Difficult case of overpaid rent...

[deflater2]

Hi everyone,

In the summer of 2020 we got kicked out of our shared house in London by our agent due to a "Family Emergency" of the landlord, we were given a 30 day notice. I thought I had cancelled my direct debit but unfortunately this was not the case and I continued to pay rent for the two subsequent months.

Ever since I have been trying to retrieve the overpaid rent and two weeks ago they told me the contract I had was actually with another company (let's say Blue Ltd) different than the agent's company (let's say Purple Ltd) I have been in contact with the whole time. They said the company is no longer active and I would need to contact a certain unknown person to ask him to send my money back. This person has not responded to any of my emails and his phone number is of a conference call company...

During my tenancy, I had been in contact with employees of Purple Ltd the entire time, additionally, the room was advertised on the website of Purple Ltd. Furthermore, Blue Ltd and Purple Ltd had the same director (let's call him Steve) during my tenancy. Before I signed the contract, they reassured me that Blue Ltd was an affiliated company of Purple Ltd (over the phone, no proof). About three weeks ago however, they called me and said the company is no longer active and I checked online to see that the Steve's Director appointment of Blue Ltd was terminated 2 months ago, he remains the director of Purple Ltd.

My gut feeling says that it would be difficult to retrieve my money if I tried to take Blue Ltd to court, given the fact it is an inactive company. Is there any chance I could instead sue Purple Ltd for misrepresentation?

Any advice on what would be the best course of legal action here?

Would appreciate any insights and can of course clarify if any of the above is unclear.

Thanks for your time and help in advance.

Felix

[EnglandPi]

If you sue the wrong legal entity you will fail. If you have a copy of your original contract then that is the entity you need to sue.

If that company no longer exists and they were a limited company you have no redress.

The fact that they had the same director is irrelevant. Having said that something doesn’t smell right and needs further investigation.

What process was used to kick you out of the property?

Have you tried asking your bank for the money back?

[deflater2]

Thanks Englandpi, I agree, something doesn't smell right - certainly seems sketchy.

What process was used to kick you out of the property?
They sent us a letter saying we should leave the house in the next 30 days and referred to a paragraph in the tenancy agreement which allowed them to do so in case of emergencies. I knew that in practice it is difficult to actually kick out tenants like this, but we spared ourselves the hassle and decided to comply with their request.

Have you tried asking your bank for the money back?
I can try but I did not think banks usually do this. I paid from Revolut so can certainly give it a shot but seems unlikely.

The total amount they owe me is about 2,000 - probably too small of an amount to find a solicitor that would be willing to help on a success fee basis..

[ploddertom]

Look up Direct Debit Guarantee