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Original poster

Landlord Help please?

23 replies

RubyBlueberry · 28/09/2009 15:50

DH and kids and I have just bought our first house after renting for 6 years.

The landlord that we had said he was "more than happy with us", we paid rent on time and improved the house by decorating (to his standard) and installing a new kitchen (old one was sticky, saggy, dirty and only had 3 drawers). He did no improvements or renovations in the 4 1/2 years we were there.

Now the lettings agent has been round to view empty property and he has raised concerns about a cracked bath panel, cracked bath, and cracked window pane. All these mean the repairs for these would be coming out of our bond (£750 which we need for a kitchen here at new house!)

My point is, I told landlord about cracked bath panel 2 years ago, it was badly fitted and leaked, the cracked bath 1 year ago and the cracked window appeared the month before we were due to move out, it's a really high window and there's no way that anything hit it!! We also asked him repeatedly for 4 years if we can have some new carpets cos the ones that were in had holes in them.

Are we being unreasonable in being highly pissed off that he uses our bond to pay for a new bath, panel and window? Haven't we improved his house for him?

OP posts:

Hassled · 28/09/2009 15:53

YANBU, but I don't know what you can do about it. Talk to the CAB etc re your rights? I know there was much fuss in the press a couple years ago re landlors/agents withholding deposits for trivial stuff and I think there was some change in regulations then.

Hopefully someone with a clue will come along - you could try putting this in Legal.

QueenOfFuckingEverything · 28/09/2009 15:53

Did you renew the tenancy/sign a new agreement at any point during the 4 years? If it was renewed after April 2007, the deposit should have been in a protection scheme and he cannot just make deductions without your consent.

LIZS · 28/09/2009 15:58

If damage happened during your tenancy then regardless of when you reported it, he is within his rights to withhold money. You took the opportunity to improve the house for yourselves as much as him and that in itself doesn't recompense damage eslewhere . Sorry. Ask if he can claim anything from insurers with you paying the excess.

Original poster

RubyBlueberry · 28/09/2009 19:16

Hiya - I know he has it in a deposit scheme thing. But good point and great idea about the excess - will bring that one up!

OP posts:

HerHonesty · 28/09/2009 19:19

firstly, not sure what the carpet has to do with anything?

secondly, unfortunately, if you did damage the bath, bath panel and window then well really, you have to pay for the damage. If they were like it when you moved in surely you had them noted on your inventory?

Original poster

RubyBlueberry · 28/09/2009 19:33

I did damage the bath by a bottle dropping in it but the bath panel was loose, badly fitted and eventually snapped off, we reported it 2 years ago and had the sharp edges covered over with tape and gauze.
He has had the bits to replace it for months but as we'd given notice he didn't want to replace them.

I didn't cause the crack in the window, it honestly just appreared one day in the Summer!

I just feel that if I'd had to live with the shitty holed carpets, broken bath and panel and cracked window he should think of that and the value of the kitchen we put in before taking the value of the knackered stuff off our deposit/bond..! IYKWIM!!

OP posts:

stuffitllllama · 28/09/2009 19:35

you actually paid for a new kitchen?

you should take it out again and put the old one back

I'm a landlord and this is crappy beyond belief

what an excuse me what a bastard

HerHonesty · 28/09/2009 19:37

i do not what you mean but i think the whole kitchen is an irrelevance, of course he's not going to take that into account (he's running a business).

i dont think there's a lot you can do - other than to pay the costs directly yourself then you at least have control over them. sorry not to be more positive.

stuffitllllama · 28/09/2009 19:37

if it's in a deposit scheme you could well get someone on your side who feels the same way

have you got all receipts, all emails, all that kind of stuff

get something in writing quickly

this is so unfair

i wouldn't even charge for the bath.. he plainly needs to upgrade and is trying to squeeze you for some of it

HerHonesty · 28/09/2009 19:41

did you not have your own insurance?

Original poster

RubyBlueberry · 28/09/2009 19:46

Yes - but I stupidly thought he would have some kind of landlord insurance thing. My pal is a landlady and she said her insurance would cover stuff like wear and tear? That's what I am so pissed off about, wear and tear is natural, he can't expect to keep his house pristine, replacing nothing in 4 years??

