Hi there, I wonder if anyone can help? I own a house on a new development, with the whole estate paying an estate management company for service fees. They have now stated that we are in arrears of £303 and that they've instructed a solicitor to collect the monies from us- they've added on £198 and £120 in 'admin fees' and then fees for contacting the solicitors, taking the total we have to pay in 14 days up to £888!! The fees are for financial year 01/07/2013-30/06/2014. They don't seem to actually 'maintain' anything, even the landscaping is done by the developers still. Are they allowed to whack on such huge fees, and is there anything we can do to reduce them? Any help would be appreciated.

Can anyone offer some advice. I wanted to sell my business in 2009, I contact a business Estate Agent who agreed to market it for me at a good price I signed up with him. From then onwards I heard very little going to nothing from the company. In 2011 I discussed with my employee about selling and she wanted to buy. I wrote to the agent and withdrew my business. My employee then advised me she was not able to pay the amount I was asking for it. As I was by this time becoming ill with the stress of running the business I agreed a lower price with her and we eventually exchanged contracts in February 2012. I had heard nothing at all from the business who I originally was selling through - out of the blue in December 2012 they wrote to me telling me they had not received anything from me withdrawing the sale and wanted 3% of the original selling price - which in 2009 was considerably (500%) higher than the figure I sold it for. I wrote back sending a copy of the original letter. They now have issued a County court action for the full amount. I walked away from my business with literally nothing after forty years by the time all debts were paid, and now live on a pension there is no way I can pay them this money. I feel I did all the right things - they never sent one interested party to me in all the time they were my agent. The contract stated I had to give 28 days notice and then there would be no charge - I did that. Any help would be appreciated.

