Unaware of new contract sent by email

[lisadp1970]

Hi all, I hope someone can offer me advice regarding how my Landlord and the local council housing officer dealt with new tenancy agreement.

 

By chance on the 9th September while checking an email account I don't use much, I noticed a message from the council housing officer who deals with the tenancy agreement between myself and private Landlord, chasing up a new agreement from my LL

 

Much to my shock and horror, the Landlord had first relayed the new tenancy agreement to her back in early February along with a section 13 notice of a rent increase of £159 per month from 1/3/2021. She sent this to my email address on 4/2/21, again I did not see this and it then got lost among the hundreds of junk emails I get every day. I received no other forms of correspondence, no letters to my home address, not texts and no phone calls.

 

She chased this up on 29/5/21 again by the same email address and nothing else, again this was missed by me.

 

Finally on the 9/9/21 she chased it up again, asking if I wanted to sign the new agreement. I only noticed this by chance as I had been flagged to a school email so was checking my inbox.

 

I was in total shock that for over 7 months this had been sitting there outstanding and never once, other than the times I've mentioned, did either the LL or housing officer bother to try and contact me by other means and that I was now in a very difficult situation indeed.

 

I have lived in my home for 10 years 6 months and have often gone for long periods of time between the end of one tenancy

agreement (assured shorthold) to the signing of another and what with all the carrying on with covid this year, I hadn't really given it a second thought that I'd not heard from the LL

 

Sorry this is dragging on, please bare with me.....

 

I receive LHA which has been paid at the three bedroom entitlement, which covered my rent. I have three kids 12 (girl) 15&17 both boys, so now entitled to the 4 bed rates, so the increase isn't a problem for it being paid - BUT as this has been left so long,

 

I'm now according to the LL 7 months in arrears for the increased amount and owe them £1113!!! If they'd made me aware back in February I would have applied for the increase straightaway as it makes no difference to me 

 

I've informed them that I will sign a new contract starting from the 16th of September as that is when the LHA has been increased from, but they are ignoring me.

 

Surely the poor means of correspondence and lack of communication by them isn't my fault so I shouldn't be held accountable for any arrears? As far as I'm concerned I've still been on a rolling contract all this time at the original rent, which has been paid on time every month?

 

Well done if you got this far and thanks for any advice 

Lisa

 

Edited September 28, 2021 by dx100uk
formatting/spacing only - no issue

[45002]

Unless you signed a new written agreement, you're still on a periodic tenancy !

 

Insist on documents been in writing only and Not by email.

 

 

Have a read of this on rent increases

How to Increase the Rent by Serving a Section 13 Notice | OpenRent Landlord Hub

TINYURL.COM

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Landlord can increase the rent by serving a Section 13 Notice to tenants. This is a guide to how it must be done and when it can be used successfully.