evict a non rent paying, blackmailing tenant - Courts no help at all!!

[jta]

I agree with Westminster. Make sure your own house is clean before anything else or the whole thing becomes hopelessly entangled.

[property mongrel]

I am so pleased that at last T has overplayed his hand, not as adept at the criminal law as he would like to believe.

Apart from an Offence of Misrepresentation under Section 2 of the 2006 Act, you may have Attempting to obtain property by deception, the Housing payments, perhaps Attempting to evade a liability by deception. Aah, the possibilities are endless.

As has been pointed out LL uk make sure you are spotless on all of your paperwork and obligations.

Good luck, which you won't need so much of now 'cos you got the A team on your side.

atb

pm

[nobody]

Reading this state of affairs advice from a solicitor it first priority, Its important you get your ship in order,

The deposit needs sorting out, I havnt had any issues like this but one thing I do know You need professional advice so you dont waste time and money with the courts learning the hard way.

I dont know what advice will be given but its going to be a lot of money and the tenant will coin it in as time goes,

The tenant is in effect stealing your money and one thing is sure you are never going to see it, You could write to the DSS suspending rents or reduce the rent, I know this sounds silly but I am sure if you can stop the DSS giving money to the tenant this will make the tenant look for another victim,

The email scam just report it to the HB fraud unit anything that stops money going to the tenant helps,

I dont like the legal system or trust it but if I was in your position I would book my appointment tomorrow, The longer this person is in your house the more damage will happen,

I dont like being a bearer of bad news but if this tenant is causing a disturbance like keeping pets and running a business problem its possible you may be on the hook as hes your tenant, I dont know how but the sooner you sort it the less chance of problems in this area.

A poor bit of advice get solicitor but this guy is a pro con artist and you have been duped,

Hope this advice helps.

[landlady_uk]

You do not say why the s.8 application failed; has the T reduced the rent owing and unpaid to less than two months, did he defend on the basis of disrepair, etc?

Outcome after initial hearing, judge ordered the following:
• T give LL possession of property
• T PAY rental arrears
• T pay LL court costs

After the eviction order was made, T appealed for a notice to set aside order date fixed. I attended and T stated he would sue me for reasons given previously. These are unsubstantiated:

Loss of earnings due to court attendence – T claimed he was not making any money from business @ beginning which is why he could not pay rent – he had no proof to back this up.

Replacement doors = I purchased internal doors for the property which he wanted to change. I agreed and paid him the amount that I paid for the original doors which he agreed to. I paid for somebody to go to the property to hang these doors – have receipts.

I had remodeled the bathroom prior T moved in and fitted in spotlights (standard spotlights found in any DIY store). He claims he could not find a bulb despite my advising him where I bought light fitting and bulb from. He decided to rip out my light and fit a standard light fitting and is charging me for this.

Unlawful/unsafe condition of property – I have necessary CORGI certificate.

Please give some more details:

1. Date fixed term commenced, length of term
28.03.2010 – 5 years

2. Is rent payable monthly or weekly?
Monthly
3. Was a deposit paid, if so was it protected and the prescribed info given to T?
£200 Deposit paid, £300 outstanding.
4. Date s.8 was served and what grounds it cited?
30.05.2010 – ground 10, @ this stage tenant owed me 13 weeks in rental arrears. Breached terms of tenancy, keeping dogs in property without LL consent. Damaged property (front door broken, dug up lawn from front & garden, ripped out old trees, I included photographic evidence).
5. Date s.21 was served and what date it expired (exact wording, e.g. "on 2nd February" "after 2nd February")?
I did serve T section 21 at the same time as I served s8. As I was looking to seek posession under s8 under ground10 I proceeded with courts citing that s8 had been served. Do not have a copy for this form
6. Did you obtain proof of service of notices?
Yes I have photocopies of s8.
7. What date you started the possession claim and what form(s) you used?
Particulars of claim for Possession form used – dated 14/06/2010.

[landlady_uk]

Would like to express my gratitude for all those who have posted a response..a heartfelt thank you to all.

[landlady_uk]

Fraud is not a civil matter, it's a criminal offence.

I called the police and explained the situation of the tenant creating a false email address using my details and contacting the council.

They advised that since the T has not gained anything in terms finances/goods as a result of impersonating me, technically he has not broken the law and there is nothing that can be done. Seems like this could be a dead end? I explained to the officer that if T has contacted the council, he could contact other parties pretending to be me i.e. courts etc- officer advised that only thing to do is contact all parties who I think T will emaila nd advise them of the situation.

Unfortuantly it seems that he will not be reprimanded for this.

[landlady_uk]

A poor bit of advice get solicitor but this guy is a pro con artist and you have been duped,

Hope this advice helps.

Hi,

You are completely right! The T's previous LL went to court on same grounds (ground 8) but the T counterclaimed against LL and in the end the LL paid the T £3,000 to move. I did seek advise from a law specialist firm @ the beginning who recognised the tenant just by reading his rather distinctive handwriting, the specialist said that T does this to LL, and my best bet to get rid of him would be to pay him off.

[landlady_uk]

WM - Thanks for the link - I have not secured the deposit but will do so immediately

[landlady_uk]

The email scam just report it to the HB fraud unit anything that stops money going to the tenant helps,

I asked the council if they would take further action against T; as it was the council who notified me of the fraud in the first place. Their response below:

'I did go straight to our fraud department when I suspected what had happened, however, they said it is difficult for them to do much because technically what he has done is not against us. He has attempted to get the benefit paid to him but strictly speaking that is benefit that he is entitled to.'

[Snorkerz]

I called the police and explained the situation of the tenant creating a false email address using my details and contacting the council.

