Lodger freakout deposit IDKif i can do this anymore

[ForOliveTiger]

Lodger is insisting on deducting her deposit from this months rent before leaving the house. It's now incredibly awkward and I have to live with her for another 3-4 weeks.

We have been going round in circles for hours. She has run up a £1,000 British Gas bill by having 1 hour shower every night. I feel like she's trying to bully and intimidate me and I really don't feel comfortable with her in my home anymore. The fact she is so insistent makes me think there IS damage she doesn't want me to know about.

I have unreservedly reassured her I will refund her deposit but she won't have it.

You're allowed to earn £7,500 per year tax free from lodgers.

https://www.gov.uk/rent-room-in-your-home/the-rent-a-room-scheme

Lodgers have zero rights preventing eviction.

People that take in lodgers are not obliged to place deposits in third party schemes.

You clearly don't know anything about this subject.

I had tenants that wanted to do this, I said absolutely not and I’m glad I did as the place was a mess

Haven't read the whole thread but 2 pages in I've switched sides. You tried to make her pay a £1000 bill, which it is obvious her long showers can not be responsible for. This has understandably made her very nervous about her deposit. I wouldn't be trusting you either OP.
You need a lot of advice before considering another lodger.

On the other hand, it means there's no record of an agreed notice period, so OP can freely tell lodger to go now.

Do you have an agreement? Always wise to have one. For now, just tell her to leave. Shove her deposit in her face and say 'go'. She cannot insist on living in your property in this way.

I am a landlord of a property and have successfully had a lodger living with me for over 5 years without any issue. You just want to hear what you want. People saying “she has no rights” are very misguided. You sound like someone with very poor business (and common) sense.

😳 Hope OP updates later 😬

How has she run up a £1000 gas bill having showers?! We don’t use gas (only electric), but between the 4 of us, easily use the shower for 1 hour a day. Our bill is £150 a month. 😳

So you have a lodger in a tiny 1 up 1 down house? There's an energy bill that you are simultaneously blaming her for and disputing with the energy company, but that you supposedly moved on from a while ago? And you have told her that you will return her deposit, but you don't actually intend to because you want to use it for this energy bill? No shit she doesn't want to pay, she knows very well that you wont give her deposit back.
£625pm to share a 1 bed house, without bills. Do you live in a posh bit of zone 1? Or are you ripping her off because you know she can't legally rent anywhere else?

She admitted that’s her plan - to keep the deposit to cover the bill that the lodger didn’t cause!

She's not a tenant. The difference between a tenant and a lodger is important here.

I don't think she has? She's asked the lodger to pay a share of the bill as agreed.

What tenancy deposit scheme? The lodger isn't a tenant.

You shouldn't keep her money in case you need to cover a bill that's currently being disputed.
The bill isn't unreasonable for an electric shower.
YABU.

That is what has got you into this predicament in the first place. You need to concentrate on getting her out of your house before she does any more damage. She doesn't have a lot of rights if you share a house.

Op, have you got a good evidence base re the increase in bills? E.g previous bills based on actual readings, not estimates to compare the usage to. I would make sure that you take a photo today of meter readings before the lodger moves out. I would give her an undertaking that if there is any refund from the electric company from the bill you have challenged that you will send her a pro rata refund, but that as at this moment the bill stands as it is.

Has she paid you anything at all towards her 50% of the bills?
I would also, if you can, take a photo of her room today, including any evidence of electric heaters, to record the condition of the room in the event of any malicious damage done on the way out.

TBH I’m not convinced that switching off the electric is reasonable, and certainly in a landlord /tenant scenario would be viewed as unlawful harassment (I’m aware this is a lodger situation, but I think the same principle applies wrt reasonableness).

Going forward, if you decide to let out a room again then I would start off with better boundaries and written expectations about sharing of bills, notice periods and return of deposit (including what the deposit is actually for, ie unpaid bills, damage or other monies owing). Also put in a fair usage clause into any future agreement.

Just tell her you are terminating her lodging as of next week. Do it in writing. She needs to move out You aren’t getting a month’s rent from her under any circumstances, that’s clear from the tone of her text. Be ready to change locks.

Then she is a guest in your home & must leave.

she is bullying you & cannot be trusted.

she must go.

I'd tell her to leave by the end of the weekend! Americans often do a 'first and last months cheque' deposit is different

By far the most likely explanation for the energy bill increase is that previous bills, before the tenant came, were estimates.

Why would the lodger trust the OP to return a later refund? She's already misled her by telling her she'll get the deposit back if her room is "immaculate" when she's planning to keep part towards bills. She's turned off electricity and Wi-Fi because her lodger has disagreed with her and for some reason that's supposed to be "scary" - she's not behind on payment yet. It's classic DARVO and OP is not currently showing enough maturity to deal fairly with lodgers in her home.

I think that response might be courtesy of ChatGPT.

Previous thread OP this is you right? This set up is mad.

Wow. So OP is charging a woman £650/month to live in her kitchen in Cambridge.
Welcome to broken Britain.

That bill sounds incredible. I shower twice a day, with an electricity only house and my bill is a fraction of that (I take long showers too.)