Warning against tenants and landlords airing grievances on Facebook
A solicitor was in the press recently warning of the dangers of a Facebook page aimed at organising group legal action against the owners of a letting agent.
Furious landlords and tenants are claiming to be out of pocket since Thomas and Company Rentals closed its branches in Milton Keynes and Northampton.
They’ve shown their anger by signing up to a specially created Facebook page called Victims of Thomas & Company Rentals.
The firm’s owners, Paul Collins and Louisa Thompson, are believed to have had around 250 properties on their books when they shut down last month.
The Facebook shows dozens of complaints from landlords who claim they have not received rental payments and tenants who say they have lost deposits which were never protected.
However, solicitor Richard Clarke has warned the angry landlords and tenants against using Facebook to complain.
He has told them: “We strongly recommend you stop putting information in a public forum where anyone can read it, including Paul Collins and Louisa Thompson.”
It is understood that both police and trading standards have been investigating.
The case demonstrates how important it is for tenants to make sure they choose landlords and letting agents that protect their deposit in a government scheme. Since 2007, it has become law that any deposit taken from a tenant must be protected in a government approved schemes within 14 days. Not registering the deposit is a serious offence that can lead to substantial fines.
At Legal 4 Landlords, we’ve teamed up with mydeposits, a government deposit registration scheme. You can get a discount by quoting LEG001. If you’re a landlord or letting agent that has any questions about protecting a tenant’s deposit, give the Legal 4 Landlords team a call.