Hello everyone. I’ve got a 12-month tenancy contract for a room in progress (September 1st 2023-August 31st/2024). The property’s located in England. Since I was unemployed at the start of the tenancy, I paid the rent in advance. In May, I moved out of the room and gave back the keys. Then, in mid-July, the landlord rented the room to a new tenant. I requested a partial rent refund, because the agreement me sole possession of the room. The landlord replied that by vacating the room without being asked to do so, I terminated my contract and forfeited my rights to a refund. Are they correct?
No, theyre not, but it may be helpful that they implied that the contract was terminated in May when you moved out. Youd then be due a refund from that date. Id suggest you write back thanking them for confirming that the contract ended in May and giving them a deadline to refund the unused rent before you reserve the right to take legal action to recover it without further recourse to them.
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@David122 If they do this, might the Landlord be able to recover costs of re-letting, as the tenant hasn’t honored the 12m contract, or must this have been communicated by the Landlord sooner if this was their intention?
The landlord could have kept the rent for the remainder of the contract if he had left the property empty. Alternatively he could have demanded his costs for ending the tenancy and re-letting. However, he cant have both. Only one Tenant can have possession of a property at any one time, so by re-letting he is either taking rent unlawfully from Elie or he has illegally evicted her.
@David122 Can the landlord demand costs for ending the tenancy and reletting if they chose to accept my surrender (if a surrender did indeed take place)? They could have required me to stay, lest I surrender all rights to a refund.
I think its too late for him to request his costs now as you can just refuse. He cant use the advance rent he has for this as it can only be used as rent or refunded, which has been confirmed by the Tenant Fees Act. They also couldnt have legally made you surrender all rights to a refund, although youre right that if the alternative was not releasing you from the tenancy, you may have been forced to offer something yourself.
How did the tenancy end? What was your request and how was it responded to?
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There’s not much to say about the end of the tenancy. I sent the landlord a text saying that I’d be vacating on a specific date. He replied ‘okay, that’s fine’. Once I moved out, I texted him to confirm the room was empty and that I’d left the key behind. He made more or less the same reply as before.
The landlord doesnt have a leg to stand on. If he doesnt respond to your demand for a rent refund, go to a no-win, no-fee lawyer.
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