Rent Guarantor

cp33c

Hi 

I'm hoping someone might be able to help or point me in the right direction of who to speak to. 

I've been recently contacted by a landlord for a property one of family members rented (and has vacated) for rent arrears and damages, which I was the guarantor for. The landlord has provided me with a breakdown of costs, however their figures are different to what they've told my family member, and the DPS have paid out in favour of the landlord, which hasn't been deducted from the amount that is now due, or at least that's how it appears. 

The family member has offered a repayment plan for the amount outstanding, however it was declined, which is why they've contacted me to settle the balance.

I have a some questions:
- if the DPS pays out the whole deposit to the landlord, should that have been deducted from the amount due?
- according to the tenancy agreement that I've received as proof, it says that if the tenancy agreement is to be renewed, then a new agreement would be created. I know the family member renewed their tenancy, so would that mean that I'm no longer the guarantor, as this appears to be the only agreement I've signed?
- how do I go about challenging the amount, considering the landlord has verbally confirmed different amounts with the family member as to what was owed? Does that matter? Does the amount that they've written to me asking for trump those verbal statements?
- if payment isn't made, what can the landlord do legally?

My concern is that this will go to court and I'll end up with it marking my credit file. I'm unsure how to treat the seriousness of the claim because the amounts have been different, and the landlord has refused to provide proof of the damage and costs to repair. If I pay the amount, can the landlord ask for more later on down the line?

Obviously, my relationship with my family member has reached an all time low, especially considering I had no idea that this was even going to happen, but I'm unsure how to protect myself with this matter.

Thanks

MyRealNameToo

So what does your guarantor agreement state? They can be drafted to be indefinite as long as the tenant remains in the property but you seem to be implying that isnt what it says. 

Also how was it executed? These will normally been done as deeds meaning each party has to sign and have their signature witnesses live because there is no consideration in the agreement. 

Are they asking you for more or less money? It should be the balance of damages after the deposit has been deducted but obviously they are free to offer incentives for early settlement to one party but not the other etc but its unclear from what's been said so far what's driving the delta. 

Outside of court there is no real way to make it impossible for them to come back, you can ask them to sign an agreement that its a full and final settlement but they could still go infront of a judge and argue that they found more damage after the payment was made etc. If the judge would allow it or not is another matter but it will still cost you time and effort if not expenses too. 

It will only go on your credit file if you are taken to court, lose and then dont pay the debt within a month... pay it off within the time limit and a CCJ isnt registered. 

cp33c

Many thanks for your reply.

The bits of paperwork that I've been provided with are unclear as to how long I'm a guarantor for. As mad as this sounds - it says that the tenancy was for 6 months and then monthly, however on the page that I've signed it says that if they wish to continue to the tenancy, then a new agreement would need to be created. Unfortunately, I don't remember agreeing to be a guarantor, however it was nearly a decade ago, and its definitely my signature on the page, so apart from it fraulent, which I doubt, I've obviously forgotten what I've signed up for!

In relation to your second question, the page shows that it was signed by someone at the lettings agency as the witness. 

The total amount is the bit I'm most confused about. So far, I appear to the only person who has received a breakdown of the amount due - the family member has asked a couple of times to only be told verbally (different amounts each time), which are less than the amount I've been asked to pay. 

If I let it go to court, will I also have to pay court fees? Obviously, I want this to be sorted so that it never comes back, but if I'm then going to be slapped with court fees, maybe the risk outweighs the court fee cost? We've learned during this process that the landlord has sold the property post my family member moving out, so I would like to think they would have a hard time of finding more damage. Also, just to put a timeline on this, my family member moved out in 2024, so its been a while. 

MyRealNameToo

Ok, if you can't remember even signing it you are unlikely to remember if they actually witnessed you signing it rather than you signed it, then brought it in and they signed after. The other party should also have signed with a witness seeing the signature and then signing against it. 

How much is the total? Assuming its under £10k then it would go into the small track which in principle means lawyers fees etc cannot be added to the claim but the losing party generally will be responsible for paying the courts own fees which are based on the amount claimed and how far through the process it goes. 

There can be some gotchas though as contracts can stipulate that recovery costs are recoverable and at times the judge will consider this and award costs (they have a lot of discretion and can also award costs for various other reasons inc breaching the civil procedural rules and/or not making proper efforts to resolve out of court. 

martindow

cp33c said:

As mad as this sounds - it says that the tenancy was for 6 months and then monthly, however on the page that I've signed it says that if they wish to continue to the tenancy, then a new agreement would need to be created. 

Can you post the exact wording, removing any names or other identifying text of course?  There are people here who could comment on whether this lets you off the hook or not.