My tenant owed rent and abandoned the property. I had to clean it and pay council tax. But I can’t catch my deposit backI let a property through a well-known estate agent. After a couple of months the tenants abandoned it and I had to spend £150 on cleaning. They owed several months’ rent and I had to pay the council tax. I have been unable to catch the agent to release the deposit held through the Tenancy Deposit Scheme. They say they cannot release it without the agreement of the tenants. Is there any way I can force them to,as clearly the tenants are not going to return or respond? AB, Ipswich, and SuffolkThe law,in seeking to protect tenants from rogue landlords, makes it difficult for landlords to seek redress from rogue tenants. The agent can only hand over the deposit with the tenant’s permission or, and whether that is not forthcoming,following a decision by the TDS or a court. You could expect the TDS to adjudicate, but it is not allowed to effect so whether, and as in this case,the tenant is uncontactable. You would have to take your case to court and the deposit holder would need to pay the amount into a suitable client account pending the judgment.
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Source: theguardian.com