Resolving
Repairs
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Damage deposits
119
Mice, rats and other infestations
121
Leaving early
122
Intrusive landlords
124
Noise and other problems
125
Where can I go for help?
126 113
Introduction This section covers the main areas in which students have problems in their housing. Reading through it, if you do not already have experience of private sector housing, could give you the impression that living in the private sector is going to be a hellish experience. However, the reality is that in all the major surveys of student housing carried out by university accommodation offices; the vast majority of students have expressed satisfaction with their housing. It is only a small minority of students who do experience problems. Nevertheless, some students do experience problems and this section is designed to tell you about what rights you have should things go wrong. The most important rules for students experiencing housing problems are as follows:
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1 Put things in writing as soon as possible This is especially important for repair issues since the landlord is only obliged to start remedial action within a reasonable time of being informed of the problem. If you have only been telephoning the landlord, they can try to deny that you contacted them until much later than you did. 2 Get advice as soon as possible It is very easy to make incorrect assumptions about the law. You need to check with an advisor that what you are asking from the landlord is something that they are obliged to do, either because of the tenancy or under current housing law. See pages 126-127 for Where can I go for more help? 3 Always try to keep emotion out of disputes Writing very angry letters or e-mails may make you feel better but they are almost always going to be unhelpful in finding a solution.
Make sure you get a copy of all communication with your landlord in writing. Landlords can appear so friendly and trustworthy when you first move in and sign the contract that there seems to be no need to make a big fuss about minor details. But when moving out you might find they develop a touch of amnesia when it comes to verbal assurances.
Top student tip
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Repairs
f you have a repair that you need to report to the landlord or managing agent, it is always best to put this in writing, even if you have already reported it to him/her over the phone. For example: Dear Mr Hassan, As discussed the boiler is not working, there is hot water but no heating to the flat. This letter is just for your records and also to confirm that we are happy for you give our telephone numbers to the engineers to arrange a time for the work to be carried out. Yours sincerely, Sanjay Rashid
You can always send this by email, to make it seem less formal, but getting into the habit of doing this at an early stage, should help you to avoid problems later on. When reporting repairs, make sure you give as much information as possible, to avoid any potential delays when your landlord or managing agent is trying to arrange for the repairs to be carried out. Whatever tenancy agreement you have signed the landlord has a duty to carry out certain repairs. The Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 obliges a landlord to repair the structure and exterior of 116
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the premises. Housing advisors often refer to Section 11 of this Act, since this is the section which outlines the landlord’s duty to repair. The Act also covers disrepair to the heating, water supply and toilet systems. If a landlord does not carry out repairs within a reasonable period of time, you may have a claim against them for financial damages (it is unusual, however, to be released from the contract on the basis of disrepair). You should also check your tenancy agreement, to see what other repairs your landlord is contractually obliged to carry out. You may also find that under the tenant’s obligations in your tenancy agreement, that you are responsible for carrying out minor repairs to the property, e.g. unblocking sinks or replacing tap washers. You can also use your local authority to put pressure on the landlord to carry out the work (see pages 126-127 for Where can I go for help?). The whole issue of repairs is quite complex and would need another guide to cover in full. For students who want to investigate this issue further, there are a range of resources that can help: One of the best is on The Shelter website which has detailed information on tenants’ rights and responsibilities: http://england.shelter.org.uk/ (Choose: Get Advice >Repairs and bad conditions).
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Who can carry out repair/ improvement work to rented properties?
The answer depends on what the repair or improvement work is. Any work being carried out on gas appliances must be carried out by a Gas Safe registered engineer. For more on this refer to page 82. Anyone carrying out fixed electrical installation work in a rented property must comply with Building Regulations. This means that if the work is not of a very minor nature, your local authority should have given permission for the work to be carried out by an authorised person(s). If you are concerned about who is carrying out the work contact either your local authority or Gas Safe Register (in the case of gas related repairs) to confirm that they are permitted to do the work that they are doing.