Okay first of all CAGers, I respectfully thank you for your continued service to the community in respect of legal matters. I can remember sorting out one or two debts myself using help from these forums many years ago, and for that I am still grateful. Okay, on to business... This thread relates to recovery of a substantial (but small in legal terms, definitely sub 25,000 and likely sub 10,000) estate by the sole beneficiary of the estate in the absence of a will. It involves the legalities of proof of ownership, and in this thread I will seek advice as to how (in which court, under which procedure) I would go about establishing ownership of goods once a convincing body of evidence has been obtained that the goods were owned by the deceased. Okay, some background. The deceased is my father. Sadly, despite his intellectual and moral prowess early in life, my dad blossomed into a rather ruthlessly cruel, abusive alcoholic. Circa 2002 it was decided that rather than endure more turmoil it would be better for everyone if my father moved out and lived alone. He did so. We were in contact with him regularly, at first in person and later by phone, until around 6 to 8 months before his death. He was in regular (weekly) contact with his sister, and (at least) monthly contact with his mother. As such, a great deal of information has been obtained regarding my father, following his death, from family, relatives, etc etc. My mother married my father over thirty years ago. They remained married until the date of his death. There was no legal separation. There was no will. By rule of intestacy the sole beneficiary of the estate of my father is my mother, who is very much alive, well, and in a loving and close relationship with her three children; myself included. On Monday/Tuesday my mother and I will fill application for probate naming (if possible) myself as administrator and representative of my mother, so that i can handle the affairs on her behalf. At any rate, she should and i imagine will be given grant of letter of administration herself as governed by rule of intestacy. The Estate: This is where things get messy. My father had a very good pension from his former 30 years employment in the chemicals industry. My mum remains sole beneficiary of this pension, but my father being the man he was, went and cashed most of his pension late last year: a sum approaching in total 75 thousand pounds.This was his right as holder of the policy. The money was squandered on goods, drink (and perhaps drugs), holidays, and his two friends who lived very nearby (and still do). At the time of death there was only enough in his account to partly cover funeral expenses, a mere 8 months after the initial payment. The majority of these funds are irrecoverable: my father, it seemed, used cash transactions always and so there is very little paper trail for goods. On the one occasion he did issue a cheque, it was to his friends mother for the value of over 12 thousand (presumably so that the friend could avoid having his benefits seized upon receipt of such a large sum). However. It is known from family, and some records, as well letters and witness testimony of his neighbour, that he definitely acquired the following for himself: 1) A car. Registration is known and car is parked outside. HPI check shows car was registered on the very same day a large sum of money was withdrawn from my fathers account. It is believed my father is registered keeper. Next week i will be, hopefully, able to apply to the DVLA for former registered keeper. Hopefully i can then investigate that person to see if they can lend any credence to my father purchasing said car. The car itself was insured in his friends name, as my father had a DUI ban and could not himself drive. Some weeks prior to his death he visited his mum and proclaimed to have bought himself a car so that his friend can drive him around and drive him on holiday with his caravan. Currently the keys to this car are with his friend. He is still driving the vehicle and the vehicle is still there. 2) A caravan. The caravan was again a known purchase by my father. We have letters from his flat, addressed to him as owner, from lawyers on behalf of the housing agency asking him to move it from the communal area. We have one confirming it was moved, and thanking him for it. The caravan is in storage, but we dont know where. Again, all information and keys are held with his 'friend'. 3) A jeep. This is the least recoverable asset (if any are recoverable). A neighbour said that at one point my father bought a large jeep. No registration is known, but i'm sure once we have a grant of administration the DVLA will divulge this information, if any such vehicle was indeed registered in his name. 4) A big flat screen TV This was missing from his apartment, as well as any and all documentation pertaining to ownership of goods that we know he owned, from various secondary sources such as afforementioned letters from lawyers re: caravan. Now, I have contacted the police about this, and they are unwilling to help in such a civil matter. There is nothing to essentially prove ownership or whereabouts of any of these goods, and there is no evidence of theft. They were however very compassionate, and without giving away any information to me on the phone, I got the distinct impression that my father was indeed the registered keeper of the car. It was suggested i pursue it legally. Now... I know that V5C is not proof of ownership. But if after investigation i can prove the transaction was from him for the car, and that the car was registered in his name, and that the car was paid for from the deceaseds account, then surely I will have a good chance of establishing ownership for purposes of probate in a court of law. At any rate, the 'alleged' cannot legally sell the vehicle without my fathers signature, and indeed if my father is the registered keeper then i can make myself registered keeper through the DVLA under grant of administration. I am sure that the 'alleged' will try to say that the car was a 'gift', but given the shady background of the character (involved in drugs, another friend of my dads was murdered at some point over a drugs debt - my dad testified in court), then on the balance of probabilities, my mother will be awarded ownership? Similarly for the caravan, if i can locate it. Now my question to you, is how to proceed. I had intended tomorrow on setting up a PO BOX (i dont want these people getting my address) and once i am made administrator, intending to investigate with the DVLA but also to contact the 'alleged' via post without prejudice to begin negotiations over ownership of the car, caravan, and recovery of any documents in my fathers name. I would be very factual and well artticulated in the statement of my case, state that i am acting as administrator of the estate, and negotiate a settlement so that 'without prejudice' can indeed be upheld in court. I would then go after various caravan parks and investigate to see if any of them have storage accounts under my dads name. is this the recommended way to go? I cannot approach this man in person, but i do believe that owing to his non legal relationship with the deceased, he has withheld documentation and goods belonging to my father. Indeed as his flat was cleared, the 'alleged' was continually opening his door to see what was going on. Any help would be appreciated. As mentioned this is a very messy affair... but my motivation here is to recover whatever i can of my mums rightful pension for having lived with him all the years that he acquired it. Thanks, John

