Rent holiday - Covid

[technodup]

A friend has a property they rent out, where the tenant has been affected by Covid and hasn't paid rent for three months. The letting agent gave them the info for where/how to claim whatever they might be entitled to but no payment has been made.

The friend relies on the rental for income, no mortgage. The tenant claims not to have been given any financial help but has not substantiated this. The strong suspicion is the tenant has had furlough or similar and is taking the piss.

What to do? He is currently protected from eviction, isn't paying rent and has nothing to show for anything. Can't be right can it?

[Birkin1932]

Just arrange a meeting and thrash out a repayment plan over the next 12 months, the agent should have sorted this immediately the first payment was missed

I suggest he get a new agent also

[Stay in Bed Instead]

It's not right but there is nothing landlords can currently do.

Tenants who do this are not interested in agreeing a payment plan yet. They will be only when the landlord has some teeth.

[technodup]

As it happens the tenant has now left, as of this weekend. The landlord has wanted him out for a while as he's been a nightmare but is pretty pissed that he's out three months rent and this guys ripped the piss all the way along.

I agree the agent has not exactly been helpful.

[Stay in Bed Instead]

technodup said:

As it happens the tenant has now left, as of this weekend. The landlord has wanted him out for a while as he's been a nightmare but is pretty pissed that he's out three months rent and this guys ripped the piss all the way along.

I agree the agent has not exactly been helpful.

If the tenant has vacated then they have lost their protection. They can now be sued for the rent owed.

[technodup]

Stay in Bed Instead said:

If the tenant has vacated then they have lost their protection. They can now be sued for the rent owed.

That's pretty much the line I suggested. Wasn't sure of the rules around it though.

[Freshprince]

This is the best outcome that he has left! Honestly!

Complete a money claim for arrears and re-let house.

[So]

technodup said:

Stay in Bed Instead said:

If the tenant has vacated then they have lost their protection. They can now be sued for the rent owed.

That's pretty much the line I suggested. Wasn't sure of the rules around it though.

We've got a wide boy doing the same at the moment. I suspect he thinks that he is going to get a few more weeks free housing and then scarper.

The problem for him is that he has aspirations to be a financial whizz and a CCJ won't help him on his way.

He is black and will, I am fairly certain, at some point claim that we are only suing him because of his skin colour.

[505diff]

So said:

We've got a wide boy doing the same at the moment. I suspect he thinks that he is going to get a few more weeks free housing and then scarper.

The problem for him is that he has aspirations to be a financial whizz and a CCJ won't help him on his way.

He is black and will, I am fairly certain, at some point claim that we are only suing him because of his skin colour.

Just take them to court, I had someone not paying rent a few years ago who told me I could do nothing, they weren’t paying, the CCJ they got for the trouble reduced them to tears, money turn up within 24 hours. Some people can’t
get through life without fiddling money out of people, make sure non of it is yours.