As I have now moved out of there, I have cancelled my Insurance on that house so I won't be able to make any claims.

Think I've learned my lesson, but hopefully will not have to rent again.

OP posts:

stuffitllllama · 28/09/2009 19:47

ruby, don't give up hope, you should fight this

there is allowance for wear and tear and if you notified of the damage it is very very moot whether you should pay for it

HerHonesty · 28/09/2009 19:50

yes, he probably does, but it may not cover accidental damage to contents by tenants. Wear and tear is not covered by insurance.

Your insurance will still cover you if you make a claim related to the time you were in the property as long as you can prove it happened when you were there and not afterwards - but you may have to have informed them at the time, check in anycase.

sorry - hope new house is fab..

iheartdusty · 28/09/2009 19:51

bath panel and window should be under 'fair wear and tear' and he should not be able to hold anything back for those.

the damaged bath was your responsibility, from what you have said, but as you have been tenants for 6 years the measure of his 'loss' is the cost of a new bath MINUS the value of a 6 year old bath - ie he shouldn't expect to get a brand new bath at your expense in place of a regularly used older one.

agree with those who have said use the deposit scheme, they will have a dispute service.

Original poster

RubyBlueberry · 29/09/2009 22:40

Oh well now he says he wants £100 of the £750 deposit to re-paper a wall and fill in a hole where the stairgate was attached. Nothing else was mentioned, there's no way I'm gonna win! !!

OP posts:

HerHonesty · 30/09/2009 14:52

£100 on top of all the other stuff too? how much is he taking off altogether?

Original poster

RubyBlueberry · 30/09/2009 16:25

Oh, he says "just" £100 to be taken off, the other stuff he has "taken into consideration".

Funnily enough, the previous tenant is a pal on facebook, she says he tried witholding their deposit as well, they had to fight for it!

OP posts:

HerHonesty · 30/09/2009 16:36

i actually dont think 100 for everything is that bad. he's not witholding your deposit in total?

PfftTheMagicDragon · 30/09/2009 16:44

There is an allowance for wear and tear but that does not cover damage. You dropping something in the bath is not wear and tear, it's damage. So he can put in a new one. But unless it was brand new when you moved in, you don't have to pay for a new one. You only have to pay a proportion of the cost to allow for the fact that you only have to put it back to how it was when you moved in.

If something has become damaged as a direct result of it being poorly fitted, then I would fight that. We are going through this at the moment.

Don't think he will do the decent thing, some landlords seem to think that deposit is theirs to do as they please.

Original poster

RubyBlueberry · 30/09/2009 16:59

It is causing no end of hassle with DH, he thinks we should pay but I want the landlord to acknowledge everything we did to improve the property has an equal effect and has improved the value of his house!!!!!!!

I have offered to pay half and that's it. I am so f@cked off, xcuse me french but I am literally shaking with rage at DH's agreement with the landlord. How can he not get it?

OP posts:

HerHonesty · 30/09/2009 17:35

but the labour to get someone in to fit a new bath and repair the damage would cost well over 100. as for the kitchen, you should have asked for a reduction in the rent at the time!

Original poster

RubyBlueberry · 30/09/2009 17:38

It's not the new bath he wants paying for, it's a wall he wants papering and a hole in the newel (sp?) post that we had to cut to fit stairgate.

We did ask for a rent reduction!

OP posts:

PfftTheMagicDragon · 30/09/2009 18:08

You need to think about where this is going.

You accept that you broke the bath, say that the panel was down to bad fitting and have no idea about the window. So what is the plan? Will you take it to court? Will the landlord accpet anything less than full payment for all repairs?

You need to do some research, get some facts straight and start getting things written down properly.

How old was the bath when you moved in? Was the bathroom new? Are the windows double glazed and are there any problems elsewhere with the windows? Do you have any record of you asking the LL about the bath panel or was this all on the telephone?

You should not necessarily have to pay full value and fitting for these things but that depends on several factors.

However, the new stuff you put in matters not a jot. You had no agreement with the LL about this and I know it seems unfair but that's just the way it is. There might be wiggle room on the other stuff though/

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