hi My wife is 1 of the executors of her dads estate along with her mum and sister. Her dad despite having lived with her mum for many years only married her in 2002 for as he and her mum put it iht and pension reasons. He transferred some money to her mums account at that time and setup a mirrored discretionary trust will at that time for tax management purposes. Her mum has always been upset that her dad has always made clear his savings including those transfered into an account in her name to avoid iht were to be distributed to his children on his death. His wifes need should be considered yes, but she was left is decent pension and his house andsome other savings. My father in law had parkinsons and his wife started insisting he was no longer capable of conducting his own affairs 2 yeears or so ago. She therefore started an LPA process. However this was taking to long so she forced my father inlaw into his bank inhis frail and somewhat confused state and had him close his savings account and add her to his other bank account. She told the rest of the family she had to do that as he was so confused now and she needed to be on his accounts to help him manage his financial affairs. On doing this she then immediately transferred all of his money into her own account. Following my father in laws death earlier this year she has claimed he never had any savings and that my wife and her sister are entiteld to see non of my father in laws or her financial affairs. She has never had her own money it was all his. Despite HMRC telling us they regard all the money as his for estate purposes she insists that my wife even as one of his executors needs to see nothing and can simply accept a letter from her mum stating his estate was tiny? So, can we do a SAR to his solicitors firm, accountants and bank on his behalf? We have his diary in which he has written he was forced into the bank. We have letter from his accountants that states he was advised for iht purposes to split his assetts. Her mum freely admits he left them his savings but on his death they were only 3k. She had prior knowledge of his intentions and sort to bypass them. she took advantage of her position. She has now said go get a lawyer - knowing we can't afford one. They will tell you your legal position and it is fixed. In fact she wants us all to sit infront of her solicitor now to have her tell us we are scewed. We don't want to sit infront of her lawyer paid to defend her position. pointless. Where is her duty of fudiaciary care? She was meant to be helping him not fleecing him. He even tried to call the police once or twice it now turns out to report her for stealing his money. Her mum tells us this somewhat incriminating stories because she is so cock shore of her position I guess. Any and all help appreciated. Sorry for long post. There are far more details we could add. Big Merv

I can't seem to find anything similar to out situation on here so I'm hoping some of you will be able to advise. Myself, Husband and two small children live on an estate which to be honest, isn't the best and we are working hard to try and sell our house. The problem is that most of the other houses are owned by the Council and some (not all) of the tennants aren't that considerate to others or the area. This is the main situation and I want to know if I can charge the Council. Our back gate (our main entrance) leads out to a footpath and then onto the access road. Each week the wheelie bins from around twenty properties are left just outside of our gate which is fine until the people who leave rubbish bags out there upto three days before the collection allow them to be ripped open by cats. This results in my Husband and I have to pick up nappies, food tins/containers, women's sanitary products and much more. If we do not pick it up the bin men just leave it as it's not in a wheelie bin. We have complained and after a few weeks the Coucil sent out a letter to every property in our row to tell them that no one should put rubbish out before the collection time. This has just been ignored. I'm so annoyed as we pay Council Tax and the estate should be kept clean. We also have old tyres that have been discarded on the embankments. The Coucil strimmed the bank a few weeks ago and the tyres are still there. As well as the bins outside of our back gate and litter everywhere we also have piles upon piles of old rotting leaves from the oak trees on the side of the access road. I've been told that it is an offence to sweep the leaves into the access road. The Council do not clear them up. They are slippy and piling up against our fence slowly rotting and keeping the fence damp also. My last problem is that when you drive up to our back gate you of course see the for sale sign, but you also see graffiti all over the garage doors, again owned by the Council. I just feel like there is no light at the end of the tunnel. We keep our house and garden well, but the drive up to the place just shows litter, leaves, graffiti and an unkept, old estate. What else can I do? I've thought about keeping weekly photos and then charging the coucil for cleaning it all up each week. Could I do this? I've worked very hard to drag myself out of a bit of a depression and I'm trying so hard to make this year a much better one by getting out of this hell hole. We have a neighbout next door who's been raided twice and put into prison a couple of times. It just all adds up! I really hope I've explained my situation well as I'm not the best at putting things across. I hope I'll receive some feedback and help. I'm not someone who moans about things, however I need to do whatever is required to sell our house and move somewhere better.

