Trouble in seeking advance refund- Rental queries

Q: Dear Sir

We stayed in an apt in Goregaon on rent (Bangur Ngr, Mumbai) from Jan 2013- Aug 2014. While leaving the apt the owner refused to pay us the
20 k from the 1 lakh deposit. He cited the following deductions.Rs 10,200 for car parking, Rs 3500/- for AC repairing, 2665/- rent towards additional days.
and the rest towards gas and electricity bill.

While we agree for expenses towards rental, light, the contract doesnt mention the expenses to be paid for parking. The AC which was repaired while we moved in broke down
within a month as it was already an old one. Also the breakdown is due to internal technical issues and not external.

We have not used the pipeline gas connnection and hence we are not eligible for the payment. The contract also has not mentioned
anything on the same.

The owner have been totally harrowing us since the time we have shifted to his house as that house was full of leakage and he never bothered
to rectify the issue. In addition he is now refusing to return our money which we believe is our due.
Request your help.

veena, Mumbai

28th November 2014

Legal in Bangur Nagar, Mumbai

rental

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Replies (3)

I ran into similar issues with my landlord regarding the security/advance deposit which I had paid as a part of the rental agreement. As the advance amount was quite high (Bangalore rents are atrocious!!), I decided to take a legal opinion. I found a good lawyer on www.zippserv.com who helped me send a legal notice to the owner.
Check this out! (https://www.zippserv.com/personal-legal/legal-notice.html) For a couple of thousand bugs the notice was sent and within a few days the owner returned the balance advance money owed to me. Hope this is helpful.

Srikanth, Bangalore

22nd December 2015

Comment

Hi Sankalp,
At the same time end of your tenancy, your landlord may deduct the following expenses from your security deposit:
Any unpaid rent, unless you legally withheld it for bad conditions;
Any unpaid increase in real estate taxes for which you are responsible under a valid tax escalator clause in your lease and
A reasonable amount necessary to repair any damage caused by you, your family members, or guests, beyond any reasonable wear and tear.

Ashish Bhoite, Mumbai

1st December 2014

Comment

Hi,
If there's a dispute about the return of the deposit and you're unable to reach agreement with your landlord, the tenant can file a case against the landlord for return of the security deposit.
A landlord must return your entire security deposit immediately upon your demand in the following situations:
If the landlord fails to put your money in a bank account separate from the landlord's money;
If the landlord does not give you a receipt within 30 days of receiving your security deposit that has:
the name and address of the bank where your money is,
the amount you gave the landlord as a security deposit, and
the bank account number; or
If the landlord does not allow you to inspect the records she is required to keep under the security deposit law.

Sankalp, Mumbai

1st December 2014

Comment