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Damage deposits The return of the damage deposit always used to be the number one cause of dispute between landlords and tenants and the one which most frequently ended up being resolved by the courts.
Firstly, write to your landlord asking for the return of the deposit and written reasons why he is retaining it. Keep copies of any letters you send or receive as you will need them if you make a claim in the County Court.
With the introduction of the Tenancy Deposit Scheme in 2007, things have improved. If the landlord does not respond or you are To see if your deposit will be protected, not happy with the reply, you should seek please refer to page 95. advice about negotiating with the landlord or taking court action. Going to court is not However, not all letting agreements will be that expensive and your claim can initially be covered, so some deposits do not need to be submitted online. If your claim is successful, protected. If your deposit is not protected and the landlord does not pay up, you will you may need to take court action if your need to find ways of enforcing the judgment. landlord: These can range from using bailiffs, to ■■ Is unjustifiably withholding all or part of ‘freezing’ money in a landlord’s account or the deposit, applying to get the money deducted directly ■■ Is denying responsibility for refunding from their wages (if they are working). Any the deposit, or extra costs that you incur as a result of ■■ Is not responding to communication trying to get your judgment enforced are from you. recoverable from the landlord. Resolving
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Amount of claim
Issued in a court
Money Claim Online
up to £300
£35
£25
£300.01 - £500
£50
£35
£500.01 - £1,000
£70
£60
£1,000.01 - £1,500
£80
£70
£1,500.01 - £3,000
£115
£105
£3,000.01 - £5,000
£205
£1
If you win a small claim (less than £10,000) then you can recover the court fees, but usually not other legal costs (e.g. a solicitor). Therefore, although advisors will help you to submit a claim, it is likely that you will need to commit yourself to spending a certain amount of time on pursuing your claim. You should also expect it to take about nine months on average, from starting your claim to receiving your money. For more information refer to the court service website: www.justice.gov.uk or www.moneyclaim.gov.uK
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Mice, rats and other infestations
Infestations of pests such as mice, rats, bedbugs or cockroaches are treated differently by local authorities depending on whether they consider the infestation to be a threat to public health or not. From the point of view of public health, mice, although undeniably unpleasant, are not considered to be a threat. Rats, on the other hand, most definitely are. If you have rats, your local authority Environmental Health Department should come round and deal with the problem although sometimes there is a charge. Other infestations may not automatically be dealt with by the local authority. For example, if you have mice, then you will have to argue with the landlord about whose responsibility it is to deal with them. If the mice have gained entry to the property because it is in disrepair (e.g. there is a hole in the brickwork) then you could argue that it is the landlords responsibility to pay for them to be got rid of. However, if they have only appeared two or three months into the tenancy, the landlord could argue that it is nothing to do with them. This is especially the case if the property has not been kept spotless and food has been regularly left out (i.e. breadcrumbs not swept up, full plastic bin bags left on the floor and not put inside plastic sealed bins etc). Resolving
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Leaving early If you want to leave a contract earlier than it permits, it is very difficult to do this without the agreement of the landlord. In most cases you will need to find a replacement for yourself that is acceptable to the landlord and, if you are on a joint contract, your co-sharers. If you are on a joint contract, and one person is replacing another on the contract, you should use a Deed of Assignment. Using this deed avoids all sorts of confusion later on. Escaping from your contract is extremely difficult
There are some very rare occasions when a tenant or a licencee has the right to leave early, regardless of the landlord’s wishes. It is not possible to explain these in a publication of this length. However, if: Either you arranged your accommodation over the internet, over the telephone or via some other form of distance communication or you are within the first seven days of your contract.
A blank deed of assignment can be downloaded from our website www. studenthousing.lon. ac.uk A Downloads 122
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Or a landlord/agent told you certain things about a property that he/she knew were untrue and that were for you significant (i.e. this information was enough to encourage you to sign the agreement) and you are at the beginning of your agreement and have not paid a second instalment of rent.