Hi there, I hope someone can help me, I am just not sure what to do. To cut a long story short, I suffer from Multiple Sclerosis and have had to relocate hundreds of miles away from an apartment that I own. I decided to sell the apartment as I cannot reasonably undertake the stress of owning/renting a property so far away. So I spoke to some agents in the local area over the phone and one agent seemed very friendly and responsive. ( They are a national chain ). So after speaking with him for a short while via email, as I don't get chance to use the phone at work he agreed to market my property. He sent me some paperwork via email (PDF) documents of the agencies standard terms of business. I have attached the exact documents he sent me. [ATTACH=CONFIG]44065[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=CONFIG]44068[/ATTACH] Further to this, I asked if he needed me to complete all of these details just before marketing a property to see the response I would get ( the property market isn't great and I am in negative equity so didn't know what the response would be ) Anyway he said no and a signature on the document would be just fine for now ( over the phone to me ) so I placed a scanned copy of my signature on the document in the buyer's copy of the document. Leaving all the other details completely blank and then just emailed it back to him. I have attached what I returned t him. [ATTACH=CONFIG]44067[/ATTACH] A few months later, after pushing the agency on why i have had no interest on the property they drastically reduced the price and I ended up getting an offer for the apartment. So one day I decided to go and see the agent with a friend of mine ( a Dr. ). I spoke to him in the branch about the fact that we had never ever discussed any fees or agreement between us and yet he had already sold the property. At which point he advised me he had given me a discount on the standard fees and had applied a fixed fee of over £2000! ( that's over 4% of the property sale price). I then noticed on the computer in front of him that he had my documents up on the screen. So I asked him to show me the document I had signed months back and emailed to him. Upon him opening the file it was completely filled in!! All the following details Changing the date I signed the document to the same day he signed the document Completing the entire document including his fees Signing a box on the document on my behalf that I was happy to pass my details onto their "conveyancing partner" Indicating on the form the document was signed in his presence He also kindly filled in my personal details with a made up driving licence number, dates of birth etc stating that he had verified the original documentation Upon me reading this on his screen in disbelief I asked him if he had completed the document, he replied that he had. I also advised him that I have never seen this document since the day I emailed him the blank one back to which he agreed. I then asked him to print a copy for me so I could at least read it which he was hesitant to do so as I had to ask him on 2 occasions for the print out. I have since contacted the head office of the chain and have been communicating with a "customer relations" representative. She has after 4 weeks of "investigation" returned to me with a 4 page document that is full of false statements in regards to my dealings with them and advising that "I" must have had all of this information beforehand and that there was no underhand activity taken by the agent in the branch. Despite the fact that I have a print out of the forms that have false information all over them. I have communicated with the agency via email for the majority of the time and have all the emails and documents as evidence as well a witness to the fact that the agent admitted to completing the document himself. But I am in total disbelief that the national agency's head office have responded in this manner and just do not know how to proceed. As mentioned previously I suffer from Multiple Sclerosis and the situation really is having a detrimental impact on my welbeing as a consequence of the stress this is causing. If anybody can offer me some guidance or advice I would really appreciate it.

had my house advertised with an estate agent for sale or rent after a month i went to another one as the first one was not doing anything and they found me a tenant within a week, i told the to still leave the property for sale as i would prefer to sell than let, the tenant moved in a month ago, received a letter today off the first estate agent saying they were withdrawn the property as i have a tenant in it and could i pay them a withdrawal fe of 115 pounds. please note i havent withdrawn it they have. i think it because the other estate agent got me the tenant. any advice given

Hello I have a flat at Hounslow, London. I had a tenant from August 2011. the tenant paid a deposit which was kept by the agent. I and my tenant both have receipts from the estate agent. the agreement with the tenant finished in August 2012. He vacated the property. After repeated emails both from me and the ex- tenant, the estate agent is not returning the money. I also owe some amount towards the cleaning of the property (the tenant agreed to this) The agent also does not respond to phone calls. When the tenant went and met the agent in person he was assured that the money will be returned. But there was no transaction even after months. I managed to talk to the agent after repeated calls from a new number. the agent admitted that the money is in a trust and they will return it. But even after months there is no response. Meanwhile the ex tenant is preparing to go to court and it seems I will be pulled to court for no offence of mine. Please could you advise me as to how to get the money back from the agent

i cleaned apartment replaced carpets now my bill exceeds £570 deposit by 80 quid am i able to do anything or am i stitched up again thanks for your time

Hello people I need a bit of advice please a letter was received from Phillips & Cohen on 7th of November at fathers house even though he was no longer married to my mam . My mam passed away in November 2009 and i dealt with bills etc nothing was left and rented flat etc these people are after over 3000 pounds from the estate but nothing exists is it best just to ignore these people or tell them that there was nothing left also i did find there letter distressing as it was received only a day or two to the day mam passed over sounds like these people are heartless what do you people think thanks inadvance for any info

Hi - this is the nearest topic I can find to post in. I believe Ive been duped into a contract with these guys under false pretenses - having said that it would not hurt "to test the water" and pu tthe house on the market to see what gives and that it wouldnt cost me anything it now seems that the agent is trying to get nearly £500 from me within 14 days and if I dont pay up - despite their never having sent one person round - they will charge me 3% on top of Barclays Banks base rate on the bill??!! I believe they breached any contract we may have had right from the start and I certainly do not intend to give them all this money for doing very very little indeed and going directly against what they said while sitting in myhouse! Am I right in saying that this all comes under Contract Law. Thanks.

