A landlord left with a £10k bill for damages and court costs after finally evicting a problem tenant is calling for a change in the law. The tenant, a single mother with three children, moved into the “immaculate” property in September 2016. It wasn’t long before she defaulted on the rent.
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Two Written Warnings
The landlord sent out two written warnings, as per standard procedure, but the tenant refused to pay the outstanding rent or move out. Finally, the landlord took the tenant to court to gain possession of the rental property and won her case. Bailiffs were sent to the property, but the tenant had already absconded.
When the landlord entered the property, she was horrified to find rubbish strewn everywhere, cat and dog faeces all over the furniture. It was so bad, she can’t understand how the tenant was able to live with the smell. “The smell in the house is absolutely horrendous. It is awful – the tenant cannot tell me they did not smell it.”
Landlord Upset
Apparently, they could though. The landlord estimates that it will cost her around £10k to put right. She is understandably very upset, as she went to great lengths to ensure the property was a first-class condition prior to the tenant moving in.
She is now calling for the law to be changed to protect landlords and give them a way of recouping their losses. In this case, the landlord ended up paying all the court costs because the tenant cannot afford to pay.