Am I still liable as a Guarantor?

tweacle12

Hi

I was a guarantor for a person who rented a house and then fell behind with payments and I kept getting letters as you do.

This person has now signed a new contract with the landlord /letting agent stating that they must pay 6 months in advance, Does this mean that I am no longer a guarantor as there has been a change in contract and is a renewal with different payment methods/conditions.
I have received no paperwork to sign to agree new conditions..

Any Ideas

Thanks

kinger101

Read what you originally signed.

Comms69

Chances are, if done correctly, you are still liable.

Quote it, in full, it should be served as a deed and therefore witnessed.

PasturesNew

As a rule of thumb, once you've signed you're in it until the tenant has left the building and the landlord has declared everything's up to date and fine for the state they left it in.

You'd need to inspect what you signed to double check....

bris

Depends on the wording, most agreements carry on with renewals so yes until they leave you will still be liable.

diggingdude

I know I am probably wrong here, but if the renewal tenancy has any terms/conditions different to the original contract, wouldn't that release the guarantor as the terms they were guaranteeing have changed? I'm sure someone here will tell me it doesn't but it would seem an unfair contract term to me if guarantor was not aware of what terms are and agreed to them also

G_M

I suspect the guarantor is now released.


Yes, in most cases if the tenancy continues after the fixed term eg via a SPT or CTP the guarantee agreement continues.


But if a new contract is signed I believe the guarantor would need to have

a) seen it and
b) agreed to it


As others have said, the devil could be in the detail. What does the original guarantee agreement say?


Also the devil could be in the judge - how a court would interpret the guarantor's liability might also vary......

AnotherJoe

diggingdude wrote: »

I know I am probably wrong here, but if the renewal tenancy has any terms/conditions different to the original contract, wouldn't that release the guarantor as the terms they were guaranteeing have changed? I'm sure someone here will tell me it doesn't but it would seem an unfair contract term to me if guarantor was not aware of what terms are and agreed to them also

I don't think you are wrong, for the exact reasons you indicate. Indeed I'd go further, even if the conditions stay the same, if the date has changed (been extended ) then that's outside what the guarantor agreed to. Subject of course , as GM says, what does the guarantor agreement stipulate?

iammumtoone

I think the simplest thing to do it this situation is just ask.


If they say no, get this in writing.


If they say yes, then start to look at the original documents to see if you have a case you argue you aren't.