End of tenancy, landlord and agency disappeared - deposit?

ellioth

Hi guys,

How you will help with the issue. Sorry for the long post.

A year ago we started to rent a flat from the letting agency. There were some issues with it as they didn't want to fix anything and actually even didn't contact us. As the issues weren't so severe, we accepted them and continued living. We have been paying rent on time, there was no contact. Our fixed-term finished and moved into the rolling tenancy.

As we are buying a house, we wanted to send a notice via e-mail / and post to the "letting manager". Unexpectedly, e-mail returned as undeliverable.
We started to investigate and in google appeared from the opinions that the agency has run away from the address and they don't practically exist. Regarding the comments, former tenants say that it is impossible to get the deposit back. On the companies house the company is active but a half year ago requested dissolving what has been rejected. The website does not exist, the e-mail addresses do not exist, phone numbers do not reply.

We have messaged our lettings manager and asked if we could use the deposit towards last month's rent. She disagreed as the deposit is for deductions if something is damaged.

Now there is a question - the contract is between us and the landlord (we know only his name as his address in the contract is the address of the agency), the agency is unreachable. The only person we have contact with is this "lettings manager" who is using today her private phone number and private e-mail. We are almost sure that we will not see our deposit again (btw deposit is not secured under the schemes).

What should we do?
a) Accept that we have to pay rent for the last month and accept that we will not see the deposit again?
b) Play on time saying we do not have money and wait until the inspection date (last day of tenancy)?
c) any advice?

Tbf we do not want to go into arrears, we just want to ensure our money will be back, but for the moment not having even valid address of the agency or landlord we can't even raise the case in the court...

tom9980

You don't have a contact address for agent or landlord then you can withhold rent until it is supplied, you will still owe it but don't need to pay until it has been supplied.

The landlord is liable to return the deposit even if the agent ran off with it you can also sue them for not protecting it in a valid scheme.

ellioth

If the letting manager of the not-existing agency does not want to enclose the address of the landlord and we do not have the address of the agency (the office is after repossession as we've seen), is it still possible to sue them just having a name?
For now, we have 1. Landlord's name, 2. lettings manager name, phone number and e-mail.

D_M_E

My position would be to stop paying the rent and put it aside in a savings account ready to hand over if/when landlord reappears.

Take loads of pics when you move out in case they try and take you to court for "damages".

EDIT - if, as you have found, the deposit was not protected then you can counter claim - or start your own claim - for up to 3x the deposit as it was not protected.

G_M

Look at your tenancy agreement (and any other paperwork). By law, there should be an address "for serving notices on the landlord". This may be his address, or it may be c/o the agent, or somewhere else.
That is where you send all formal letters/notices.

That is where you serve your notice.

If you do not have such an address, you do not have to pay rent. See

Landlord and Tenant Act 1987 Section 48

Make sure you serve correct notice (see link below) at the correct.address.

Once your tenancy has ended, write to the LL again, at that address, requesting your deposit. If it is not returned and/or no reply received, apply to the deposit scheme via the single claim process.

If all else fails, sue the LL, again using the proper address. If/when you win in court (eg the LL fails to defend/turn up) you can place a charge on his property so you get paid if/when he tries to sell.


You can also request the landlord's actual address by writing to whoever you pay your rent to. See
Landlord & Tenant Act 1985section 1

* Ending/renewing an AST: what happens when a fixed term ends? How can a LL or tenant end a tenancy? What is a periodic tenancy?

ellioth

Thanks for advice

Look at your tenancy agreement (and any other paperwork). By law, there should be an address "for serving notices on the landlord". This may be his address, or it may be c/o the agent, or somewhere else.
That is where you send all formal letters/notices.

That is where you serve your notice.

The address to serve notices is repossessed. There is nobody here, there is no company. There is no landlord... Our notice came back today as undeliverable

Once your tenancy has ended, write to the LL again, at that address, requesting your deposit. If it is not returned and/or no reply received, apply to the deposit scheme via the single claim process.

Deposit is not protected so we can't contact any deposit scheme for a claim.

If all else fails, sue the LL, again using the proper address. If/when you win in court (eg the LL fails to defend/turn up) you can place a charge on his property so you get paid if/when he tries to sell.

There is no option for the moment to be given Landlord's address. They are not cooperating. The company is not-existing besides the woman responding to our messages but only to messages she wants to answer...

What to do now?

theartfullodger

You write to the address you have been given. Get **free** proof of postage.


I know it sounds bonkers

G_M

ellioth wrote: »

Thanks for advice

The address to serve notices is repossessed. There is nobody here, there is no company. There is no landlord... Our notice came back today as undeliverable
You have served notice to the address you were provided. Therefore your tenancy will end when your notice expires. The fact that it was undeliverable is not your fault or your responsibility.

Deposit is not protected so we can't contact any deposit scheme for a claim.
Then as well as writing to request your deposit back (again, using the address provided, irrespective of delivery), you request 3 times the deposit.


There is no option for the moment to be given Landlord's address. They are not cooperating. The company is not-existing besides the woman responding to our messages but only to messages she wants to answer...

What to do now?

Who is 'the woman'? Does she work for the agency? The landlord? Where is she based? Or just a mobile number? What?
Who do you pay rent to?
If you are paying rent to an agency, that company must exist.If it does not, I'd stop paying rent!


But as I said above:

If all else fails, sue the LL, again using the proper address. If/when you win in court (eg the LL fails to defend/turn up) you can place a charge on his property so you get paid if/when he tries to sell.

Since the deposit is not registered, you also claim the penalty of 3 times the deposit.

ellioth

You write to the address you have been given. Get **free** proof of postage.

It appears that the lettings agency has been renting the office and after repossession, this address is not any more of the company. Is it still treated as a valid "landlord's address"?

Of course, I have a proof of the postage, but how to sue the company or the landlord with the repossessed address? There are hundreds of letters laying on the floor there.

ellioth

Who is 'the woman'? Does she work for the agency? The landlord? Where is she based? Or just a mobile number? What?
Who do you pay rent to?
If you are paying rent to an agency, that company must exist. If it does not, I'd stop paying rent!

The woman had in the signature "lettings manager" and was working for the not-so-famous letting agency. She stated she was based in the agency's address, and this address right now is empty. We know only landlord's name as the contract is "between me and him" even if I've never seen him. We had an "official" e-mail but it doesn't exist, she gave us a Gmail address yesterday, and we have her phone number, she is almost unreachable in there and responding only to messages she wants to reply for.
We pay the rent to her bank account from the beginning.
The company is existing only in the companies house (applied to be resolved months ago) and there is no sign of it anywhere. Other victims state in the reviews that it's impossible now to reach them.

dimbo61

You could spend £3 with the land registry and find out who owns the property and if there is a mortgage or loan on it.
Stop paying the rent and see what happens !