Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Flip

1 2 3

Original poster

Rent deposit

56 replies

Unicorn1981 · 06/10/2016 22:30

I wasn't sure where to put this. Just hoping for some advice or guidance really please. We moved out of our rented property nearly 3 months ago and we still haven't had any of our £1600 deposit back. We lived there two years, gave plenty of notice and moved due to relocation. We kept the house and garden as clean as we could but when we moved in it wasn't in the best state (weeds in garden, worn skirting boards, stains on carpets). The bathroom was re grouted twice by the landlords son but whenever I cleaned any mould marks off the grout would come off. We kept garden tidy but weeds kept coming back. We basically left the house in the state we found it (possibly cleaner). Basically we received our end of tenancy report a couple of weeks ago which confirms wear and tear and small issues ie light bulbs not replaced. When we have chased the landlord to let us know what the next step is in regards to our deposit we get the landlord telling us to call his son; his son says my father has been on holiday or evicting some tenants from another property. My dp called the landlord this evening and he said he has discovered Japanese knotweed in the garden. DP said the garden was a mess when we moved in and relatively tidy when we moved out; we have pictures to show this. He said he would talk to his son then hung up! The deposit is in a protection scheme at least. What can we do?

OP posts:

SassyPasty · 07/10/2016 08:23

Is there a duel signed inventory of the condition of property, a list of any items in the property when you moved in? If the answer to that is no then your landlord will have little chance of claiming anything from the deposit as there is no proof.

JulietteL · 07/10/2016 10:19

Kick off the appeal process with the DPS. It's really quite straightforward and easy to do. Include as much evidence as possible: photos, inventories, copies of emails, dates and times of conversations and events etc. They then adjudicate the case. We went through this from the landlord's perspective - our tenants ripped the kitchen out without our knowledge and refused to take responsibility for the resulting damage - and we were awarded pretty much the entire deposit.

19lottie82 · 07/10/2016 11:52

Are you sure the deposit is definitely protected OP.

It seems strange that the LL said something along the lines of "he wants to keep it between us".

If it's protected then that would be impossible as everything is done through the DPS.

Check with the DPS that it's been protected, if it has put in a claim for the full deposit. If it hasn't come back and let us know and we will be able to let you know how to proceed.

Original poster

Unicorn1981 · 07/10/2016 12:01

I think he meant he wants to keep it amicable and come to an agreement between us. I'm sure it's protected. It's in the account thing of the dps. If that makes sense.

OP posts:

19lottie82 · 07/10/2016 12:06

Hi OP, what I mean is you can't "come to an arrangement between yourselves" if the deposit is protected, it's impossible. If he wants to make any deductions, he HAS to do put them through the deposit scheme. if you want to claim your deposit back you HAVE to do it through the scheme, there's no other way.

19lottie82 · 07/10/2016 12:07

If the deposit is protected your landlord should have provided you with the relevant paperwork within 30 days of your moving in date, but as explained if you call the DPS (deposit protection schem) then they will be able to tell you straight away if it is or not.

SavoyCabbage · 07/10/2016 12:12

Going through the scheme does not make it unamicable though. It's the normal way of doing things. You don't have to keep on this blokes good side in order to get your deposit back.

Original poster

Unicorn1981 · 07/10/2016 12:50

It definitely is in the scheme. You can see it when you log on. Well my dp did anyway. Well I think if they wanted to deduct money they should provide it in writing what the damage is and how much it would cost. But it's bye the by (or however you say it). They have insulted our intelligence trying to offer us £400. So are you saying if they wanted to take £1200 for themselves and £400 for us they would have to prove why that would be?

OP posts:

JulietteL · 07/10/2016 13:02

Exactly. The onus is on them to prove why deductions are fair. If they can't stack it up (and it sounds like they can't) then the DPS are likely to award you the full amount back.

I would also echo others' point that going via the DPS isn't an escalation or aggressive move - it's just how these things are sorted out.

Original poster

Unicorn1981 · 07/10/2016 13:07

I've just had a look and there is an option to decide on the distribution of the deposit between tenant and landlord and then do a dual claim. I think that's what the landlord means.

OP posts:

19lottie82 · 07/10/2016 13:22

Ah OK, but fuck that! Put in a claim for your FULL deposit, and if your LL wants to dispute this he must provide evidence, and a full dual signed inventory from when you moved in.

TrueBlueYorkshire · 07/10/2016 15:04

I would dispute it as you are likely to get the full deposit back unless they landlords has very good evidence (e.g. a signed inventory with photographic evidence).

Back before the DPS schemes existed i had a landlord who tried it on, i took him to court and the judge actually laughed in his face and told him to stop wasting the courts time. He was trying to claim £400 for a small bush that had died during a hose pipe ban and heatwave! lol.

TrueBlueYorkshire · 07/10/2016 15:07

Also if he hasn't registered the deposit then the local county court will likely order him to pay you up to 3x the deposit as compensation. It is against the law to not register a deposit within 30 days.

specialsubject · 07/10/2016 15:13

As a landlord - the landlord has to prove deductions because it is the tenant's money. Just make sure you raise a dispute and monitor what is going on.