Then you may be able to end the agreement but you should seek advice quickly before taking any action. There are a couple of other grounds (fundamental breach and frustration of the contract) but both of these only apply when it is not possible to continue to live in the property (i.e. there has been a fire or a roof has collapsed).
Mortgage reposessions
One of the many problems associated with the current economic climate is a significant increase in the number of homeowners facing repossession proceedings brought by their lenders If you live in a property which is mortgaged and your landlord gets into mortgage arrears their lender may take court action to repossess the property. If the lender is successful in this action they can evict anyone living there including any tenants. The lender will not always be aware that you are living in the property. However, when they start court action they must send a notification of the court hearing date to the property addressed to “the occupiers”. For this reason you should always open post which is addressed in this way, don’t assume it is junk mail! If you do receive notification of court action, take advice immediately. It may be possible to negotiate with the lender so that you remain in the property as the lender’s tenants or apply to the court to stay in the property for longer. Resolving
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Intrusive landlords If the landlord keeps coming round and letting himself in, what can you do? Whilst you are paying rent for a house or flat which you do not share with the landlord, it is considered to be your home. The landlord cannot come into your home without your permission. Having said that, the house or flat that you are living in is the landlord’s property. They are entitled to inspect the property every few months to check on the state of repair. The tenancy agreement may also oblige you to give them access for other reasons (e.g. to show a prospective tenant round if you are moving out). Usually you can insist on being given 24 hours notice of any visits and you can insist on knowing the reason for the visit. If the landlord is not keeping to these basic rules, you should put your complaint in writing to them. If they ignore this letter, get an advisor to contact the landlord to explain to them their legal obligations. The landlord cannot come into your home without your permission 124
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Noise and other problems If you are living next door to the neighbour from hell, it can make your life a misery. Unfortunately, if your neighbour has no connection with the landlord it is not the landlord’s responsibility to deal with the problem. You do not have the right to move out of the property because this would cause financial loss to the landlord. Since they are not the cause of the problem, the law does not accept that they should suffer any loss for the actions of a third party. Unfortunately, your remedy is the same as that of any other member of the public. This means that you need to get in touch with the local authority Environmental Health or Noise Pollution team. They have a range of powers which include the confiscation of stereos and other noisy equipment.
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Where can I go for help? In many cases involving disrepair, harassment or even eviction, your local authority would be the appropriate people to contact. This page describes the different services available from them.
Assistance from your local authority
Environmental Health Officers The Environmental Health Department at your local council has the job of ensuring that houses and flats within their area are safe and healthy. Environmental Health Officers (EHO’s) have powers to prosecute landlords who rent out properties that are bad for health. Tenancy Relations Officers Tenancy Relations Officers have the job of protecting tenants from landlords who either harass or illegally evict. In some local authorities, they will also deal with letting agents that make illegal charges. If you are looking for the relevant contact details on the local authority website, we suggest that you search their A–Z index under the following headings: ‘Housing Advice’, ‘Harassment’ and ‘Illegal Eviction’.
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Other assistance Student Union or Accommodation Office Your Student Union or your college accommodation office may be able to assist you with housing advice. Ask them for information about what support is available. If you found your housing through your college accommodation office, it is important that you let them know of any problems. Citizens Advice Bureau or Law Centre If your college or Student Union cannot assist you, your local Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) or law centre ought to be able to. You can find your nearest CAB through the following website: www.citizensadvice.org.uk Shelterline and Shelter London Shelterline is Britain’s first 24 hour, free, national housing helpline. It provides advice to anyone with a housing problem, whatever time you need it. Shelter London is a housing advice service for people living in London. Their advisers will tell you your rights, explain your options and help you to take action. If appropriate you may also be asked to contact your local Shelter housing aid centre. To contact Shelter London, ring: 0808 800 4444, website: http://england.shelter.org.uk Resolving
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Resolving checklist... Seek advice quickly Don’t assume that the problem is going to be the responsibility of your landlord. It may not be. Put things in writing as soon as possible.
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