Am I getting the right Section 21 advice – Father provided deposit?

Am I getting the right Section 21 advice – Father provided deposit?

8:41 AM, 27th October 2017, About 7 years ago 15

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I am in need of some advice to either backup or dismiss the current advice received from a tenant eviction specialist.

I have a tenant that we would like to evict from our property. They have rolled onto a periodic, and the original 6 month agreement was signed November 2016.

At the time we supplied all relevant documentation, Gas Safety, EPC, How to Rent Booklet, did the right to rent checks etc etc, all according to advice from here and an RLA checklist etc. The deposit was protected in plenty of time (with DPS custodial), and the prescribed information documentation was served to the tenant at the time.

We have proof of all of this.

Outwardly it would seem that we have no reason not to be able to serve Section 21, which is what the company handling the paperwork is saying.

However, the tenant’s father actually provided the deposit, and he hasn’t been served with the prescribed information. We have text message proof that we have asked for an address for him from the tenant, but we haven’t ever received the address or email or anything, and have no way of contacting him (we just got a payment into our bank account).

The company handling this for us is aware of all of this, and isn’t concerned.

I should be trusting them, but I also don’t want it to fail.

What do the people with experience think?

Ian


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Darlington Landlord

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19:03 PM, 29th October 2017, About 7 years ago

I'm sure more knowledgable members will correct me if I'm wrong, but my understanding is that if the deposit is paid by a third party you need to return it to that party rather than the tenant.

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19:45 PM, 29th October 2017, About 7 years ago

May I ad to the confusion . What would happen if a letting agency had taken the deposit how on earth would the landlord know?

Jireh Homes

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19:32 PM, 30th October 2017, About 7 years ago

Clarification for deposits lodged in Scotland that "our" legislation makes no reference to "third parties", requiring that the Prescribed Information is issued to tenants (only). Allan

Mid Landlord

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21:29 PM, 24th January 2018, About 7 years ago

Just a quick update. The tenant has vacated a week early! Hurrah.

The DPS refused to comment on my particular issue, merely pointing out what I needed was a legal opinion. The legal opinion was not particularly forthcoming, and I wasn't keen on paying for a more detailed opinion.

So as is often the case where the money pot is not bottomless, and there are easier ways out, I returned the deposit to the tenant, delivered the bad news, and held my breath. So far so good.

I am aware that I am still possibly liable for the potential problem if the tenant decides to question it, but as others have pointed out it is quite possibly not an issue at all.

T G

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8:38 AM, 27th February 2018, About 7 years ago

This is the scary part, and where so many have fallen victim. Section 214 of The Housing Act 2004 states that IF a Judge is satisfied there has been a breach they MUST sanction the landlord to cough up between 1 and 3x the deposit for each tenancy and also return the deposit itself. OUCH! Not to mention, you’ll also be unable to serve a valid Section 21 notice, which is arguably much worse on every level!

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