If deposit not protected you can and should sue for it, you may.get up to 3 x value. Once the 30 day protection limit has expired from receipt of deposit, landlord cannot stop you sueing.

thehugemanatee · 07/10/2016 20:10

In my experience landlords always try to keep the deposit and you always have to fight to get it back. I once lost a deposit because there was a mark on a wall and instead of covering that they decided to paint the whole room and charged me for it.

Original poster

Unicorn1981 · 08/10/2016 12:31

That's crazy. We started our claim last night and my dp has had a missed call from the landlord this morning.

OP posts:

Original poster

Unicorn1981 · 08/10/2016 12:34

The thing that's annoying as well is there are things in the report that I'd like to dispute. For example the son came round to fix the bathroom and took a blind away. We agreed this between us but in the report it says not seen tenants responsibility. And there was stuff already left in kitchen cupboards when we moved on so we left them because they weren't ours. On the report it says items left tenants responsibility. So frustrating!

OP posts:

donajimena · 08/10/2016 12:42

I'm glad you have started the process. You (or your DP) were sounding a bit passive.
Don't agree any deductions. At all. He's probably banking on you settling for a deduction that doesn't seem too bad. Everything you have mentioned is not your responsibility.

Original poster

Unicorn1981 · 08/10/2016 13:07

We're not even going to talk to him now. I think I get a bit wary because I can sometimes appear a bit unreasonable when it comes to money so I have backed off a bit but now they are being very unreasonable so we will let it go through the dps. They took six weeks just to send the report through!

OP posts:

Original poster

Unicorn1981 · 08/10/2016 13:08

And posting on here has really helped us feel more confident we can have a 'case'.

OP posts:

ftc1 · 08/10/2016 14:53

I am Unicorns 'DP' and wanted to higjack the thread to get a bit moe advice as you've all been so helpful. I put the repayment claim in for the full amount with DPS yesterday and the landlord called this morning and was basically a bit abusive. He talked about bikes going missing from a shed and said he would call the police.

He then offerd to split the deposit 50/50. No chance! He then said he would see me in court....alrght then mate.

I'm not botherd about any of that nonesense but I was wondeng what I do if he doesn't engage with the repayment request -how long do I have to give him before submitting a 'single claim'? Does anyone have experiance with that process and is there anything to look out for?

On a side note - its hilarious how when an end of tenancy report leans in favour of the landlord it's the word of God, but when it doesn't it's a mistake!

JulietteL · 08/10/2016 15:23

He's trying to intimidate you. I would guess he's desperate to keep some of the deposit for his own reasons.

The deposit is YOUR money. If he wants to claim deductions the onus is on him to prove it.

It was a few years ago when we went through this process and I can't remember all of the details. (hopefully other posters have better knowledge). But I'd be very surprised if he decided to take you to Court rather than go through DPS, not least because even small claims would cost him money upfront, whereas DPS is free. And once both of you have agreed to go through DPS, the decision of the adjudicator is final.

My biggest piece of advice is on the importance of evidence. Our tenants nicked the kettle from the flat, but the adjudicator found against us on this point (but none of the rest) because we didn't have indisputable proof (inventory etc.) that the kettle had been there when they moved in (it was in a cupboard when the pics were taken!). So include every piece of evidence you have: photos of text messsages, emails etc. as they tend to discount assertions (as it's your word against theirs) and place most weight on objective evidence.

catch22squared · 08/10/2016 17:01

We've been through this from both sides. You need to go through the inventory from your check-in (the inventory company will provide this if you've mislaid it) and check it against his check-out report.

Are there bikes in the shed in the check-in report? No? Strikethrough!
Was the property cleaned to a professional standard when you moved in? No? Strikethrough!

In the case of the blind, if you didn't get anything in writing or mention in an email then he can potentially charge you for the blind. How old was the blind? Brand new? Don't have the receipt? Tough then. Strikethrough! If the blind was four years old, cost 30 pounds you'd probably have to pay about £8.

For example we damaged our LL's table. The table was described as high-end and an initial purchase value was set of £400. The DPS has a sliding scale which with the age of the table came out with a value of £200. We paid this. In fact, if we'd refused he would have had to have come up with the proof of purchase and shown that it was in perfect condition when we moved in, which he couldn't have done, because its condition wasn't discernible from the photos in the check-in report.

I don't have specialist knowledge but it seems incredibly unlikely that he could take you to court - the DPS will settle it (most likely in your favour).

Also, the DPS have to return the balance of your deposit immediately and only the disputed portion of it remains with them.

Good luck, don't take any settlement, you should get all your money back .

ftc1 · 08/10/2016 17:47

Thanks both. I have both inventory reports and it's mainly fair wear and tear, bikes aren't mentioned, on either. He is trying it on.

EssentialHummus · 08/10/2016 19:31

Ignore ignore ignore. Set out the claim in factual detail, attach evidence where necessary. You won't see him in court , it's decided by an adjudicator looking at the facts on paper.

Flip

1 2 3