Can He Get His Flat Deposit Refunded?

My son and his friend paid a deposit of £950 on a two bedroom flat one week ago. There was nothing signed - it was done over the phone and they have not reseved any keys. Now his frend is not going to university were does he stand as he can not aford it on his own?

(Mr Richard Evans, 1 October 2008)

Tenancy Agreements

There are a few ways that this scenario can go but receiving back the deposit should be applicable in this situation. By agreeing to the rental of the property over the phone you have entered into a verbal agreement. Verbal agreements are just as legally binding as written contracts. Verbal or written tenancy agreements will not usually have a cooling off period. A cooling off period is a length of time that the consumer has to change their mind after signing a contract; usually seven days. Unfortunately this does not usually apply to tenancies. However, cooling off periods do apply under the Distance Selling Regulations Act 2000, but only if you did not see the property prior to making the agreement. If you did not see the property then the cooling period will begin from when you made the agreement, but there are further exceptions.

Cooling Off Period

From the description in the question it sounds like this is a case of distance selling and as such there should be a cooling off period. The cooling off period will cease to exist once the tenant has the keys to the property and intends to use the property. According to the Distance Selling Regulations Act 2000 the tenant will have seven working days to change his or her mind after the agreement was concluded but before the tenant has moved into the property or has taken control of the keys. However, this was a verbal contract there was no contract signed, and with distance selling a written contract with tenancy and landlord information must be signed by the tenant. If a contract had been signed then the tenant would have seven working days to cancel from the signing date. But no contract has been signed, which is a tenancy requirement. So, in this case the cooling period is still standing and you should receive back your deposit. The landlord has a legal requirement to return the deposit. If the landlord refuses to give back the deposit then this may need to turn into a legal dispute but the law should be on your side in this case.

Can He Get His Flat Deposit Refunded?

Tenancy Agreements

Cooling Off Period

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