Landlord changed my locks help

[tapamdi]

I recently signed up for a serviced office agreement 4 months ago it was a 12 month agreement, i run a recruitment company, i fell back on telephone charges and out of the blue one day the locks were changed , i've had not notice from landlord, there is nothing in my contract that says anything about changing locks, have they forfeited the lease. They wont let me in and access my office until i pay them. I have as a result lost all my staff and have lost business. Now i definitely cant afford to pay for the office.

I signed the contract backed up by a surety from my mother, i dont have any signed copies back from them...

my question is can i sue them for damages? i've had no written notice, i've lost business , loss of earnings,

where do i stand with regards to the contract (they have not signed and given me a copy) do i have to pay the remaining 12 month contract even though they havent signed it, or shall i go down the route of them changing locks without telling me.

shall i try and get a no win no fee lawyer to help me fight them i have suffered so much.

help

 

[oldeagleeye]

First of of all I doubt very much your get a lawyer on a no won no fee basis.

(2) You say that this is a serviced office and you failed to pay for one of the services. It is you then that are in breach of contract and yet you are asking if you can sue the landlord. Get real bro and yes. If you signed a years contract they can come after you and youir mother if she gave a surety.

Your mistake was in not talking to the landlord when you hit a financial problem and if you couldn't pay a phone bill how could you affford to pay rent and staff.

Wake up then this is a reality check.

Rob

 

[lesliedocherty]

First of of all I doubt very much your get a lawyer on a no won no fee basis.

(2) You say that this is a serviced office and you failed to pay for one of the services. It is you then that are in breach of contract and yet you are asking if you can sue the landlord. Get real bro and yes. If you signed a years contract they can come after you and youir mother if she gave a surety.

Your mistake was in not talking to the landlord when you hit a financial problem and if you couldn't pay a phone bill how could you affford to pay rent and staff.

Wake up then this is a reality check.

Rob

Yup, in agreement with Rob

 

[Angela Macready]

Without seeing the agreement it is difficult to advise but...

There will be steps within the agreement stating what the Landlord can and can't do if you don't pay the sums due. Some agreements do allow for forfeiture if any sums remain outstanding for 14 days. However, if the Landlord says that you can have the property back if you pay them the money, they are saying that the agreement hasn't terminated so yes, you probably do have a case against them for changing the locks.

The question of whether you still need to pay them is cloudy to say the least.

I would use the argument that as the Landlord has terminated the agreement, your liability has also terminated. You may still be pursued for the amount of money you owed up to termination so you agree that it's been terminated, you may want to pay up to save facing other proceedings.

If you don't agree that the agreement is terminated (and you don't want it to), tell them that you won't make a claim against them for changing the locks and restricting access if they will not pursue you for the outstanding money - it may just work.

Another possibility, depending on the terms of the agreement, may be that you could claim damages from them for breaching the agreement (if they weren't supposed to change the locks without going through several steps first which they didn't) and also accept that that termination has happened because they have taken back possession of the property but to be honest, this will probably require Court and by the sounds of it, you just want out.

Without seeing the agreement, I would treat the agreement as terminated, pay any sums due to the date that they took possession (changed the locks) and send them a letter with cheque stating this and that the cheque is in full and final settlement of your liabilities under the agreement before it was terminated.

 

[oldeagleeye]

Threre you go Angela. Typical solicitor making things complicated. There are only 2 relevant facts here or rather 3.

The first is that if the OP failed to pay any part of his rent (and in a serviced office that usually means the supply of the telephone if not the cost of calls ) and broken the terms of the contract then the landlord can do virtually anything he likes including changing the locks. Remember. Possension is 9 /10s of the law.

Facts 2 & 3. Unlike the landlord who owns property the OP is skint and the law is expensive. Where is he or rather she supposed to find a trypical £300 - £500 and hour for a decent lawyer.

Unless of course your offering to work pro bono.

Rob

 

[Angela Macready]

Nice comment. Thanks.

You will see my suggestion needed no solicitor fees:

"Without seeing the agreement, I would treat the agreement as terminated, pay any sums due to the date that they took possession (changed the locks) and send them a letter with cheque stating this and that the cheque is in full and final settlement of your liabilities under the agreement before it was terminated."

