Hi All,
Im in a strange situation with my previous landlord and letting agency and would like some clarity.
I was previously in a 9months fixed term tenancy ending June 1st. This was a joint tenancy with another tenant and prior to the end of the tenancy i gave prior notice well in advance of the 2month period as to my intention of cancelling the tenancy and no longer wished to remain in the property.
The tenant i was living with had found a replacement tenant informed the property manager and their company and that tenant moved in.
I recently received a call and email from the property manager that i still remain liable for the property as the tenancy fell through with the replacement tenant and the documents were not completed in full.
Clearly I haven’t been involved with the property since June 1st, i have since moved into another property and found this completely crazy that i am being told i am liable for a tenancy i have not signed to renew and also given advance prior notice that i intended to leave the property after the fixed date of the tenancy.
I have read into ‘Periodic tenancy’ which is what the property manager is saying is currently in place, and i am liable for. Although i have been disputing this as the tenancy should have been cancelled and procedures should have been put in place immediately for new tenants and soon as I left the property.
Does anybody have any advice asap please.
Thanks
Hi James, oh no, sounds stressful! Good news though.
If you served notice according to the terms of the tenancy, and then moved out and stopped paying rent, then that will have legally ended the tenancy. Not just for you, but for all parties, including the landlord and your co-tenants.
In other words, as long as you served notice properly, according to the terms in your tenancy agreement (contract), then the tenancy ended either:
- when your notice expired
- when you stopped paying rent
- when you moved out
- some combination of the above
Have you already had your tenancy deposit returned for this previous tenancy? This would be another sign that the tenancy had ended.
Hi Sam thanks for your response,
I have finished paying rent. The tenancy expired as of 31/5/ and i moved out on that date also.
With regards to the deposit, i was payed my deposit fee by the new tenant directly from her account to mine, rather than through the deposit protection scheme which i found strange but was informed by the property management company that it was fine.
Under a technicality the deposit may still be in my name and the tenant i used to live with, so clearly i have been wrongly advised by the letting agency that everything was settled?
From my understanding I should have no legal obligation to the property as of the 31/5 and the date I moved out of the property. I gave advanced notice to the letting agency 3 months in advance of the end of the tenancy that I no longer wished to stay. Its completely bizarre.
Hi James, it certainly sounds as if the tenancy has ended, along with any obligation you may have to pay rent.
The deposit may still be registered in your name. You should be in touch with the deposit protection scheme to find out the details here and ensure that you get back any money in the scheme that is yours, even if the current tenant has paid you.
It is quite bizarre, but letting agents often don’t bother explaining the law if it makes handling tenants easier! The best thing we can do as tenants is know our rights, know the laws and use OpenRent 
Sam
Hi Sam,
I’ve only been a landlord since the back end of 2016 and am still learning, I’m not sure with revision, but shouldn’t the tenant above of received prescribed information to confirm that their deposit had be secured. Isn’t the landlord in danger of being charged 3 times the deposit if this hasn’t been done? This is certainly a bargaining tool against a landlord that is trying to push tenants around. If this post isn’t going to be automatically visible to everyone then you have my permission to post it. I understand your staff.
Mike.
Yes - if a landlord fails to register the deposit and serve the prescribed deposit protection information to the tenant within 30 days, then they may be liable to pay a fine to the tenant, which as you say can be up to three times the deposit value.
This can be a bargaining chip for tenants who have been mistreated, but we always do advise that tenants and landlords come to an agreement about how to proceed wherever possible!