They advised that since the T has not gained anything in terms finances/goods as a result of impersonating me, technically he has not broken the law and there is nothing that can be done.

Go back to the police - even if they don't consider it fraud, surely it is attempted fraud? That's got to be illegal. Some police can be a little bit lazy.

[kittikat]

To OP up until now you have been receiving very good advice from other LL's and those with legal expertise (who in my personal opinion are angels and have helped me no end); however, as a Tenant who has a nightmare LL atm I thought I would give you my personal views as a tenant on this.

With regards to post #35 - the originator of this e-mail is very easy to trace via the IP address that it was sent from. So if it has been sent from your tenant it would take about 3 mins to confirm this. No matter how hard you try to remove anything you do from your computer there is always a traceable trail. Assuming your tenant is as savvy as you claim and they have used say an Internet Cafe this will still be traceable.

I am also concerned that you are able to quote directly from the supposed e-mail because whether sent fraudulently or not this would no doubt be covered by the Data Protection Act and unless you had access to the original sent e-mail you would not be able to access this information; people are not in the habit of forwarding your own e-mails back to you??? Perhaps you could explain?

You have openly admitted that you have not complied with your legal requirements in relation to this tenancy ie. not protecting the deposit; you should have protected the amount that you had regardless of any other amount due. And I have have to ask why did you grant a 5 year Tenancy without a full deposit? Given your disregard for your legal obligations on this matter it is no wonder that the Court has questioned your complying with all your legal obligations. In my personal experience (given the situation I am in with my LL) a LL that ignores one Law has total disregard for all laws. That is just MY opinion.

If you feel that the Police are not taking you seriously then contact then ring again, ask for and Inspector and make a complaint. Alteratively contact the Police Complaints Authority who will act very very quickly. A member on here gave me this information and believe me the Police acted within minutes of submitting the on line form (use google I'm sure you can manage that).

Remember that you entered into this agreement in the first place and I apologise if I sound negative but I am having nightmares with my own LL at the moment and you sound so like her in that you want everything your own way ie. wanting Courts to issue Possession when you are negligent in complying with the law yourself.

Rant over

[westminster]

T claimed he was not making any money from business @ beginning which is why he could not pay rent – he had no proof to back this up.

Even if he did have proof, it's not a defence to non payment of rent.

Replacement doors = I purchased internal doors for the property which he wanted to change. I agreed and paid him the amount that I paid for the original doors which he agreed to. I paid for somebody to go to the property to hang these doors – have receipts.

You had no obligation to replace internal doors. Mistake to agree. And I find it incredible that you also agreed to 'reimburse' T for the cost of the original doors! *facepalm*

I had remodeled the bathroom prior T moved in and fitted in spotlights (standard spotlights found in any DIY store). He claims he could not find a bulb despite my advising him where I bought light fitting and bulb from. He decided to rip out my light and fit a standard light fitting and is charging me for this.

Obviously, not a valid claim. T responsible for replacing lightbulbs.

Unlawful/unsafe condition of property – I have necessary CORGI certificate.

'Corgi' is an obsolete term for what is now called 'Gas Safe'. See http://www.gassaferegister.co.uk/ It applies only to gas safety, not to general disrepair, so it's not much use in terms of a disrepair claim.

4. Date s.8 was served and what grounds it cited?
30.05.2010 – ground 10, @ this stage tenant owed me 13 weeks in rental arrears. Breached terms of tenancy, keeping dogs in property without LL consent. Damaged property (front door broken, dug up lawn from front & garden, ripped out old trees, I included photographic evidence).

In post #15 you say you cited ground 8, the mandatory ground for two months' rent owing and unpaid? (N.B. not equivalent to 'arrears'). Ground 10 relates to 'some' unpaid rent and is not a mandatory ground, nor does it relate to the other breaches you mention. See
http://www.letlink.co.uk/letting-fac...-8-notice.html

Please clarify what grounds you cited.

5. Date s.21 was served and what date it expired (exact wording, e.g. "on 2nd February" "after 2nd February")?
I did serve T section 21 at the same time as I served s8. As I was looking to seek posession under s8 under ground10 I proceeded with courts citing that s8 had been served. Do not have a copy for this form

Well, it doesn't really matter what the s.21 said, as it couldn't expire before 28th March 2015 anyhow.

6. Did you obtain proof of service of notices?
Yes I have photocopies of s8.

A photocopy is not evidence of service.

Are you beginning to understand why it might be a false economy to refuse to get professional legal advice?

[westminster]

They advised that since the T has not gained anything in terms finances/goods as a result of impersonating me, technically he has not broken the law and there is nothing that can be done. Seems like this could be a dead end?

As previously advised, even a conviction wouldn't guarantee a possession order.

I did seek advise from a law specialist firm @ the beginning who recognised the tenant just by reading his rather distinctive handwriting, the specialist said that T does this to LL, and my best bet to get rid of him would be to pay him off.

I somewhow doubt that a reputable firm would give this advice when s.8/ground 8 option is available.

[kittikat]

landlady_uk you really need to employ a specialist Solicitor to deal with your case and would suggest that you re-read all the replies on this thread and see if you can find one. People will not help anyone who will not help themselves. And I have to say again that you expect the legal system to work for you when you have stated that you have disregard for the same.

[westminster]

Go back to the police - even if they don't consider it fraud, surely it is attempted fraud? That's got to be illegal. Some police can be a little bit lazy.

With respect, Snorkerz, I think that encouraging OP to pursue this avenue isn't going to help in terms of getting a possession order ASAP. While it may be easier - long term - to get one with the T banged up in prison, I think ideally one should aim for a faster result on the basis of rent owing and unpaid under ground 8.