And for your information, you can't just enter a property when you have signed it over to someone else.

Good luck tampamdi.

 

[Dawg]

And for your information, you can't just enter a property when you have signed it over to someone else.

I thought that the right of entry would be entirely dependant on the lease or rental agreement. Conditions under which entry is allowed would be in the agreement, and in my experience non payment of any sort is usually one of the conditions.

Are you saying that I have been duped by bogus clauses over the years?

 

[oldeagleeye]

Quote.

"And for your information, you can't just enter a property when you have signed it over to someone else."

Always amazes me how solicitors will quote the letter of the law the ask their enquiry agent to break it by changing locks or entering a premises illegally and bug the place.

 

[Angela Macready]

Dawg, correct - the agreement is king and forfeiture of commercial premises doesn't need a court order as long as it's a peaceful re-entry.

 

[maxh]

I recently signed up for a serviced office agreement 4 months ago it was a 12 month agreement, i run a recruitment company, i fell back on telephone charges and out of the blue one day the locks were changed , i've had not notice from landlord, there is nothing in my contract that says anything about changing locks, have they forfeited the lease. They wont let me in and access my office until i pay them. I have as a result lost all my staff and have lost business. Now i definitely cant afford to pay for the office.

I signed the contract backed up by a surety from my mother, i dont have any signed copies back from them...

my question is can i sue them for damages? i've had no written notice, i've lost business , loss of earnings,

where do i stand with regards to the contract (they have not signed and given me a copy) do i have to pay the remaining 12 month contract even though they havent signed it, or shall i go down the route of them changing locks without telling me.

shall i try and get a no win no fee lawyer to help me fight them i have suffered so much.

help

You have a legal right to enter your home.

 

[tapamdi]

No mention of anything in contract regards to changing locks, they are willing to let me in again if i repay amount outstanding on phone bill.

I feel its a bit unfair that with no notice they change the locks , my staff walk out im in trouble. ok fair enough i didnt pay the phone calls they were only 1 month overdue i wasnt behind on rent.

im sure they shoudl have to follow a process for changing locks but there is nothing in a contract

 

[maxh]

No mention of anything in contract regards to changing locks, they are willing to let me in again if i repay amount outstanding on phone bill.

I feel its a bit unfair that with no notice they change the locks , my staff walk out im in trouble. ok fair enough i didnt pay the phone calls they were only 1 month overdue i wasnt behind on rent.

im sure they shoudl have to follow a process for changing locks but there is nothing in a contract

Tell him to let you in immediately or you will be forced to break the door down as it is ILLEGAL for him to change the locks. And you need to get to your place of work and property.

Tell them that you will also sue immediately for any loss of earnings.

Make records of all this and get it in email if possible so you can hold it against them in the future.

You rent the property from them, making it your property. You are allowed to access the property!

If he wont open up, break the door down. It will then be his responsibility to replace the door and change the locks back. If he causes any fuss just sue him. He is monumentally in the wrong.

 

[logicfusion]

You have a legal right to enter your home.

Unless you have unwittingly become a displaced residential occupier

(in which case you could be arrested for using - or threatening to use violence to secure entry to your own home!!) Always seemed a strange concept in law.

 

[Dawg]

You have a legal right to enter your home.

Ummm...
The OP was locked out of serviced offices.

 

[maxh]

Call the Met Police Call 0300 123 1212 in a non-emergency

They'll sort you straight.

 

[Dawg]

Call the Met Police Call 0300 123 1212 in a non-emergency

They'll sort you straight.

Ya wha'?

They certainly will. "We cannot intervene in minor commercial disputes Sir" is the polite version; the canteen version will involve the handshake of Onan and four letter words.

 

[longleaf1]

Ya wha'?

They certainly will. "We cannot intervene in minor commercial disputes Sir" is the polite version; the canteen version will involve the handshake of Onan and four letter words.

Lol you can just see it!

Why on earth can't the landlord change the locks?
The OP failed to meet payments so the landlord prevented further loss to himself by changing the locks? Reasonable to me no??
I have sympathy for the OP but why didn't you contact the landlord, discuss the situation and come up with a solution before it happened??