For this month’s case we look at a landlord’s claim for a full month’s rent at the end of the tenancy on the basis that the tenants had failed to serve proper notice to end the tenancy.
The Claim
The tenants in response to the claim argued that they had served notice to end the tenancy in line with the terms of the tenancy agreement, and that all rent due had been paid in full. The tenants’ evidence to support their statement that there were no rent arrears included bank statements and email correspondence exchanged during the tenancy, with the landlord.
For an adjudicator to consider making an award to a landlord from a tenant’s deposit, it is necessary for the landlord, with whom the burden of proof rests, to establish with documentary evidence that there has been a breach by a tenant of a term within the tenancy agreement, that they can evidence that breach and that as a result of that breach the landlord has suffered a financial loss.
The Evidence
To support the landlord’s claim, a tenancy agreement and a rent statement were provided as evidence. A review of the deposit use clause contained within the tenancy agreement showed that the deposit could be used for rent arrears and as expected there was an obligation on the part of the tenant to pay rent. It was this obligation and the provisions within the agreement as to ending the tenancy, that the landlord claimed had been breached.
The rent statement evidenced the breach, showing the amount of one month’s rent owed for the month after the tenants last rent payment. The tenancy was for a fixed term of two years, with rent payable in advance each month. The tenancy however, contained a break clause and in this case the clause allowed the tenants to serve a month’s written notice to the landlord to end the tenancy after six months of the fixed term tenancy had expired.
The tenants’ email evidence showed that they had correctly served notice to the landlord which complied with their obligations within tenancy agreement. Both the landlord’s rent statement and the tenants’ bank statements showed that the tenants had paid rent in full up to and including the expiry of the tenants’ one month notice.
As the landlord had not evidenced a breach on the part of the tenants, or that he had suffered a financial loss, no award could be made to the landlord.
So, what are the key points here?
+ Read the tenancy agreement carefully before making any proposed deductions. In this case, the landlord had misunderstood the requirement of the tenants’.
+ A tenant must have breached a contractual obligation to make a claim.
+ A landlord must have suffered a financial loss to make a claim.
+ In claims for rent arrears, we would expect to be provided with a detailed rental statement for the entire period of the tenancy, showing the property details and the names of the tenants, the rent due dates and the periods to which the rent payments relate along with the date on which the rent was received and the dates for which rent remains outstanding.
If you are interested in further guidance relating to deposit disputes, visit the Information Lounge at TDS to browse further guides.
Sandy Bastin, is head of adjudication services at Tenancy Deposit Scheme (TDS), the only not-for-profit tenancy deposit protection scheme.
