gryphoemia Posted January 18, 2008 Report Share Posted January 18, 2008 We moved out of a rental house 6 months ago. The landlord charged us for a bunch of cleaning and repair, but the total charge was still less than our security deposit. We disputed some of the charges. So, the landlord thought they owed us one amount, and we thought they owed us more. We sent a bunch of letters back and forth arguing about it, and finally we sent them a seven day demand for the amount we thought they owed us, under threat of suing them for treble damages in small claims. They then sent us a check for the entire amount we asked for, and an account statement showing a zero balance.A month later, we get a call from a CA saying that we owe the amount of the disputed charges back to the landlord, plus interest! The CA claims that refunding a disputed amount and then turning around and claiming it as a debt is a "common" and "legal" way for the landlord to avoid the treble damages claim we threatened them with. This smells pretty fishy to me, especially since we were never notified of this supposed debt until after it had accrued interest. Opinions? Info? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justincase Posted January 18, 2008 Report Share Posted January 18, 2008 We moved out of a rental house 6 months ago. The landlord charged us for a bunch of cleaning and repair, but the total charge was still less than our security deposit. We disputed some of the charges. So, the landlord thought they owed us one amount, and we thought they owed us more. We sent a bunch of letters back and forth arguing about it, and finally we sent them a seven day demand for the amount we thought they owed us, under threat of suing them for treble damages in small claims. They then sent us a check for the entire amount we asked for, and an account statement showing a zero balance.A month later, we get a call from a CA saying that we owe the amount of the disputed charges back to the landlord, plus interest! The CA claims that refunding a disputed amount and then turning around and claiming it as a debt is a "common" and "legal" way for the landlord to avoid the treble damages claim we threatened them with. This smells pretty fishy to me, especially since we were never notified of this supposed debt until after it had accrued interest. Opinions? Info?Send CA a C&D FOAD letter, hold onto account statement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justincase Posted January 18, 2008 Report Share Posted January 18, 2008 Also, say off of the phone with CA, by the way welcome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Methuss Posted January 19, 2008 Report Share Posted January 19, 2008 Agreed. The letters are proof of a settlement by the landlord agreeing that the charges were erroneous. The CA should get a sternly worded letter to that effect and that any negative reporting against you or continued collection activity will result in them being placed in the legal crosshairs.As for the landlord, you can sue them for what they have done. It's called libel when they falsely tell someone else you owe a debt you do not owe. You can sue for personal embarrassment as well as for actual damages (the time you have spent fending off the CA, at your normal wage-rate). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2001Badyear Posted January 19, 2008 Report Share Posted January 19, 2008 I guess it's too much to hope for that you have a copy of the check? That would be a slam dunk. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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