MarkF Posted April 18, 2007 Report Share Posted April 18, 2007 Hi All I have a couple of questions regarding being a guarantor, hope you can help. Firstly,having signed as a guarantor in june 2005, do my responsibilities automatically roll over each time the lease is renewed? Secondly, as the tenant has defaulted I have been notified of the Landlords intention to seek a money order against me for the outstanding sum, which obviously depending on the first question, I may or may not be obliged to pay. My question is though, at the same time they should seek a possesion order, I have no idea how long this process takes, and in the the interim would I still be liable for ongoing rent defaults? Thirdly, can I seek a possesion order to ensure the tenant doesnt remain in the property after I have settled their arrears? Finally, how can I cease to be, if I still am, the guarantor? Sorry this goes on a bit, thank you for your patience. Mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony_ mort Posted April 18, 2007 Report Share Posted April 18, 2007 I may be wrong here, and if I am I apologise in advance: but my understanding is that when the tenancy goes periodic at the end of the statutory period, or at the commencement of a new tenancy all bets are off. If that is the case your liability as a guarantor would have ceased by the end of 2005. Don't take my word for it: look at www.landlordlaw.co.uk. You may have to join to get the necessary information, but I'm fairly certain you're O.K! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J4L Posted May 27, 2007 Report Share Posted May 27, 2007 Hi Mark, If you signed the AST in 2005 then you are only guarantor for the duration of that agreement. If the agreement has now rolled on to a Periodic then you are still bound by the initial agreement. I can't imagine that the Tenant has not signed a new agreement since. If they have then surely you would have been invited to sign the agreement also. As far as I can see if you haven't signed anything then you are not liable for any monies owed by the T to the LL. At the beginning though as guarantor you would have been issued with a copy of what you signed. Have a really good read through this agreement and look for clauses that may have tied you in for longer. If you haven't got a copy speak to the agent who issued this and get a copy. They should have to release a copy under the Data Protection Act unless i'm mistaken. Also You will be liable for rent up until the point that the landlord gains full possession of the property. The landlord cannot gain possession if the tenant refuses to hand over the keys and will be guilty of illegal eviction if he doesn't seek a possession order from a Court. If the property or contents have been damaged to an amount in excess of the deposit you could be liable for this too. Ask the landlord what action they have taken to gain possession of the property. Was a notice served when the tenant fell into serious rent arrears? Maybe offer a "without prejudice" agreement to payment of two months rent arrears up or up until the expiry date of the appropriate Notice/s requiring possession (which ever is the lesser sum) otherwise seek legal advice to determine whether or not there are technical grounds for you to take legal action to contest your responsibilities. When did the landlord inform you that the tenant was in arrears? The landlord has a duty to mitigate the potential losses to a guarantor and may not have done so if he failed to issue either S8 or S21 notices or has instigated Court procedures to gain possession. Another question you might ask is whether the landlord used a tenant verification service to assess their tenant. If they didn't then they could be failing in their duty to mitigate potential losses to a guarantor. For anyone else who is experiencing this situation can I add this, The guarantor can write to the landlord and state that he no longer wishes to be held liable beyond that of the fixed term; this has been tested in court so it holds good. The guarantor should give "reasonable" written notice that he no longer wishes to be bound by the terms of the deed of guarantee (beyond the fixed term), but what is reasonable is subjective. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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