Things left in loft after completion

saajan_12

Nik85 said:

Using the images of the loft the new owner provided me with i have obtained a quote from a registered business with correct licences and insurance for removal and disposal. They are quoting in the region of £75 based on what they can see in pics so could be more if they find additional stuff to move.... I've struggled to get any other quotes as the loft is unboarded. Know a few 'man with a van' businesses who would also quote in the region of £100. It seems they also don't deem a skip necessary and seems her quoting £600 is to include a "loft clean"? Surely I am not liable for cleaning an unboarded loft i never used in a 70 yr old house?! I feel like she is tring to extort money from me now rather than mitigate her loss. Any advice before I write my final response to her? I desperately want this resolved without going to court but she won't let me clear it myself.

Good job OP, this is exactly what I was going to suggest before I read you'd already done it. 

If the pictures were after your £300 offer, then I would give a very short reply below, to try to avoid court costs etc, but also cut the back and forth short. Then ignore anything unless its agreeing to the settlement with bank details or actual court papers. Keeping on with the back and forth will just encourage them to keep trying it on. 
Dear buyer, 
I do not know of any items left in the loft, but have offered to come and clear anything there myself, at no cost to you. Based on the minimal items in your pictures, I believe it would cost £75 to clear this (please see independent quote attached). I would like to make an offer without prejudice, to pay £75 in full and final settlement of this matter. I believe I have made multiple reasonable offers to settle this outside court, without incurring court costs, and await your bank details to transfer the settlement amount. If you still do not agree, I'm afraid there's little point in further correspondence and you would be forcing us to court.  
Thanks
Nik85

davidmcn

Ditzy_Mitzy said:

I'd be tempted to send her a 'without prejudice' letter explaining that you offer £100 (say, amend as appropriate) in full and final settlement of the claim.  State that further correspondence from the buyer will not be replied to and enclose a cheque for your chosen amount.  
Make a copy and send it Recorded Delivery
If she cashes the cheque, the matter is closed.  She can still start proceedings, but cannot do so having accepted the money.  

I would just make the offer - no advantage in sending a cheque really (I'm not sure "without prejudice" is actually as magic a form of words as people tend to think).

Ditzy_Mitzy

davidmcn said:

Ditzy_Mitzy said:

I'd be tempted to send her a 'without prejudice' letter explaining that you offer £100 (say, amend as appropriate) in full and final settlement of the claim.  State that further correspondence from the buyer will not be replied to and enclose a cheque for your chosen amount.  
Make a copy and send it Recorded Delivery
If she cashes the cheque, the matter is closed.  She can still start proceedings, but cannot do so having accepted the money.  

I would just make the offer - no advantage in sending a cheque really (I'm not sure "without prejudice" is actually as magic a form of words as people tend to think).

The advantage to sending a cheque is that it is a direct offer of payment.  It avoids the need to get involved in further correspondence about bank details, acceptable payment methods, accusations of 'you won't really pay me' etc.  A cheque is a cheque, take it or leave it. 

Nik85

Just spoken to a solicitor who says not to send any money to the buyer but instead to pay the company I have received a quote from directly. Told him that I doubt very much that she will agree to me instructing someone to clear her loft but he assures me that I am not the one acting unreasonably and the court would see that.
Note to others: always clear your loft!! 

Ditzy_Mitzy

Nik85 said:

Just spoken to a solicitor who says not to send any money to the buyer but instead to pay the company I have received a quote from directly. Told him that I doubt very much that she will agree to me instructing someone to clear her loft but he assures me that I am not the one acting unreasonably and the court would see that.
Note to others: always clear your loft!! 

What an odd piece of advice.  I certainly wouldn't do that!  

pumas

Nik85 said:

....Note to others: always clear your loft!! 

And take photos!

Scotbot

Ditzy_Mitzy said:

Nik85 said:

Just spoken to a solicitor who says not to send any money to the buyer but instead to pay the company I have received a quote from directly. Told him that I doubt very much that she will agree to me instructing someone to clear her loft but he assures me that I am not the one acting unreasonably and the court would see that.
Note to others: always clear your loft!! 

What an odd piece of advice.  I certainly wouldn't do that!  

Why not? I would. If you send her money she will be tempted to ask for more. 

davidmcn

Ditzy_Mitzy said:

Nik85 said:

Just spoken to a solicitor who says not to send any money to the buyer but instead to pay the company I have received a quote from directly. Told him that I doubt very much that she will agree to me instructing someone to clear her loft but he assures me that I am not the one acting unreasonably and the court would see that.
Note to others: always clear your loft!! 

What an odd piece of advice.  I certainly wouldn't do that!  

I think the point is that she ought to be providing the OP with an opportunity to carry out the work himself (however much that costs, if anything) - merely handing over an amount corresponding to what he thinks it ought to cost doesn't necessarily cut it.

Seashell517

Nik85 said:

Just spoken to a solicitor who says not to send any money to the buyer but instead to pay the company I have received a quote from directly. Told him that I doubt very much that she will agree to me instructing someone to clear her loft but he assures me that I am not the one acting unreasonably and the court would see that.
Note to others: always clear your loft!! 

I strongly suspect buyer is looking to remove the items herself and pocket the cash from you. Solicitor's advice fulfils your obligation to remove items and prevents her from doing this. Calling buyer's bluff.

Ditzy_Mitzy

davidmcn said:

Ditzy_Mitzy said:

Nik85 said:

Just spoken to a solicitor who says not to send any money to the buyer but instead to pay the company I have received a quote from directly. Told him that I doubt very much that she will agree to me instructing someone to clear her loft but he assures me that I am not the one acting unreasonably and the court would see that.
Note to others: always clear your loft!! 

What an odd piece of advice.  I certainly wouldn't do that!  

I think the point is that she ought to be providing the OP with an opportunity to carry out the work himself (however much that costs, if anything) - merely handing over an amount corresponding to what he thinks it ought to cost doesn't necessarily cut it.

The OP is dealing with a chancer.  Paying someone else directly to carry out the work puts too much onus on the OP.  Whoever does the job will, in essence, be an agent acting on the OP's behalf; the contract is between the OP and the handyman after all.  Given the buyer's attitude, it would be unwise for the OP to put herself in the position of appointing agents on the buyer's behalf.  There's nothing to stop the buyer coming up with new allegations further down the line, e.g. 'the handyman didn't do the job properly' or 'the handyman damaged my ceiling'.  
There's also the possibility that the handyman turns up and finds, mysteriously, that the job is much bigger than has been quoted for or that the buyer expects extra things to be done.  The OP also has to decide whether she authorises an 'open ended' sort of arrangement or whether she pays for a fixed number of hours.  The buyer might then start saying it's not enough.  
The OP needs to make the cleanest break possible from the buyer and must avoid anything that might queer the pitch.  Thus she should make a settlement offer and deal with legal action as and when it arises.  I suspect that it won't!