Hi looking for some advice. We recently moved out of a property at the start of June and overpaid the months rent by 15 days which the landlord is refusing to pay back. For context we were meant to move out in April but due to being unable to find a suitable house for our family we overstayed. This was all communicated to the landlord and estate agent and we kept them up to date regularly as to how we were getting on. We have received our full deposit back as we left the property in a good condition. Are there any circumstances where we would not be due this money back
Need a few more details.
What day of the month was the rent due and what day in June did you hand back keys? Did you and the LL agree in writing to leave mid rental period? Why did you overpay anyway?
Rent was due 24th June (we paid a full month on 24th May) and we handed the keys back on 8th June. We overpaid as we were on holiday with no Internet connection so were unable to cancel the standing order
Ask Shelter and/or Citizens Advice
It does depend what you agreed with the LL. If you agreed a specific end date for the tenancy of the 8th, and you have that in writing, they cant charge you rent beyond that. @david122 can confirm.
However not actually clear you have given valid notice and the tenancy has even ended - what notice was specified in tenancy agreement for how long, and when did you give it - moving out is not the same as giving notice. Unless agreed otherwise with the LL the notice will have to end on the day before rent due ie 23rd of a month and you have to pay up to then. That’s pretty standard and what applies for contracts from 1 may onwards
If however you simply indicated you’d be paying the full months’ rent, and only later chose to move out sooner because it suited you, then you could be seen to have agreed to pay for the property up to the 23rd, and it would then perhaps be fair enough for LL to charge you up to that point. It’s difficult to judge without the details of the exact discussions you had with the LL. Think of it like this - if I book a hotel for a week but leave after 2 days, the hotel is entitled to still charge me the week’s cost, arent they [or a cancellation fee if that’s their terms] ?
If you have evidence the LL moved a new tenant in before 23rd, say from 10th, or did a moving out inventory on 10th, then they have taken possession from 10th and cant charge you any rent from then [they cant both have possession and be charging you rent for its use]
Good luck
Hi
Were you on an AST in April ( is there a cross over between old and new legislation ) ?
In April Were you in a fixed term or the periodic part of the AST ?
You legally need two months notice since May 1st
What dates were your notice
Did you give notice for April and then overstay
Were you charged double rent under the distress for rent act ?
So we were meant to move out on April 1st but due to being unable to move out we stayed (communicated to everyone) and carried on paying rent. We then agreed with the estate agent that we would hand the keys back on 8th June once we had completed on our house purchase. The landlord moved back into the house on 10th June. Hope this clears it up a little
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Our 6 month tenancy ended at the end of Feb and we were given the proper notice to leave before christmas. We were then given an extension until April but were still struggling to find a place so carried on paying rent as normal
When did you give formal notice then ?
If the Landlord moved back in on the 10th - how did that occur? is that an assumption or fact? If he genuinely moved chattels of his and took up residence on the 10th June then he cannot charge you rent after midnight on the 9th of june. can you prove he moved in on the 10th, evidence?
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Bit confusing as to who gave notice to whom. This:
seems to indicate that the LL gave them notice to leave (poss cos he wanted to move back in)
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Sounds like there was an agreement on both sides for tenancy to end on 8th so long as you have written evidence of the agreement it end then. If you have further evidence that the LL moved back in on 10th (or eg move out inventory photos, agents and yourselves taking final meter readings) then LL can’t charge you rent for a period after tenancy has ended.
LL maybe wrongly thinks tenancy agreement means notice has to run to 23rd (and rent paid to 23rd) but that’s not true if you/LL (or you/agent acting for LL).agreed a different date
But without knowing exactly what got agreed when between whom and whether in writing and the exact wording (so we can ascertain if notice given was valid) it’s guesswork.
Get advice from a lawyer, citizens advice or shelter
Good luck
There’s not enough information here to give a clear answer about whether has been an over-payment or indeed whether a tenancy still continues despite you moving out.
- Who gave notice originally and when?
- what was the landlords response when you said you wouldn’t be moving out in April?
- Before you did move out, did you serve notice yourself. If so what exactly did it say?
- What was the landlords response when you handed back the keys?
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