Landlord threatening me with small claims court - help

andyeyeam

I recently rented a flat for 18 months. When cleaning before leaving I moved the bed to vacuum and found moth damage to the carpet. I informed the landlord. He said he wanted £150 for the damage. I offered him £100 which he accepted and the deposit,was released with him getting £100 and me the rest. Since then I have had messages on WhatsApp saying that the cost of repair is greater and he wants more. He has threatened me with a small claims court. I have refused to pay him any more but I would like any advice here has to whether the Landlord might win against me and cause me even more money to he paid out. Any help gratefully received.

la531983

Have you got proof he accepted £100 in full and final settlement? Assume you must have as the deposit was protected and the deduction was made.

FlorayG

I would have thought he should have known beforehand that it was going to be expensive. I moved in here to find the carpets moth damaged and the only 'repair' possible is to replace the carpet - so he's probably going to be 'out' several hundred pounds, however you have an agreed damage payment with him so I think he will struggle to get any more out of you. Small claims are very pragmatic, he will probably be told that he should have got a price for repair before agreeing to accept £100

andyeyeam

la531983 said:

Have you got proof he accepted £100 in full and final settlement? Assume you must have as the deposit was protected and the deduction was made.

He settled on the deposit. He got £100 and I got the rest. I guess my worry is that despite the deposit, the Small Claims will rule in his favour. I will end up having to pay him more plus any legal expenses. I suppose that is possible. To be honest, the flat was in a terrible state when I moved in, the fridge did not work for the first 3 months. But to the Small Claims court that is irrelevant.

la531983

You still have a copy of the conversation with him also?

You are unduly worrying, I suspect he wont put his money where his mouth is anyway.

theartfullodger

Suggest formal counterclaim against this penny- pinching bully. On MCoL online.

FlorayG

Can the landlord prove that you introduced the moths? Was the carpet inspected before you moved in? Quite often they are not noticed until they start to destroy things

_Penny_Dreadful

andyeyeam said:

I recently rented a flat for 18 months. When cleaning before leaving I moved the bed to vacuum and found moth damage to the carpet. I informed the landlord. He said he wanted £150 for the damage. I offered him £100 which he accepted and the deposit,was released with him getting £100 and me the rest. Since then I have had messages on WhatsApp saying that the cost of repair is greater and he wants more. He has threatened me with a small claims court. I have refused to pay him any more but I would like any advice here has to whether the Landlord might win against me and cause me even more money to he paid out. Any help gratefully received.

Generally speaking courts don't like landlord's going back for a second bite of the cherry.  He had is opportunity to deduct money from your deposit, which he did, via the deposit scheme.  He should have done his homework before agreeing to the £100.  The landlord is not entitled to betterment so depending on the age of the carpet £100 could actually have been as much as he was ever going to get anyway.

Are you sure it was moths that damaged the carpet?

I'd be tempted to block him on WhatsApp.  Should he ever go as far as filing a MCOL I think you could defend it by showing that a deduction was already made via the deposit scheme.

deannagone

I would also be questioning who brought the moth problem about.  People often don't vacuum regularly under beds and sofa's but it takes time for moths to dig in and cause a serious amount of damage to fabrics (although once its happened its irreversible obviously).  The moth problem may have been caused by a previous tenant.  I'd also agree that the LL has had his chance.  I hope you have photos of the state of the property when you moved in..,this would support an argument that the carpet wasn't worth much.  But I doubt the LL will pursue it.  If he does, you have plenty of ways to defend against any claim.

pinkshoes

Firstly (and as above), can the LL prove that the moth damage WASN'T there when you moved in? What does the inventory say? If he can't then lucky him getting £100!

Secondly, the LL cannot claim betterment. How old was the carpet? Depending on the quality, if the carpet was already say 8 years old, then the £100 sounds fair as it would need replacing soon anyway.

It almost sounds as if he accepted the £100 too quickly as perhaps he knew it was already there pre-tenancy?!?!

andyeyeam

Thanks everyone for all the advice and information here. Is has been very helpful. If does post and MCOL I will be standing my gound based on the comments. If I lose so be it. Thanks again,