Anfian, Moorland, Bridgwater, Somerset TA7 0AX
Condition: Unmodernised 3-bedroom bungalow with dated kitchen and bathroom; tenants had provided carpets, curtains and white goods and carried out various improvements themselves.
Evidence considered
- Neither party submitted comparable evidence of market rents.
- Tribunal relied on its own knowledge and expertise of local rental values to set a modernised starting rent of £1,500 pcm.
- Deductions applied from the starting rent for unmodernised kitchen and bathroom, absence of landlord-provided floor coverings, curtains and white goods, and for tenant-funded improvements (partial re-wiring, loft insulation).
Tenant submitted evidence: no. Landlord submitted evidence: no.
Tribunal's reasoning
The tribunal rejected the tenants' argument that earlier and current section 13 notices were invalid due to non-compliance with landlord notification duties under s.3 LTA 1985 and s.48 LTA 1987, finding these created separate statutory remedies but did not void a rent notice. Starting from a notional fully modernised market rent of £1,500 pcm based on the tribunal's own expertise (no comparables were provided by either party), deductions totalling £455 were made for the unmodernised kitchen and bathroom, absence of landlord-supplied floor coverings, curtains and white goods, and tenant-funded improvements such as partial re-wiring and loft insulation, producing a determined rent of £1,045 pcm. The tribunal found no undue hardship justified delaying the effective date beyond that stated in the landlord's notice.
Read the original decision (PDF, GOV.UK)
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