Hi Hotcrossbun, Can you clarify some details please, You say it was a shortterm tenancy of 6 months, specifically was it an 'assured shorthold tenancy'? When did you give the notice to leave the property and how much notice did you give? On your original tenancy agreement does it list just you, or you and your sister? And does it say anything about being 'jointly and severally liable'? I know for sure that without 24hrs written notice AND your sisters consent, he cannot enter the property for any purpose other than an emergency. He certainly cannot be turning the heating/hot water off, but how is he able to do this? Also, did you pay a deposit on the property when you moved in? I hope to be able to help further if you can let me know these details

MrShed, Could you clarify for me, in regards to: 'b) Landlord has supplied details, but not in the prescribed format' What is meant exactly by the prescribed format? My situation is that my deposit was protected only 2 days before the end of the fixed period on my AST with mydeposits.co.uk. The information was then forwarded to my solicitor, and i've only recieved a photocopy, and not the original document, via my solicitor. This was recieved by her after the AST had become a periodic tenancy, and my landlord has made several errors on the paperwork (which in addition he hasnt signed, and neither have I). He has falsified the date on which our tenancy began altered it from 1st Sept 2009 to 1st Jan 2010. He recieved the deposit in the form of a cheque prior to the tenancy starting on the 1st of Sept, however he only cashed it in Dec, and it left my account on the 26th Dec. The date he's recorded as the deposit being protected is the 26th Feb. And I know it may just be silly, but he's also spelt my name wrong. Therefore, could this point apply to me at all, and am I missing anything that could be relevant to a potential case? Many thanks in advance Amy

My good friend has a council flat which she intends to purchase using her right to buy. The only concern is that of the council land adjoining the property. Previously this was open to all, but due to privacy issues the council have agreed to fence off the area, including a gate, and give the only key to my friend as the resident. These works were completed approx. 2 years ago now. What rights, if any, does my friend have to use this land as if it were a garden once the property is purchased? Obviously no personal property would be left out there, but in terms of say using it to sit, relax, and perhaps add plants and small shrubs too? Many thanks in advance Amy

As far as I know, the court will make the decision whether she is able to counterclaim, if so they will also decide if the issue will be ruled upon alongside the issues you are claiming for, or if it should be issued as a completely seperate claim. In terms of the deposit side of things, i've heard of cases where damages are ruled upon at the same time, and also of cases where judges feel that damages cannot be claimed for at all due to the nature of the deposit rules. In terms of the illegal eviction, I believe the opinion of the judge will weigh heavily here too. However, in a strictly legal sense I fail to see how it can be an appropriate defense as there are many a procedures available to a landlord who believes a tenant has damaged the property. There again, this is my opinion and judges are all individuals as well. I do sincerely hope that you reach a successful outcome, and I'm grateful that you are keeping us updated

She can submit any defence she wants, but if its not legal it doesnt count for toffee. If damage is her defense, then as far as I'm aware it is a seperate issue to yours and there may be a counter-claim but it can never change the outcome of the judges decision on this issue alone. However, it could in the grand scheme of things affect the money involved, a successful counter claim could be 'offset' against what you may be awarded.

I know your unsure of the origin of the crack in the window, but please remember it is the LL's duty to prove that you did in fact break it. There are many ways it could have happened, and if not yourselves, the LL should be adequately covered (otherwise what's the point of insurance?). You appear to have a solid backing for your claims on the garden, please let us know of any further progress

I've just been reading through everything you've posted, and I have to say that the cheek of your landlord letting themselves/workmen in completely unannounced is rediculous! And the obvious boiler issue is a lot of bleeping words! Leaving any work done until you leave means your landlord has deliberately put you in potential danger, and I would convey this point to your local council's housing department just as soon as you've seen a doctor. Every local health authority must have an out of hours service, if your unsure of how to contact them then NHS direct will gladly advise you. Please do keep us updated on the sitution as it progresses. Oh, and bump

Thanks very much, I'll get onto the complaints form now, and I'll submit the appropriate bank statement too

Now to the more complicated issue, how do I convince my HA of that? :S They've taken our landlords word for it on the basis of one phone call only, and disregarded any of the documents from me and my solicitor.

I believe my arrears are just that, out of pocket expenses, however my landlord probably doesnt agree! Although that will be decided in a court in due course. We've had our belongings damaged through the extensive, hairy, white and green mould transferred from the walls to our sofa, beds, mattress, wardrobes and clothes. Preventative measures were taken by moving our things away from the affected areas, however the mould has reached the extent that every room is affected and there's simply nowhere left to move our things.

