Deposit Disbute

[jack864]

Hi everyone,

I'm having issues getting my deposit back from my old landlord.

There are a number of things which I'm disbuting which he is saying we owe. The first one is he is stating the following clause in the tenancy agreement is an admin fee which I owe:
"£80+ VAT towards the preparation of this agreement and the cost of one credit check."

I originally queried this with the Estate agent before I signed the contract and they said it wasn't their contract but believe it has been covered by their fees (note the estate agent conducted the credit check).

Secondly, we left the property a week early and the landlord said that the difference they owe would be paid alongside the deposit return (this has not). It was agreed in email but as the contract states a specific end date can this be enforced?

Thirdly, we were only told the additional payments (£100 +VAT) for cleaning after 11days after the contract ended. I thought they had to be specified within 10 days. Can these be legally taken from the deposit now?

There is a charge of £210+VAT for a checkout charge which I'm not disbuting as I expected that through the contract.

Any advise on where I stand legally in getting my deposit back + additional for leaving the property early would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

Jack.

[Kati]

Re: Deposit Disbute

tagging [MENTION=15129]Crazy council[/MENTION] xx

[jack864]

Re: Deposit Disbute

Here's the latest from the LL:

"understand the Estate agent is an independent body from us as you continue referring to the organisation and also acknowledge your agreement was prepared by us of which £80 was charged for the AST thanks."

During the signing of the contract the estate agent was the only company we were dealing with.

[Crazy council]

Re: Deposit Disbute

Hi

I could do with seeing this agreement, ( a redacted copy )

That check out charge seems high, what type of property was /are you renting

tenancy agreement is an admin fee which I owe:
"£80+ VAT towards the preparation of this agreement and the cost of one credit check."

I originally queried this with the Estate agent before I signed the contract and they said it wasn't their contract but believe it has been covered by their fees (note the estate agent conducted the credit check).

Did you pay a fee with the agent, but theres another fee within the contract, to pay the LL aswell

[Diana M]

Re: Deposit Disbute

Was the deposit protected in a Government backed scheme? If so (and it must be by law) then raise these issues formally with the scheme and they will sort this for you.

The not so good news is in law a tenant owes rent according to the tenancy agreement end date. If you have anything in writing from the landlord or their agent stating 'early release' then that may help.

Di

[jack864]

Re: Deposit Disbute

[MENTION=15129]Crazy council[/MENTION], it's a two bed flat that was rented. There was an Estate agent fee of £400 which included two credit checks. This "admin" £80+vat fee states is for the arrangement of the agreement and one credit check.

Im away for a week on holiday atm so won't be able to get a redacted copy of the agreement until then. Then check out clause stated:

"The Tenant shall pay £210 + VAT for the costs of the inventory check out inspection which is arranged by the Agent and which is required at the end of the Tenancy.

The Tenant shall pay £75 + VAT per letter sent by the Landlord or the Agent in respect of Rent that remains unpaid after it has become payable."

@Di, it's protected under mydeposit.co.uk

The wording of the email the LL send was a bit fluffy around giving money back for leaving early, I basically said I overpaid by paying the full amount and could he refund it me and he replied stating he will give it back with the deposit.

[Crazy council]

Re: Deposit Disbute

Thats a lot of fees unless your in London,

Am just not sure about if a LL can charge a check-out fee from the deposit in that way. It would depend on the terms with MyDeposit, but, usually only covers rent/repairs and legal cost to claim rent/repairs/property back.

The rent thing ( week early ) is in the LL's favour, the end of the contract is the declared end, unless the LL agrees the earlyer date

[Diana M]

Re: Deposit Disbute

@Di, it's protected under mydeposit.co.uk .

Good.

If you asked the Landlord to return your deposit then he must do this within 10 days of your request or explain his reasons for withholding any of your deposit.

If you're not happy with his response then refer the dispute to My Deposits.

Read their FAQ here > https://www.mydeposits.co.uk/tenants/faqs/?cookies=1

The starting point is if it's in the tenancy agreement which you signed then you have to pay it (defined fees/charges etc). It's hard to argue 'unreasonable' in hindsight. If the charge is not 'defined' i.e. check-out cost then you can ask for the receipt form the Inventory service providers as proof.

If it's 'discretionary' items such as damage then that's up for debate.

I'm afraid fluffy emails may not help you.

However if the Landlord replaced you with new tenants for that last week of your tenancy then he can't charge twice for the rent. That's how a court would see it and that's how My Deposits ought to see it too.

Di

[jack864]

Re: Deposit Disbute

I did ask them for a breakdown of the checkout cost and receipt also a receipt for the credit check but they have said the request is not on line with their company procedures. And then started he didn't want to be spending any more time on this (him replying to my requests and clarifications).

I can see if I do get the full deposit back through dispute then they may start chasing me for the costs outside of the deposit.

[Diana M]

Re: Deposit Disbute

I did ask them for a breakdown of the checkout cost and receipt also a receipt for the credit check but they have said the request is not on line with their company procedures. And then started he didn't want to be spending any more time on this (him replying to my requests and clarifications).

I can see if I do get the full deposit back through dispute then they may start chasing me for the costs outside of the deposit.

Are you dealing with this through the agent or the Landlord direct?

If it's the agent being dismissive then ask them to send you a copy of their Complaints Procedure and check whether they're a member of The Property Ombudsman or another third party redress scheme (they have to be by law). That should make them focus on your problem

You said in an earlier post that you had already paid the agent £400 upfront for the admin costs (credit checks and AST agreement?) so I wonder if the Landlord is attempting to charge you for his admin costs too?

Di

[jack864]

Re: Deposit Disbute

Currently dealing with the landlord, they've now said the clause should have been amended before I signed it and they are reducing the amount by £29.50 (the cost of a credit check).

They certainly are claiming the remainder in that clause is an admin cost. Also they're still trying to charge the £100+vat for cleaning (even thought I was notified after 10 days of this charge).

And they are unwilling to provide an invoice for the inventory check out which they are charging me.

Plus side, they are now sending the undisputed amount back to me.

[Diana M]

Re: Deposit Disbute

Currently dealing with the landlord . . .

Plus side, they are now sending the undisputed amount back to me.

Good.

So raise your dispute with My Deposits who will ask the Landlord to pay the disputed sum to them which they will hold until the Adjudicator makes a decision.

In my experience they tend to favour Tenants if anything is doubtful

Di