My father died about 10 months ago and died intestate (without a valid will). Unfortunately he split up from my mother years ago and when she remarried I was adopted so I could take her new surname. This means none of my fathers estate will come my way. I would like to know if I can find out who got what once the estate is settled. I know you can when there is a will but can you find out if there isn't? Many thanks for any help.

I do hope somebody can help as i am truly feeling harrassed now. On signing the tenancy agreement we were told that we cant get a copy and that it has to be signed by the L/l. Later we were advised that it was with head office. They said that the deposit and months advance has to be paid in cash as Natwest system was down. This was not true having spoken to Natwest that day. On moving in it came to our knowledge that the washing machine, tumble dryer and kitchen extractor fan was not working. The cupboard in the smallest bedroom which my toddler sleeps in has a cupboard with exposed wires. I put a big plastic box in front of it so she cant get access. For weeks i tried feverently to get these repairs sorted but they kept fobbing me off with excuses such as yes somes coming tommorrow to sort it out or that they had sourced a dryer its brand new and in another L/L's garage. They insisted that it had to be delievered on the day and when i agreed and told them anytime. They called to say that the L/l decided he wanted it. When i asked what make/style/or whether it even came with warranty they were not aware. This happened twice. Prior to signing we were told that a table and chairs and a fridge freezer is approved. I had also put this in an email that i requested this but the est agt did not reply via email.The fridge freezer that is currently there is too small it has less 2 1/2 shelves and no tray on the door to hold bottles. Now that that est agt has been sacked they are asking me for proof of confirmation. Around the 27th day of moving in they said that they want me to sign a prescribed information form for DPS. It cross referenced an old tenancy agreement (that they had asked me to sign for but i did not move in on that date as the boiler needed certifying). I said that i could not sign it as it cross referenced an invalid tenancy agreement. They then sent another tenancy agreement which had the landlords wifes' name on it. I refused on the grounds that it had to be the landlord contact details not the wifes. The est agt tried to pretend it was a mistake but it was evident by the fact that she had handwritten that she had gotten "his" consent to sign on his behalf on the last page of the agreement. On account of which she decided that she wanted to create a new tenancy agreement. I told her that I wanted all the paperwork associated with the tenancy agreement. In this agreement it states that the landlord will repair electrical appliances that are in the inventory. However, in the mutal agreement section she has declared that the L/l no longer wants an inventory. However, the day that rent was due he text me saying he wants an inventory done. I did not pay the rent. She took out the section relating to the landlord having landlord insurance and keeps the section requiring me to have insurance to cover £2k worth of content insurance. Since then the landlord has been sending an engineer around he is the fourth person to be viewing the property. I told the est agts that this is harrassment as they cant keep accessing the property and nothing effectively is changing. All of th engineers said that the goods need replacing, however this last engineer has said that the tumble dryer can be repaired and the extractor motor albiet is dead can be repaired. Please note no gas certificate was given until around 30days of the tenancy and when recieved it was dated 2010 then crossed out in different ink and different handwriting. I was legally advised to ask for alternative accommodation as the property was potentially dangerous. I was then advised that the est agt had contacted the plumber whom had the correct date on his ticket. The gas certificate said at the top Landlord so its not supposed to be my copy. I have checked land reg and it appears that he is the only landlord and it appears to be a residential mortgage as he is still registered at my address. Not withstanding i have contacted DPS and they have confirmed that they have registered my deposit but not sent the money and 30 days have elapsed. As i have not signed the last tenancy due to all the discrepancies can they argue that they were waiting for me to sign the tenancy agreement before they can actually send the money to DPS. I sent an email to the est agt and L/l stating that we want all the goods as per viewing of the property i.e. seperate washing machine and tumble dryer etc. I advised that if we are going to lock heads on these non-working items lets call it a day and come to a mutual agreement on leaving the property. I told her to send all correspondence via email. Instead she contacts my husband and advises that they are providing a washer/dryer that day. My husband agreed. I told him to contact them back and advise that we required the items as seen as per viewing and to send all correspondence via email. 10mins later theres a knock on the door and its the landlord with the engineer. She sent the email 10 mins before but never mentioned to my husband that the landlord was coming too. Can they do this? I have stopped replying to her email now as i felt that was the last straw as this is feeling like harrassment. I dont mind paying my rent once the repairs are done. However, est agt keeps emailing me asking me to sign, i have told her that i am seeking legal advise due to all the discrepancies in this case. The day rent was due (i did not pay) i recieved a reciept for window cleaning, i checked the windows they were not cleaned recently. However, I found smugged writing on the window upstairs stating " D**d I can" I feel really harrassed. I was told that the appliances were in working order and that table/chairs and fridge freezer were agreed from the est agt that has subsequently been sacked for embezzlement and i am being asked for proof of confirmation that he said it was agreed. Can I get out of this agreement? If i remain how can i protect myself from harrassment and what protection will i have for any further repairs that may arise? Sorry for the long email just thought i should give most of the facts.

