Haven’t paid rent in months!

Sorry OP, I haven't read the whole thread, but my first move would be to call the LL and tell him you think there's been some sort of problem with the bank, and you are going to call them to find out what's happened, and will get back to him as soon as possible. This will show him that you're about to become pro-active. As soon as you've done this, then check exactly what date the rent stopped being paid, and call your bank to find out why. Did you cancel the Standing Order? Have the bank themselves made an error? Presumably one of these must have happened, if you've been paying for 3 1/2 years by Standing Order without any problems. Once you've spoken to the bank, you will know if the error is yours, at that point, if it is your fault, I would ring the person who was kind enough to agree to be your Guarantor, and explain to them what has happened. Clearly you need to grovel if it's been your mistake, but I would then ask them if they would be in a position to lend you the money, so that you can immediately pay your LL what you owe him. If they are, then call your LL back and tell him when the Guarantor has said they can pay, that will get him off your back. If however the Guarantor has said they don't have a lump sum to pay, then you need to talk to the LL, be completely honest with him, and ask him to give you a couple of days to see if you can borrow the money from someone else, but whatever you do, do not avoid the LL, or tell him ANY lies, as the minute you're dishonest with him, you're going to give him a reason to set the wheels in motion to evict you. Sadly, this situation, assuming it is of your making, is going to leave your Guarantor in the crap, as one way or another they are going to have to find the money, as they've signed a legal document agreeing to do this.

Once you’ve got the rent situation resolved, I would then make an appointment to see someone at Citizen’s Advice, to see if they can help you resolve all the other bills that you haven’t paid.

This all assumes of course that this story is true in the first place??

Just to counter all the angels on here who know people or have with severe learning difficulties and are capable of managing their money well - I can easily imagine myself getting into a similar storm. Only by the grace of my partner being able to manage out finances that I don’t.

I hate all the smug comments. I hope they don’t let you stop reading the useful ones.

The good news is you’ve been a good tennant for a while so you’ve built up some positive favour, and it’s extraordinarily difficult to kick out tenants who don’t pay their rent so your landlord will be inclined to support you in paying back your rent and not kicking you out.

My first port of call would be to sell whatever I could, get yourself a little mini shop going. Take good pictures. Get postal bags, advertise in numerous places and anything you’ve got with value - get it gone and start feeding into your rental debt. Anyone who owes you money - start chasing them.

those would be my first actions.

Then I’d go to CAB and ask if they have any debt support, financial literacy classes you can join. Any more benefits you can claim to increase the funds you have.

good luck.

Talk to your guarantor is they may be willing to help you with a repayment plan rather than get hit with the full whack and have you homeless (I presume they care very much about you as I would struggle to go gaurantor for even a family member).

I can't see how you've not noticed the unpaid rent piling up in your account- it's either still there if you've not spent it (perhaps your MH has prevented you from checking you bank account) or you've spent it knowingly.

Speak to your landlord and be totally honest as this won't go away unfortunately

I think that’s the trouble with cards. It doesn’t feel like you’re spending ‘real’ money. At least with cash, if you’ve only got £50, you can only spend £50. With a card, the spending is unlimited.

Has the landlord not said anything about the missing payments? I would have thought he had noticed as well before now. Six months is a lot if money.

Countless people have no idea at all how much money is in their account. They often find it too triggering to look. They just tap their cards with their fingers crossed there's enough to cover their purchase. When there isn't they have to borrow from friends, use foodbanks or go without. When there is they're just very grateful
this is insane, why should everyone else shore up someone too daft to check
their bank??
I'm astounded anyone lives like this!

Need more information.
Do you work? If not are you sure it isn't being paid straight to tour landlord?
How much is your part of the six months rent? Depending on where you live it could be a few pounds top up each month or £10,000.
Are you claiming all you're entitled to?
Do you receive PIP? Applying and getting an appointee and help with managing money will help going forward.
I'd suggest somewhere like Shelter or Christians against poverty (you don't have to be Christian), to help advise you and hopefully you can find a solution.
You've made the hardest step with reaching out. Good luck.