Hi all, I am a regular visitor to these forums, but rarely post, however I would be grateful if I could call upon your wisdom on my current situation. I am privately renting at the moment, with a nightmare landlord. We have vast disrepair issues (council environmental health have been involved and issued a schedule of works etc), deposit protection issues, harassment issues which the police have been involved with....the list goes on. So to save us from any further problems myself and my partner are trying to buy a shared ownership property from a large housing association here in the West Midlands. However, this housing association is turning us down on the basis that they have to follow the Homes and Communities Agency guidelines, which state that we must have not had any rent arrears in the last 12 months. Currently, due to the issues listed above, we are 5 weeks in rent arrears (mainly due to out of pocket expenses as our belongings have been damaged due to the disrepair issues), but also due to it being our only means of leverage with our landlord. We have sought legal advice in terms of this disrepair etc, and court action is soon to follow. We have also been in contact with the Homes and Communities Agency, who kindly informed us that we can appeal to the housing association and they will have to forward the case to the HCA, who will make an independent decision. We have my father who is perfectly willing to help out with any additional deposit the housing association may require due to our circumstances, or as a guarantor if they prefer. We've even offered to pay a years rent on the unowned share in advance if it gives us the opportunity to get out of our current situation My query is, how much power do the HCA hold over the housing association in reality (can the housing association overule or appeal their decision?) Therefore, is this worthwhile for us to do, after all of the stress and legwork to even get this far only to be turned down, do we even have a chance? Many thanks in advance Amy

I agree with your thoughts here, but the direct debit guarantee is there to protect consumers, and IIRC you should be given at least 3 days notice in writing of a change in amount to be taken. o2 can have whatever they want in their T's & C's but they know full well that by using DD's they have to accept the banks rules over their own. They can act on any supposed 'breach of contract' of course, which is why a payment plan that they are happy with is so essential at this point.

I'm not familiar with branch procedure, but yes, we would usually need a signed form from you, and in branch is the quickest and easiest way. Best of luck to you

I work for one specific bank, and I cant guarantee that this policy applies to all banks, but definitely one at least. Our policy is that we can recall direct debit funds as late as the same day its gone out over the phone. If you were not notified in writing and in good time by o2 of this charge, or even if was taken just one day different to normal you are well within your rights to take advantage of the direct debit recall. You can also call upon the direct debit guarantee under these same rights, and have the direct debit credited back to your account (this applies to all banks). But please do not let this rule deter you from setting up a payment schedule with the company as any further large charges could land you with so many bank charges that you're in an even worse position.

Hi Kentish Lass, We have had neither a gas or electric saftety certificate, and we have asked on more than one occasion for an electrical safety certificate, as there are exposed wires in one bedroom, and a bedroom with 3x double sockets, of which all are loose and none work. In addition to the double socket in the 3rd bedroom that has never worked. How do I contact the health and safety executive, and what exactly are his responsibilities in terms of providing us as tenants proof of gas and/or electrical safety? When approached on this issue, the landlord has been very rude, stated that the house is safe even though he cant prove it, and then proceeded to hang up on me. Thanks for bringing this to my attention, and for the help Amy

Hi DT, Thank you for the advice. Our rented acommodation is in England, and we pay £575 per month, and paid a total deposit of £870. Is a letter asking him to protect the deposit strictly appropriate? I wont raise this issue with the landlord until the tenancy has ended, and we see if we are returned any deposit at all, (to save the risk of submitting an incorrect claim form). I will certainly inform him of the potential outcome of a court order in writing. I have to say at this stage, a simple return of our deposit, although it would be a relief, would not satisfy me. The landlord has treated us, and the property very badly, refusing to do essential maintenace works on the gas and electrics. And it seems that I have no other chance of holding him to these issues, as my local council tenant support team are very unwilling to support any persual of landlords shirking their responsibilites. I would also like to add, that had it not been for this treatment, we could have spent many happy years in this property, paying him quite probably, over the odds in rent.

Oh I'm so sorry, I didnt realise it was in the wrong section, thank you for moving it!

Hi everyone, This is my first post, so please be gentle with me. My partner and I have been living in our current property for just short of 6 months and we have an AST, we will be leaving the property next week, purely because the landlord refuses to carry out essential maintenance to the house, and also because it is the end of our 6 month tenancy term. That aside, he has not protected our deposit in any scheme, for which I have email confirmation from the 3 different schemes. It was only when I contacted an advice service in regards to the repairs that I found out this was against the law, and that we have a right to claim against him. However, I was told that the chances of success arent as high as they should be, as landlord's can protect deposits in the time between being issued court notices, and an actual court date. Being almost at the end of our tenancy, I feel that the coming weeks would be the appropriate time to claim, would anyone be able to advise on how I go about this, and what (if anything) I can do to help my chances of success in this type of case? Thanks so much for taking the time to read this. Amy (and family)