Lost key charges

canaldumidi

Section62 said:

Marvel1 said:

Approach the company yourself, cutting out the middleman (agent) fees.

....
But it is a different question whether the OP is obliged to pay, and there's only one place that information will be found.

My guess is that you are suggesting the information will be found in the tenancy agreement. Very unlikely and completely unneccessary.

The tenant is implicitly responsible for the key to the property being rented, and is therefore liable for the reasonable costs of replacement. It is unfortunate that the tenant has chosen to rent a property with a high level of security, and hence a high cost of replacement, but provided the charge can be explained (as has been suggested here), it is reasonable.

Of course, if it can be shown that the agent/landlord is profitting from this charge, that would be different.

Lord Denning made clear many years ago (1953/4 Warren v Keen) that tenants have to act in a 'tenant-like manner', and are responsible fo costs arising from their failure to do so. Keeping the building keys safe surely falls within that remit.

Norman_Castle

ljcash said:

I have lost my key (rented accommodation) and the letting agent has told me it’s £255 to replace (it’s a special security key & they said if you lose your key they have to replace main door key as each flat has a key which opens communal door and also the front door to their own flat )

They will replace the lock barrel and supply a key for it to every property. If you are forced to pay this advise them you expect to be given the old barrel plus all keys and whatever is needed to buy new keys. It will have a value on ebay, selling it will help reduce your costs.

Slithery

Norman_Castle said:

ljcash said:

I have lost my key (rented accommodation) and the letting agent has told me it’s £255 to replace (it’s a special security key & they said if you lose your key they have to replace main door key as each flat has a key which opens communal door and also the front door to their own flat )

They will replace the lock barrel and supply a key for it to every property. If you are forced to pay this advise them you expect to be given the old barrel plus all keys and whatever is needed to buy new keys. It will have a value on ebay, selling it will help reduce your costs.

Not necessarily the case at all.
The price quoted for replacing the barrels may already include the locksmith reusing them for a different client. What usually happens in situations like this is that instead of the locksmith taking all of the existing barrels away from the property and re-bitting them to replace is that they will build the new barrels before going to the property and swapping them all out for the existing ones. This way the residents are never without working locks.
You may find that a quote from the locksmith that doesn't include them being able to reuse the old barrels is way more than the current quote.

ljcash

Thank you to all of you who have responded to my post . There is no mention of the charges in my tenancy agreement and the majority of the comments offering advice I have already gone down that route eg approaching the company who produces the keys/locks and they said they can’t do direct it has to come from the LL or agent .Perhaps I should ask for the breakdown of the cost , however saying that I don’t know what I’d actually do when I got that information . Thanks again for your help 

eddddy

ljcash said:

Perhaps I should ask for the breakdown of the cost , however saying that I don’t know what I’d actually do when I got that information 

Just to clarify what would normally happen behind the scenes in this situation

• The building has a freeholder - but the freeholder normally employs a building management company to manage the building

• The building management company will arrange a locksmith and pay the locksmith for new keys/locks etc - presumably the locksmiths bill will be £255

• The building management company will send a service charge bill to your landlord for this - presumably £255

• Your landlord will probably ask their letting agent to deal with this

• Your letting agent will send a bill to you for £255

So, for example, you could ask the letting agent for a copy of the bill from the building management company - to make sure that your landlord really is being charged £255. (As opposed to being charged, say, £155 and adding £100 profit.)


In theory, you could ask your landlord to get a copy of the original locksmiths bill from the building management company - to make sure the locksmith really did charge £255. But your landlord might not be interested in helping you by doing that.


But it's also possible that...

• The building's management company are allowed to add, say, 10% to the locksmith's bill for the admin involved in arranging the locksmith

• Your landlord's letting agent is allowed to add, say, another 10% for the admin involved in paying the bill

So, if you want to persue this, it's a case of putting pressure on the letting agent and/or your landlord to find out what work is actually being done, and then you need to judge whether you're being 'ripped-off' and you want to challenge it.


(The problem is, it could be the locksmith, the building management company and/or the letting agent who are doing the 'ripping-off' - and you'd be the only one who cares, because you're the only one who will be out-of-pocket.)

csgohan4

Don't forget admin charges as well. Someone has to go and find the right locksmith, get quotes, chaperone them to the door and back, chase up the company for the quote, contact the LL for the costs. Maybe check with the insurers to see if the lock is acceptable

Then get the keys cut for x number of flats, collect at keysmith, label and go to each flat and explain

Locks don't change themselves.

OP you lost the key, and this is not just your front door, it is a communal door, so I am afraid you have to pay up. The management are under no obligation to show the invoice, your not their client. 

You can of course request it from your LL, who may or may not comply. 

£255 is looking cheap tbh

ljcash

eddddy said:

ljcash said:

Perhaps I should ask for the breakdown of the cost , however saying that I don’t know what I’d actually do when I got that information 

Just to clarify what would normally happen behind the scenes in this situation

• The building has a freeholder - but the freeholder normally employs a building management company to manage the building

• The building management company will arrange a locksmith and pay the locksmith for new keys/locks etc - presumably the locksmiths bill will be £255

• The building management company will send a service charge bill to your landlord for this - presumably £255

• Your landlord will probably ask their letting agent to deal with this

• Your letting agent will send a bill to you for £255

So, for example, you could ask the letting agent for a copy of the bill from the building management company - to make sure that your landlord really is being charged £255. (As opposed to being charged, say, £155 and adding £100 profit.)


In theory, you could ask your landlord to get a copy of the original locksmiths bill from the building management company - to make sure the locksmith really did charge £255. But your landlord might not be interested in helping you by doing that.


But it's also possible that...

• The building's management company are allowed to add, say, 10% to the locksmith's bill for the admin involved in arranging the locksmith

• Your landlord's letting agent is allowed to add, say, another 10% for the admin involved in paying the bill

So, if you want to persue this, it's a case of putting pressure on the letting agent and/or your landlord to find out what work is actually being done, and then you need to judge whether you're being 'ripped-off' and you want to challenge it.


(The problem is, it could be the locksmith, the building management company and/or the letting agent who are doing the 'ripping-off' - and you'd be the only one who cares, because you're the only one who will be out-of-pocket.)

Thank you that’s very helpful , I will speak to the letting agent re “the actual work being done “ 

Newnoel

Moral of the story is dont lose your keys. You are an adult.

Jenni_D

Does the process mentioned in this thread involve all flat residents/tenants getting new keys (and possibly individual locks)? If yes then I point you to this in the OP:

ljcash said:

I have lived here for 8 years and have never lost my key or been given a new one because another tenant has lost their key . I want to know if i can challenge this charge as i feel this is totally unreasonable . Thanks in advance 

(I'm assuming the OP is saying that another tenant previously lost their key but the OP has never been given a new key. Is that right @ljcash?)

If it's happened before, what is the OP getting for his £255?

Slithery

I assumed that it just meant that no-one has lost a key since the tenant has been living in the property.