Thanks for your advice guys!

Hi, I would like to know where I stand with holding back some of the rent. I realise that if I with-hold all the rent the landlord can serve me a possession notice which it is mandatory for a court to give if proven. However if I hold back part of the rent then is it mandatory for a court to give a possession notice? Or is this discretionary so I could argue my case? Basically my landlord is failing to deal with the severe damp I have in my room and so I want to with-hold what I consider a fair portion of the rent. Thanks in advance

Thanks for your reply. It is a block of flats but they are less than 2 years old and I'm on the ground floor. I do not know about the other flats. The pressure is certainly low, though I will time how long it takes to fill a litre when I am back there at the weekend.

Hi, I am renting a flat from a landlord through a letting agency. The water pressure is very low and I've asked the letting agents to look into this but they have not done so. Are they obligated to sort this or should I be contacting the water board? Regards, Joe

Thanks for your help guys. I will be sending off for my credit file.

Hi, As a young person I've never really been bothered about CRA's. I've never had a credit card but had a few direct debits set up in my name. I applied for a student account recently and was rejected. They told me to contact Experian as to why. Now I understand from reading a few of these threads that these guys are dodgy as hell so would like some advice please. I would be interested to know what my credit file says but I'm not sure how to go about it. Should I ask for a credit report, or send them a subject access request or should I avoid being contact with there sort of people at all costs if I can help it? Thanks, Joe

brilliant job, I noticed this too and thought it was unfair. The websites are set-up to be very easily read by young people and they state that you effectively pay back the exact value of the loan. It's good to see that someone is challenging this, I will be following this thread closely. Keep up the good work!

Policy is by Endsleigh, student year abroad policy

Loss, theft or damage to valuables left unattended at any time (including in a vehicle or in the custody of carriers) unless deposited in a hotel safe, safety deposit box or left in your locked accommodation. Unattended - means when you are not in full view of and not in a position to prevent unauthorised interference with your property. I had valuables stolen from my car that were out of sight and locked in the boot, the car had an alarm and was parked near a security office so I took as much precaution as I could. I had no accommodation at the time so this was the safest place. Am I still screwed or can I argue that based on me not having accommodation at the time this was the best situation to prevent unauthorised interference with my property? To me it seems unreasonable to deny if it was out of sight and in a locked compartment, especially as it was alarmed and near a security office.

Out of interest I took it to an apple shop and they replaced the casing, investigated the flickering screen and replaced the hard drive which had some known issues, they were very helpful and stated that apple were well aware of the casing issue and so they fixed it all free of charge.

yes I see your point but I have a witness to the conversation about the £94 fee who will back me up. If they turn up to court with receipts then won't the judge view them poorly? I mean they are refusing to provide receipts/invoices when I have requested them in writing and would be wasting everyone's time should they suddenly show them in court.

£94 agent fee for being locked out. At the time I asked if I would be charged and they said I wouldn't as I didn't need my keys replaced, only letting in. £11.75 - marks on lounge wall £7.05 - Kitchen to be cleaned £2.35 - Freezer and shower to be cleaned I would of accept the damages if there were receipts/invoices but they won't provide.

yes thats right but here is my situation. It was a joint assured tenancy with a letting agent and landlord, there were 5 tenants. I have asked several times for my deposit and invoices/receipts etc and finally get my deposit back with roughly £115 taken off. There is approximately £20 for damages and £95 charge from the letting agents. I am currently abroad until next summer so would like any court proceedings to take place once I am back. Below is what I have so far... Claimant Me, the tenant Defendants The landlord The letting agent Brief Details of claim not sure what should be put here, any advice please? Value £115 - Amount of deposit not returned £50 - Court cost £x - Cost of my time Particulars of Claim I claim the sum of £115 plus interest, being the outstanding amount of the £250 deposit which I paid on (date) under a tenancy agreement of premises at (address of premises) The tenancy was an assured shorthold tenancy. It was created in writing by a tenancy agreement dated (date) made between (name and address of landlord), the landlord, (name and address of letting agent), the letting agent and (names and addresses of tenants), the tenant. The tenancy was for a fixed term of 12 months, commencing on (date), at a rent of £220 each per calendar month. The tenancy was terminated on (date), by the expiry of the fixed term. The tenant left the property on (date). Signed ok so my questions are, even though this was a joint tenancy, can I sue them as an individual for my charges and deposit? Can I charge for my time that I have been trying to sort this? If so at what rate? How do I get the case to hold until I get back into the UK? Should I put more info on the particulars of claim? i.e. any correspondence between the defendants and myself? also any advice on the form?

Would someone be able to help me fill out the N1 form? I have followed the instructions in the sticky but could do with some further advice. Thanks in advance Joe

as ours was a joint tenancy should we be suing collectively or can we take them to court individually?