Rent increase during tenancy agreement?

What does it say in the original agreement about rent increases, the one from 12 plus months ago which is potentially the operative one? and have you been paying the first increase? if you can answer those questions please, a response can be proposed

I don't think it affects your credit score unless you get a CCJ against you but I don't know

We did pay the increased rent in February 2022, when it went from £675 to £710 and they now want £742 from October 2022.

There is no mention of rent increase guidelines in the agreement, just this 'Your landlord can increase your rent by agreement, or as set out in your tenancy agreement, or by following a procedure set out in law.'

They are basically sticking to, nothing they can do, we should have checked to see if it had been completed, mistake was made by previous manager, and it's not their fault. If the additional rent payments are not made you will be charged 3%interest (plus base rate) plus £20 per email/document sent to you and if this is not paid it will go to debt collectors and lead to eviction.

Reply to the comment left by Jenn Smythe at 29/09/2022 - 19:56
Sorry I totally do not agree, they have admitted it was an error by them, " mistake was made by previous manager" this is their problem not yours.
The increase from £675 to £742 if I am correct is 9.93%, a quick search seem to state the folllowing:
“The Landlord can increase the rent every twelve months. The increase is to be calculated according to the Retail Price Index, being a minimum of 3% and a maximum of 8%. The Landlord must serve written notice at least two months' prior to the rent increase date.”

I would source this and quote this to the them in writing, I would also caution them that they are acting in an illegal manner and if needed you will take the matter further, threats of % charges etc are nonsense!
I would also contact your LL and make sure they are aware of his representatives are acting in an illegal manner which the LL is responsible.

My advice is stand your ground, you are in the moral and legal hiigh ground.

You should check if the agent is a member of ARLA or any other body and lodge a complaint against them as this is completely out of order by both the agent and the landlord.

You have a tenancy agreement that is signed by both parties and have been paying the originally agreed increase for several months, and more importantly they have been accepting it.

The fact the agency was ‘still processing’ it (by their own admission a mistake) is not your fault.

I’m not a solicitor, but I cannot see any judge ruling against you. Both interested parties signed the contract and by accepting the rental amount stated on there the landlord has confirmed this.

I would also contact citizens advice. Keep paying the rent in the contract, tell the agent they are in the wrong and you will bring a claim against them and the landlord if they continue to harass you.

This makes me as angry as bad tenants trying to rip off landlords! What has happened to common sense and decency these days?

It sounds like the estate agents are incompetent and doing their best to circumvent tenancy laws. They cannot do this.
If the estate agents are saying that the extra money that you have been paying was not indeed an increase in the rent, then by default it might be considered by Trading Standards to be a prohibited fee, under the Tenant Fees Act, 2019.
If I were you I would ask the estate agent to reconsider their position or refer the matter to Trading Standards, who can impose a financial penalty of up to £30,000 on the estate agent or the landlord. Or both.
Unfortunately for you, once the 12 months is up, they can seek to raise the rent again. You do not have to agree to the increase, and the landlord will then have to make a judgement call on whether or not to seek repossession and all the costs that entails, or to accept a lower rent. It is all down to negotiation but it pays both parties to adopt a reasonable stance.

Reply to the comment left by Chris H at 01/10/2022 - 03:56
Chris,
Whilst I agree with the sentiment of your comment, I have never before seen any reference to Retail Price Index, 3%, 8% or otherwise. I suspect that you have found a specific agreement between two particular parties, or other jurisdiction outside of England and Wales. Rent increases are generally either written into the tenancy agreement, or driven by market forces, with the caveat that a tenant can go to a tribunal if they think that the rent increase is unfair. They can only be raised once in 12 months, but that is misleading as a landlord can ask for a 'voluntary' increase, with the obvious risk to the tenant that the landlord might seek repossession if they don't 'voluntarily' agree.
I would be pleased if you are able to provide a link to your reference to Retail Price Index etc. Thank you.

Thank you all for your help, i have spoken to them this morning and they have reluctantly agreed to refund the rent increase applied in February on the understanding that we are now paying the higher rate of rent and on a rolling monthly contract.

We will now be looking to move out, something that has been on the cards for a while, as the property is simply not well maintained and looked after. This has just pushed us to doing it sooner rather than later. (problems with aging boiler, certain electrical circuits isolated for safety reasons, poorly installed wooden single glazing with gaps around the sides, sewage mains in the garden causing ongoing problems and an oven that takes nearly 2 hours to preheat to name a few of them!)

Still notify their redress scheme or trading standards for the record