Show of hands please

[lalalonglegs]

A friend has just bought a flat with a balcony. Flat is in good order, the seller left it clean and nice but the key for the door to the balcony is missing and the door is locked so it will need a locksmith to fix it. Friend says she will demand the seller pays this cost, I say it's not worth hassle and, as the seller now has her money, it's going to be very hard to get it anyway (especially as friend got a bargain in the first place). Thoughts?

You called?

Not worth the hassle probably. Assume there's something in the inventory about exactly what's included. When we bought we were told how many keys and to what we would be given. If there's no key for the balcony mentioned, I don't think she'll get anywhere.

I would request my solicitor contact seller and ask for key and state that she will be seeking compensation for cost of locksmith if key isn't produced. It will more than likely be a waste of time but worth a try as, obviously, she should have been given a key.

Oops .

No, inventory just says door furniture - which I take to mean handles etc - rather than keys.

Door furniture would include the lock so it is reasonable to expect a key to go with it!

The keys should be left.

If there's a key. There may be no key in existence.

We had this with a flat we bought, there was no garage key, the previous owner however only moved down the road and left contact details so we could send her the bill for changing the lock.
I would however have sent a letter via solicitor just to make myself feel better if she hadn't done this. She may not get anywhere, but you never know...?
If it's patio doors... which I assume are upvc, the lock change may cost a fortune, in which case I certainly would not be paying it myself

Worth a call to ask for the keys - the seller may still have a copy.

It could be a genuine mistake. When we moved into our new house the key supposed to be for the shed didn't fit the lock, we contacted the agent who contacted the vendor-who turned up that evening full of apologies with the right key.