I am in disppute with my landlady and the state agent that is holding my deposit. The quibble is over what amount of heating oil should have been left by me. My landlady says that the tank holds 1350 litres and that she personally filled this up before we moved in [Nov 2008]. On the not very detailed inventory all it states i 'Oil reading = Full'. Neither her nor I have a photograph or any proof at what level the tank was full to when we moved in. She did however give me a receipt that clearly shows that 1100 litres was delivered to the property in July 2008. My argument is that I should only have to fill it to 1100 litres as this is the only evidence available to confirm an amount of oil that was in the tank when we moved in. My other argument is that me contract clearly states that i should have been notified within 10 working days of any deductions that were going to be made from my deposit - i did not receive anything in writing or in fact even verbally from her until after the 10 days. Not sure where i stand with this. Some advice would be appreciated on where i stand. Thank you

Sorry but could not find an Estate Agents forum, if there is one sorry for not looking hard enough My next door neighbours parents have been with an Estate Agents for 2 years, they dont feel theyhave done much and wish to change agents. Their present agent says they will have to pay them £1000 to change, this cant be right can it? Thank you in anticipation

after two years of inefficiency,unreturned calls and ignored emails i have had enough.i tried going through their complaints procedure but only received a whining reply from the person i complained about! i am considering picketing their local branch to make them take my complaints seriously.is there a way to do this legally?

Hi, Received a letter from the estate agent asking us to pay our rent into a different account. Verified this was genuine and had confirmation from Estate Agent and Landlord. Reason given below: The 2 guys who own the estate agents (Neil & Gabriel) are having problems. Neil is trying to buy out Gabriel to solve the dispute. In the meantime Gabriel is refusing to co-sign the bank transfers from the company account and Neil claims that he is unable to transfer any rent paid into this account. Neil has setup a sole trader account so he is able to transfer the money to the landlord. My concerns: - I'm breaking the terms in the tenancy agreement as i'm paying money into an account different to the one on the contract. - Neil and Gabriel aren't getting on, Gabriel could claim Neil is trying to fraudulently do him out of money - Is Neil telling the truth, do you actually need both parties present in order to transfer the money? Thanks.

hi, i gave 190 pound as admin fee and 250 refundable holding depposit to estate agent. Now after All is well. the landroad refused and the agnet will not give me my money back. :-x :-x :-x :-x that is 190 + 250 which he should of given back automatically. thanks please help me get my money back .

Hello All I have recently put my notice in on my flat. I am aware of my rights for peaceful enjoyment etc and have informed the estate agents I will not accept any viewings whilst I remain in occupation. However they keep on asking whether there is a work around as they see it as me being unreasonable etc. My landlord has increased the rent on the property twice since I have been here and I have paid an abundance of fees to the estate agents for contractual renewals, reference checks, check ins and check outs etc. Now I think it is my turn to turn the tables on the estate agents. I am planning on informing them that I will accept viewings but there will be fees associated with me doing so I reckon a breakdown as follows will be good: Administration - £40 Cleaning and tidying time - £20 Totalling £60 per visit. Can anybody see any issues with undertaken such an exercise?

