenants due to an electrical fault then the courts are unlikely to consider that they have fulfilled their duty of care by not testing the electrics fully at your request or issued a certificate. Landlords should make themselves bomb proof and whilst it is not a legal requirement to have an electrical certificate unike the gas, they really should take every precaution possible. You should definitely get the cost of they key cutting and the lock reimbursed.

If the agent cares at all about their business, then they will not want the landlord to think they are not fulfilling their duties. If you leave at the end of the tenancy because you have been dissatisfied with the letting agent's service then if could end up costing the landlord alot of money and they will not be very happy resulting in the agent losing a client.

sooz

Dave_M. wrote: »

Hi
Do the forward thinking thing if you can cope with letting the property yourself. . .Let it yourself through a site called WWW.OwnerHome.Co.Uk
Free to advertise at present and no commission, just get a good solicitor instead. .after all it cannot be anymore hassle than what you have already received. An agent is supposed to make life easier for you, not worse!!
All the best
Dave

read the thread, the OP is the tenant not landlord!