@Scarfitwere yep - I'm not exactly one of life's savers- but do know that bills have been paid that month- thing is if you had lots of money extra per month you wouldn't really notice the COL

It doesn't matter if she doesn't have it.

They will take her guarantor to court and make them pay up in full.

This.

Unfortunately if this really is true your landlord is going to be unlikely to believe that you are so low on funds you can't pay now, but didn't notice for 6 months despite being on such a tight budget.

Have you called him OP?

You’ll feel much better once you’ve spoken to him and know where you stand.

I could possibly see not realising that you hadn't set up a standing order properly but it's a stretch to think you've spent 1000s of pounds extra over 6 months and not noticed, even with the COL.

Maybe, but these people don't deserve empathy, that's pure stupidity and completely their own fault

Good luck OP. I have come to agreements with tenants before whi missed rent. They've paid a small extra amount each month and made up the missed rent over a longer period of time. One tenant missed two months and paid it back over a year for example. Course you work put if you could afford a small extra amount each month and offer that to your landlord?

Yes , this . Not everyone is up to speed with internet banking … but not checking for 6 months .

I would offer around £10 a month to the other bills.
If she’s behind on quite a few then that could easily add up, especially on top of the normal bills too.

They cannot ask for more if you physically don’t have it.

The rent arrears, I would try and get a discretionary housing payment and clear all/a chunk of the arrears and then speak to the LL.

What she pays would depend on how much gets cleared etc.
I pay £50 a month extra but only owe a couple of hundred.

The LL may say she needs to pay all of it by the end of the month or something but she won’t know until she’s spoken to him.

The main thing is speaking to all of them and attempting to repay what she owes.
If she ignores it, then it’ll only get worse.

My sympathy is a bit limited here. Sorry. How could you be so blinkered? I get that you have mental health struggles but still ...

Saw a similar situation on one of the tv bailiff programmes once. The person hadn’t paid rent for months, then left the property in an awful state. The landlord managed to evict her eventually, but it took a while.

Because everything has got so hideously expensive and she's just said she does not check her bank.

This!

Absolutely this! Why do people not take personal responsibility for themselves these days. She'll be in the Sun with a compo face on when she gets kicked out no doubt

As a landlord the most stressful thing is not knowing.
I would ring him if you feel able or if not send him a text and be completely honest.
Eg really sorry have realised I haven't paid my rent, not sure what has happened with the direct debit. I can see I'm in arrears of x amount.
On the day the rent is next due eg the 1 st of next month I will pay the rent for that month in full. Would it be possible to make a repayment plan for the rest?
I need the rent to pay the mortgage and without it it causes me major issues but as he hasn't contacted you in 6 months he will probably just be glad that you are offering him a solution. If his son has died and he isn't desperate for the money he will probably just not have the headspace for any stress and will want to find the easiest solution eg you contact him and come up with a plan and stick to it.
Can you also check you are claiming everything you are entitled to?
Good luck.

To be honest if my son had died and l had inherited his rental property with a single mum with 3 children living in it I wouldn't be that bothered about the rental income.
(I'm assuming that the way it all came about that the landlord is not financially dependent on the rent).
I know loads of very MC people (they all have met through going to private school together) who live completely rent free in other people's houses because getting in tenants and dealing with tax and the red tape isn't appealing when you don't need the money. I don't know loads of people but I know of at least 4 couples/families who pay no rent and but live in lovely houses owned by friends or friends of friends or random landowners.

Not everyone is constantly money grabbing and people do help even non-related people out

It could be the case that he does not want the back rent, discuss it with him, but please explore that option before getting into debt. He's lost a son, he'll understand that life isn't just about £ and how difficult it can be.

Hope it goes well.

If you're struggling with the COL whilst spending the "extra" rent in your account, how on earth are you going to be able to pay back what you owe. You need to deal with this today. You need advice from someone like shelter, you need to make a budget and get rid of every single payment that's not absolutely essential and you need to approach your landlord with a plan. You also need to speak to your guarantor because there's no guarantee your landlord will let you have a repayment plan and might just bill your guarantor instead.