Am I owed rent

Lauren99x

My ex and I split almost a year ago. I chucked him out after finding he had taken items from the house to sell for gambling(the final straw after many many problems!)
We had joint tenancy on our rented house and had 4 months left on the tenancy. I spoke to my landlord who was very understanding and I explained the situation.
After leaving my ex didn't pay a penny towards the house leaving me to pay the rent and bills am I right assuming I can take him court for his half?

lesalanos

If they are selling things to fund a gambling addiction I don't rate your chances of getting the ££ back

Marvel1

Lauren99x said:

My ex and I split almost a year ago. I chucked him out after finding he had taken items from the house to sell for gambling(the final straw after many many problems!)
We had joint tenancy on our rented house and had 4 months left on the tenancy. I spoke to my landlord who was very understanding and I explained the situation.
After leaving my ex didn't pay a penny towards the house leaving me to pay the rent and bills am I right assuming I can take him court for his half?

I'm going towards no.

NinjaTune

He'd probably counter-claim that you "chucked him out" so it wasn't his choice to leave the property.  Whilst I can understand why you did it, I wouldn't contribute rent or bills towards a property I was forced to leave either.

As lesalanos says, if he was stealing items in order to gamble then you would have very little chance of recouping the money anyway (unless he's recently had a big win).

Comms69

Lauren99x said:

My ex and I split almost a year ago. I chucked him out after finding he had taken items from the house to sell for gambling(the final straw after many many problems!)
We had joint tenancy on our rented house and had 4 months left on the tenancy. I spoke to my landlord who was very understanding and I explained the situation.
After leaving my ex didn't pay a penny towards the house leaving me to pay the rent and bills am I right assuming I can take him court for his half?

Well no? Because you chose to not have him there. So any agreement you had with him, ended at that point.

Gavin83

Morally I'd say no. You kicked him out and therefore you can't really expect him to continue paying the bills. Legally you're also on fairly shaky ground. It's a joint tenancy, meaning you're both equally liable for 100% the rent. It doesn't mean you're responsible for 50% each. I also assume the bills were all in your name if you were paying them.

I also agree with the others, even if you were to win it's unlikely he'll have the money to pay.

Fireflyaway

Morally I'd say he should pay half if he behaved in a way that made it impossible for you to live with him. Legally, no because you told him to leave. Why should he pay for a house in which he is not living. You could have paid half and the landlord could have pursued him for the other half but now it's all paid I don't think there is any chance of recouping anything. 

MovingForwards

There is no half rent, anyone named on the tenancy is liable for the whole rent. Any agreement to split it 50/50 is between the tenants and not the landlord. 

If there was arrears, which there wasn't, the landlord could ask one or both for it and commence litigation against one or both.

Anyhow, OP you could, but if it went to court would the judge find in your favour considering the circumstances eg you kicked him out.

Move on with your life and chalk it up as a thank goodness we are no longer together moment.

Comms69

Fireflyaway said:

Morally I'd say he should pay half if he behaved in a way that made it impossible for you to live with him. Legally, no because you told him to leave. Why should he pay for a house in which he is not living. You could have paid half and the landlord could have pursued him for the other half but now it's all paid I don't think there is any chance of recouping anything. 

But how does one define that?

One might say that playing video games all night meant it became impossible to live with someone. And Even if you can define it, if that is the case, why not leave? I dont see the moral argument, the OP has the benefit of the property to use as she sees fit.

The landlord could've pursued him for the other half, or the OP. I know which i'd choose to do. 

Fireflyaway

What I meant by morally is that if he is a decent guy, he will realize that taking items from the house and selling them for gambling was wrong. Then so as not to cause his girlfriend financial trouble as a result of his actions, he would still pay half the rent . Very unlikely though, I acknowledge that.