Hi there, Just a quick question, I had sent a few letters back and forward to the Estate Agent who was managing a property I was renting. One of which was a complaint letter, I got a few responses back from them. For some reason I can no longer find these letters and I requested them from the Estate Agents. I'm not sure but surely they have to keep any sort of correspondance for a certain amount of time? Anyway, they have said that they won't send me them. This is what they have said: "No. I may produce the letters at a later date when required." Surely they can't refuse to give me the letters? Its correspondence between ourselves (Them the estate agent managing the property and us the tennants?) is this allowed? Against the law? etc etc?

Hi All, We have a pending court case with our LL for the deposit of our old property that we let off him. He and the Agent acting badly during the end of our tenancy and I have proof that the Agent has lied and harassed us to get us to relent the deposit. I am preparing our defense for the court case and sent a letter to the Agent that read this on the 24th of May by recorded delivery: We wish to make a complaint about the conduct of ******. 1. We have found that you are acting on behalf of our previous landlord in recent court procedures in that you have provided services akin to that of a legal representative as detailed in our letter dated 24th of May 2012. 2. On our leaving of the property we received no written guidance from you about the end of tenancy. This led to a confusing time in which we repeatedly requested an exit survey considering our Landlord’s concerns. This was ignored and your employee ****** made it clear than considering ****** did not manage the property you could not be involved. 3. The supply of a previous signed document being sent to us as an original which you later explained to be an office error. We feel that this practice, along with your recent involvement, leads us to believe that you were never impartial during this process. 4. You rang us repeatedly in the evenings during January during a period our baby was only 1 month old and my husband was on paternity leave. We requested that communication needed to be in written form yet you repeatedly ignored this and continued to telephone us. We found this extremely stressful. You stated in your last communication that you have been trying to call us again during April 2012 despite our repeated requests for all correspondence to be in writing. We have not received these calls. We find these allegations of ignored communication to be untruthful. 5. We requested breakdowns and verification of invoices which you have not supplied and you have informed us that we do not have a right to request this. 6. After one month of trying to resolve this matter we escalated this to the T.D.S which is fair and reasonable thing to do as we had been ignored by the LL evident in the e-mail communication. You informed us that we had annoyed and angered our previous landlord in doing this and that you recommended he choose court action over the T.D.S. This was after allowing the T.D.S five weeks of involvement. This has subsequently delayed and increased costs to all parties involved. 7. You have supplied and worked as an adviser to our previous LL in that you have served the court papers, personally visited the courts and served his Particulars on his behalf. We feel that your involvement in this matter is a conflict of interest. 8. You stated in your last e-mail that you had already supplied the Particulars on his behalf and along with this had contacted us to make sure we had received this. We ask for proof of this as the method of service of this document must either be by recorded delivery or hand delivered according to CPR Part 7.5. We consider this to be an attempt to ‘blacken’ our character in front of the courts and that you are acting without integrity. 9. We feel that your involvement and actions have compromised your duty of care toward us as previous tenants. By acting on behalf of the LL we have consistently felt pressurized into giving up our deposit without clarified reason on 219 Seymour Avenue. 10. We never had a response to our last communication dated 18th of January 2012. Could you please process this complaint via your internal complaints procedure along with confirming which membership you hold either with the Members of The Property Ombudsman (TPO) scheme or the Members of the Surveyors Ombudsman Service (SOS). Yours Sincerely This, although signed for, has been totally ignored which to be honest is in keeping with the poor practice of this small Agent. I know through my own research that they are part of the S.O.S and wondered where I could take this complaint from here. Do I have an option to take them to court for malpractice or negligence?

Hi, My friend died a couple of years ago and I am one of the administrators of the estate. The debts we knew about were repaid from some life insurance and the balance went to his widow. His widow has now received a phone call, chasing a debt of which we have no knowledge. How would you suggest we proceed or should we ignore it? Should we contact them and ask them for full details of the alleged debt? If so, would you suggest we write or call? Is the debt still enforceable if they dont have a copy of the CCA?- The DRA is Phillips & Cohen. We believe the debt would more than likely be statute barred, however, we don't know whether a CCJ has ever been made. Am i right in saying that if a CCJ has been made, the debt could still be enforceable, even after the six years? Any advice, gratefully received.