Discussion
i leased a premisis for my buisness,left there in nov 2003,just had a bill from balifs saying the landlord couldnt contact me and i owe them for work they say was carried out whilst i was there,work wasnt carried out and has been disputed before,it was for cutting back some vegitation and damage caused to a light caused by one of their trucks,this again has been disputed and is about 3 years old.
i have witnesses to both the above events.
question is how long can they harass me,the landlord didnt try to contact me as i have had no bills since i left there.
bill is £300 ish so would they take me to court?
answers on a £5 please
i have witnesses to both the above events.
question is how long can they harass me,the landlord didnt try to contact me as i have had no bills since i left there.
bill is £300 ish so would they take me to court?
answers on a £5 please
Was your unit on an estate? If so, wouldn't cutting vegetation, dealing with broken lights etc be covered by an estate service charge?
Did you have any sort of agreement when you left with the landlord about dilapidations i.e was it you or him that repaired and decorated when you left, if him, did you pay towards the cost?
Did you have any sort of agreement when you left with the landlord about dilapidations i.e was it you or him that repaired and decorated when you left, if him, did you pay towards the cost?
it was a railway arch,they never mentioned "delapidation" the place was ready to fall down when i moved in,was a bit better when i left,there were no other fixed charges apart from rent and insurance.
they were allways coming up with "random bills" for things that when quiried they didnt know what they were about.
they were allways coming up with "random bills" for things that when quiried they didnt know what they were about.
I presume then the landlord was not Spacia, or whatever it was they were called when the old BR property department rebranded? They used to own all of the railway arches.
The idea of dilpidations is to remedy any damage that there might have been to the value of the landlord's interest as a result of a tenant not complying with the repairing obligations of his lease. In this instance, it sounds as though it would be difficult for the landlord to claim anything like this.
Would they go to court for £300? Doubt it. It costs £80 just to make a small claim afaik.
The idea of dilpidations is to remedy any damage that there might have been to the value of the landlord's interest as a result of a tenant not complying with the repairing obligations of his lease. In this instance, it sounds as though it would be difficult for the landlord to claim anything like this.
Would they go to court for £300? Doubt it. It costs £80 just to make a small claim afaik.
MuttK is spot on. The most important thing to find out is: what were your repairing obligations? What did you sign?
If you signed a lease with a full repairing covenant, you may be in for a rocky ride. But if the lease obliged you to keep the property in no worse state and condition than as at the date you entered into it, you may not be liable for anything. These are the two extremes.
The debt they are claiming is not above the threshold (£750) at which they can issue a statutory demand, so they will have to sue you and prove their claim. You need to get hold of your lease and go and see a solicitor.
If you signed a lease with a full repairing covenant, you may be in for a rocky ride. But if the lease obliged you to keep the property in no worse state and condition than as at the date you entered into it, you may not be liable for anything. These are the two extremes.
The debt they are claiming is not above the threshold (£750) at which they can issue a statutory demand, so they will have to sue you and prove their claim. You need to get hold of your lease and go and see a solicitor.
If you use a lawyer you may end up paying more than £300, especially if you lose.
Try the following:
1. Ask him to give specific details in writing.
2. Give your response to each point he raises.
3. If he still wants payment, offer him £100 for full and final settlement.
Don't make it personal or take it personally. Remember it's business.
Try the following:
1. Ask him to give specific details in writing.
2. Give your response to each point he raises.
3. If he still wants payment, offer him £100 for full and final settlement.
Don't make it personal or take it personally. Remember it's business.
All of the advice above is sound but they could try another angle.
If they claim that it is "dilapidations" (ie work required at the end of the lease to remedy damage and wear & tear during the lifetime of the lease) then remind them that there is a statutory provision that limits dilapidations claims to the diminution in value of the reversion.
The long words alone might be enough to scare them off but someone there will recognise the principle and realise that it is not worth pursuing.
What it means in practice is this; the price for a sale on the open market would be affected by repairs required for reletting. If the reduction to take account of that work is less than the cost of the work then the landlord can only claim the lower figure. It applies mostly where a building is going to be demolished or, as here, where the property is in poor condition and nothing short of terminal structural failure is going to affect the value.
I hope you beat them off.
If they claim that it is "dilapidations" (ie work required at the end of the lease to remedy damage and wear & tear during the lifetime of the lease) then remind them that there is a statutory provision that limits dilapidations claims to the diminution in value of the reversion.
The long words alone might be enough to scare them off but someone there will recognise the principle and realise that it is not worth pursuing.
What it means in practice is this; the price for a sale on the open market would be affected by repairs required for reletting. If the reduction to take account of that work is less than the cost of the work then the landlord can only claim the lower figure. It applies mostly where a building is going to be demolished or, as here, where the property is in poor condition and nothing short of terminal structural failure is going to affect the value.
I hope you beat them off.
after a brief exchange of paperwork and me refusing to pay the bills as they were for items that i refused to pay in the past,damage caused by their own truck and work charged for but not done,its all gone a little quiet.
they cant sell the property,it,s a railway arch,and cant let it again,too damp for anything but motor trade and they wont let to motor trade again,all the arches that were vacated whilst i was there are still empty,oh well,heres to a peacefull life
they cant sell the property,it,s a railway arch,and cant let it again,too damp for anything but motor trade and they wont let to motor trade again,all the arches that were vacated whilst i was there are still empty,oh well,heres to a peacefull life
time for me to dust this one off again,ive had a letter to say that i have been given every oppertunity to pay the bill and legal action will follow bla bla bla
q is with bailiffs do they have to take me to small claims court and if i am found guilty the balifs try and seize my goods or do they just appear at 0600 one morning?
q is with bailiffs do they have to take me to small claims court and if i am found guilty the balifs try and seize my goods or do they just appear at 0600 one morning?
If they do the normal thing, they will hand this off to a debt recovery agency, who will write snotty letters at £30 a time, until they too get the idea that they can shove the invoices up their bottoms.
AFter that, they will issue a summons in the small claims court, where you have the opportunity to refute the claim etc.
Bailiffs only appear after court, and your non-payment of whatever the court decides.
As someone ^^ said, its business, and obviously ausing you grief. Did you ask for their opints in full in wirting, and go through them one by one, saying "no, because XX", and then offer £50 for the easiest one yu may cough for?
TfL are just a bunch of civil servants, so this may not work, but the recovery agency may see it differently, and the court will certainly respond positively to your copies of the letters you sent.
HTH
AFter that, they will issue a summons in the small claims court, where you have the opportunity to refute the claim etc.
Bailiffs only appear after court, and your non-payment of whatever the court decides.
As someone ^^ said, its business, and obviously ausing you grief. Did you ask for their opints in full in wirting, and go through them one by one, saying "no, because XX", and then offer £50 for the easiest one yu may cough for?
TfL are just a bunch of civil servants, so this may not work, but the recovery agency may see it differently, and the court will certainly respond positively to your copies of the letters you sent.
HTH
i have printed up some statments and had them signed by various peeps that worked with/near me saying that the work was never done etc,talking to someone he asked if i had my deposit back???
i paid 1/4 as a deposit when i took lease out,it hasnt been mentioned,so they owe me £1100.
should i ask for my money now or after the dust has settled on the above mentioned,i dont want to employ a solicitor,how difficult is to take a large orginisation like transpotters for london to court?
i paid 1/4 as a deposit when i took lease out,it hasnt been mentioned,so they owe me £1100.
should i ask for my money now or after the dust has settled on the above mentioned,i dont want to employ a solicitor,how difficult is to take a large orginisation like transpotters for london to court?
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