dippyspice Posted July 21, 2012 Report Share Posted July 21, 2012 Hi, hope someone can help. My lodger owes me 4 months rent, i want to take them to small claims court for it. The problem is the agreement they signed is between my company and the lodger, and my company had been dissolved 1 month earlier. my company was a limited company, i was the only shareholder and the house is in my name. Does that mean the agreement is not legally binding? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melboy Posted July 21, 2012 Report Share Posted July 21, 2012 Is your lodger still with you? or are you trying to obtain back rent payments? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dippyspice Posted July 21, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 21, 2012 Is your lodger still with you? or are you trying to obtain back rent payments? yes, the term on the agreement is for 6 months, they've been in for just 2 and they want to leave and i can't afford to let them leave. There is no 'break clause' on the agreement so I think they'll do a 'flit'. I'm just looking at my options in case they do. I noticed the discrepancy on the agreement (I had it drawn up by a solicitor and i don't think they were very good) and since then, I've also been told although that the agreement they've signed is for an excluded occupier or lodger , because the agreement is between them and a 'company' and a company can't be a live-in landlord, what they've actually got is an AST along with the associated rights. Do you think that's correct? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melboy Posted July 21, 2012 Report Share Posted July 21, 2012 Well from where I am seeing your problem I would say you are in a very sticky situation on this one. I am not convinced that an AST contract is applicable for "lodgers" anyway and lodgers come under a whole different legal requirement for the live-in landlord. To the best of my knowledge lodgers do not require to give notice nor can they be tied into a legal six month contract. You have the additional problem of a company (lodger) let, which is now a defunct company so I reckon that contract dies with the company......or moves on to a higher legal wrangle of whether it has any legal meaning or support in a court of law......and we are talking about simple lodger law here as well. It will be interesting to read what other forum members have to say but I do have a feeling it will be not to your advantage I fear. Notice to Quit You have much more control over the situation with a lodger than you do with full tenants. This is because Lodgers occupy your home on licence, and they do not have security of tenure - unlike tenants. Lodgers cannot call the place their own, therefore they have no right to stay on if you give them notice to leave. Your lodger agreement should specify the amount of notice required (usually about 1 month) and this should be given in writing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richlist Posted July 21, 2012 Report Share Posted July 21, 2012 I can't solve your problem BUT.......I do know for sure that irrespective of what your tenancy agreement says It CANNOT be an AST ( Assured Shorthold Tenancy) because you also live in the property and therefore you cannot have an AST. The contract........regardless of what it says or how its laid out can ONLY be either a contractural tenancy or a licence. In both cases it does not confer any rights to the tenant or any security of tenure and the rules applying to AST's are not applicable. Ordinarily you would be able to evict the tenant with 24 hours notice.........the Company let issue does however complicate things so if an answer isn't forthcoming I suggest you get legal advice. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richlist Posted July 21, 2012 Report Share Posted July 21, 2012 deleted....duplicate Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rising Damp Posted July 21, 2012 Report Share Posted July 21, 2012 why is your lodger not paying the rent? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chestnut Posted July 22, 2012 Report Share Posted July 22, 2012 I know nothing about lodgers - so please forgive me for asking: 1) If your lodger has only been there for two months how can they owe you 4 months rent? 2) If only there for two months and they want to go, why not just let them? Cut your losses, and save legal costs on a complicated situation. Things like this happen from time to time. Why not move on (as they say), and concentrate on finding someone else more able to pay you for next few months and onward? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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