virgo.bg
25-03-2009, 22:25 PM
Hi everybody, first of all I would like to thank you in advance for your time and help which is very much appreciated
My daughter has a dispute with her ex LL over deposit deductions which we consider extremely high. Namely LL is willing to deduct following from deposit (deposit GBP 1,680.00 is held by the agent as stakeholder, and my daughter communicates only with the agent, not directly with LL)
- replacement of all non working light bulbs GBP110,86
(2 spotlights for bathroom, 2 bulbs for kitchen extractor hood, 2 halogen bulbs under kitchen unit and 1 standard spotlight for lounge)
- refitted loose toilet roll holder GBP 56.93 (which was anyway not in order since my daughter moved in and she notified agents of that and asked to be fixed but it was never done)
- ( INVOICES are being provided and showing that work has been carried out by the same company but not at the same time, i.e. toilet holder was refitted 13th Jan 09 and light bulbs were replaced 23rd Jan 09.
- cleaning of the premises GBP 300.00
- check out report GBP 138,OO
LL also wants to charge her for some rubs to a window frame which already existed before she moved in as per check in report ,which my daughter refused and for a rub mark/scuff of abt 40-50 cm to one wall which she was responsible and which she accepted. For these two things LL is willing to deduct GBP 75.00 explaining that the minimum charge for a contractor will be GBP 50,00 plus costs for material and labour.
The flat in question is a studio apartment of abt 30 sqm in basement and my daughter rented it while studying in London, keeping it tidy and in order and paying everything in time. She moved out/left UK end of Dec 08 after expiration of tenancy ageement and after giving 1 month notice as per TA. Check out report was made on 2nd Jan after my daughter already left and she disputed it. LL was claiming much more at the beginning, but my daughter accepted to bear costs of bulbs replacement, professional cleaning (because she cleaned it herself which probably was not sufficient), fixing the rub mark/scuff on the wall, but she insisted receipts for all works which were carried out to be provided.
When my daughter urged LL'S reply to her email sent almost a month earlier and requested an undisputed balance of deposit to be transferred to her without any delay, they (LL/LA) finally sent her requested invoices with LL's counter- proposal , which they asked to be confirmed immediately in order deposit to be released.
Well, to be honest it is really difficult for me to believe that companies are charging over 110 pounds to replace 7 bulbs, 56 pounds to fix loose toilet roll holder, 300 for cleaning. I contacted companies in question asking for an estimation/price list for above costs and got information that maintenance co charges 65 pounds per hour. The question is why LL or agent didn't arrange work to be done in one visit because for this kind of work 'engineers' usually don't need more than 30 mins. A person from the cleaning company which was engaged advised that they charge 100 pounds for professional cleaning for this size of property.
We might be wrong because we are not from UK, although my daughter lived in London for 16 months, and both of us visited many times. I really need and am grateful for your opinion/advice/help
.
Thank you ,
VirgoStar
My daughter has a dispute with her ex LL over deposit deductions which we consider extremely high. Namely LL is willing to deduct following from deposit (deposit GBP 1,680.00 is held by the agent as stakeholder, and my daughter communicates only with the agent, not directly with LL)
- replacement of all non working light bulbs GBP110,86
(2 spotlights for bathroom, 2 bulbs for kitchen extractor hood, 2 halogen bulbs under kitchen unit and 1 standard spotlight for lounge)
- refitted loose toilet roll holder GBP 56.93 (which was anyway not in order since my daughter moved in and she notified agents of that and asked to be fixed but it was never done)
- ( INVOICES are being provided and showing that work has been carried out by the same company but not at the same time, i.e. toilet holder was refitted 13th Jan 09 and light bulbs were replaced 23rd Jan 09.
- cleaning of the premises GBP 300.00
- check out report GBP 138,OO
LL also wants to charge her for some rubs to a window frame which already existed before she moved in as per check in report ,which my daughter refused and for a rub mark/scuff of abt 40-50 cm to one wall which she was responsible and which she accepted. For these two things LL is willing to deduct GBP 75.00 explaining that the minimum charge for a contractor will be GBP 50,00 plus costs for material and labour.
The flat in question is a studio apartment of abt 30 sqm in basement and my daughter rented it while studying in London, keeping it tidy and in order and paying everything in time. She moved out/left UK end of Dec 08 after expiration of tenancy ageement and after giving 1 month notice as per TA. Check out report was made on 2nd Jan after my daughter already left and she disputed it. LL was claiming much more at the beginning, but my daughter accepted to bear costs of bulbs replacement, professional cleaning (because she cleaned it herself which probably was not sufficient), fixing the rub mark/scuff on the wall, but she insisted receipts for all works which were carried out to be provided.
When my daughter urged LL'S reply to her email sent almost a month earlier and requested an undisputed balance of deposit to be transferred to her without any delay, they (LL/LA) finally sent her requested invoices with LL's counter- proposal , which they asked to be confirmed immediately in order deposit to be released.
Well, to be honest it is really difficult for me to believe that companies are charging over 110 pounds to replace 7 bulbs, 56 pounds to fix loose toilet roll holder, 300 for cleaning. I contacted companies in question asking for an estimation/price list for above costs and got information that maintenance co charges 65 pounds per hour. The question is why LL or agent didn't arrange work to be done in one visit because for this kind of work 'engineers' usually don't need more than 30 mins. A person from the cleaning company which was engaged advised that they charge 100 pounds for professional cleaning for this size of property.
We might be wrong because we are not from UK, although my daughter lived in London for 16 months, and both of us visited many times. I really need and am grateful for your opinion/advice/help
.
Thank you ,
VirgoStar