Hi, I have issued the claim, I actually did it through the MCOL system for the full 3x deposit and they seem to have accepted even though most say this is not the best method. I requested judgement today. Randomly the first time I have seen the landlord in months, he came round today and thrust at me... a deposit protection certificate!!! Slightly panicked at first, had a look through, he has claimed that the deposit was paid and the tenancy started/signed 05/06/2011 and the protection starts 05/07, the case was issued 27/06. I have phoned Mydeposit, and advised them that the dates are incorrect (tenancy started 25/09/2009!!!), they asked me to email them a copy of the tenancy agreement and they will void it as it contains incorrect information so fingers crossed things should go my way. One question, by falsifying information on a legal document has my landlord comitted fraud? in case anyone is wondering, here is the wording i used, (I condensed the wording from the sticky to fit in the MCOL claim box

FYI, I still haven't submitted the court documents, I am keen to do this ASAP, but want to make sure I follow the best procedure. From the above comments, am I right to think that because of the amount I can lodge this with the small claims court which will be cheaper?

Hi guys, Thanks for all the advice again. It just keeps on flowing. FYI, the deposit was only £625, less than a months rent. My LL has spoken to me, he will not protect the deposit because he does not think if I took it to court they would pay (he does not think I will take him to court). He laughed when I told him. And then told me he would not be returning any of the deposit and would be suing me for costs (relating to the repairs he has neglected). He really thinks I am stupid and believes the law is on his side, I am happy to takew a risk on this if I need to, I don't think he would do any of the things you have mentioned, however I aqm prerpared fpr every eventuality.

Hi Snorkerz, why would you say that it is likely to fail? If I have understood correctly, as I have reminded my landlord in writing of his responsibility to protect the deposit, under the legislation if he does not then protect the deposit and I take him to court within the tenancy, would they not be bound to award 3x deposit? I know this was the case in the past, there have been recent rulings regarding claiming after the tenancy is ended however I thought that in my case as the deposit is not protected and I doubt will be before the case comes to court then that was the only option presented to the courts?!?

Hi ED999, Thanks once again for your thorough advice. I am just looking through the TDS info, I am quite confused, I am ready to make my claim, however I am unsure of the exact process, in one thread it talks about the N1 and the N208 and says that you have to decide which is best for you, TBH I have no idea as to the best way forwards, this is the first time I have ever done anything like this and I want to make sure I get it right first time as time is of the essence. Many thanks James

Hi guys, Just thought I would update you on things so far. After the excellent advice received from both here and the Shelter helpline, I have a plan. I have sent a letter asking for the repairs to be carried out in a specific timescale, mentioning the deposit/TDS. I am also going to concurrently start a claim against the TDS. I will be paying the rent in full next week so there is no grounds for a section 8 and obviously he cannot enforce a section 21 with no TDS. Moving forwards I have been advised the best option with the severity of the repairs is environmental health, they would probably condemn the place, giving the council the duty to re-house us I believe (our son is disabled so I think we get some priority?!?), even if they do not condemn, we would then be in a position to start taking action against landlord for repairs. Do you guys agree with this process? Have you any tips/advice? I am literally just going to read through the info about TDS and start the ball rolling for the court action.

Thanks both of you for the advice, I have just been onto the the shelter helpline, they were brilliant. @ED999 you surmised correctly, I have only really skim read the posts so far, and yes I may have come to a couple of incorrect conclusions, TBH I did not expect so much information and am deeply grateful. I will re-read your posts and post back any sensible questions later. @Katieloo Your story sounds similar to ours, however we also have a disabled son as well as my partner being ill, things are tricky at the best of times. The advice from the helpline said that to claim for TDS you have to send a letter to the landlord first giving him time to sort it out, you mentioned you decided against this, was this an issue in court? Everyone thanks for your help so far, I am going to probably get in touch with environmental health soon if the repairs are not carried out.

Hi Katie, Thats great advice thanks. I will have a look at doing as you did, my only concern is the recent high court ruling. Right now I wish it wasn't my home

Hi Ed999, Thanks for all the info, it is really useful. A couple of questions if you don't mind? Re: TDS, I am very confused, if I want to make a claim, should I do it now? How should I go about it? Which legislation should I use? Re: Guarantor, From my reading, unless the guarantor has made some kind of payment and has an officially signed/sealed agreement then it will not stand. Is this correct? Many thanks once again James

Hi guys, Really hope we can get some advice, we are having real problems with our landlord. First of all there are repairs that have been outstanding nearly a year that are getting worse, damp that is shorting electrics, half the electrics in the house are out, the plumbing both in and out, rotting walls the list is endless. I have been promised time and time again it will be fixed and normally he sends round an unskilled worker to botch it over, even important thingsnow as my daughter seems to be getting ill from the damp i contacted him again, he came round with his same 2 workers and said they would be back on Monday, he was also stating it is my fault and he will be holding the deposit (there is no TDS for it that I am aware of) he also stated he would be charging my guarantor for the repairs. This is all nothing new, this is exactly how he behaved last year, we would move however we cant afford to. I know for a fact he has lost the tenancy agreement and also it was my mum and dad that signed the gurantor, he thinks it was someone else. Sounding a bit crazy? he really is, he always comes round with no notice shouting and bawling making my wife feel unsafe, and sends letters demanding money for things that never happened. Our issue is that we are behind with the rent, by 2 months, he says we are witholding it due to repairs and that is dangerous, but in truth we are really struggling, however we have just had a claim for housing benefit approved so will be able to start paying again. My question is, can I make a claim under the TDS (Tenancy Deposit Scheme) as I know that he has not set it up and we have not received any information. I know it is a long post and perhaps a bit rambling, but we are under a lot of pressure due to this situation and really need some help please