If I could have given this company no stars at all it would not have been enough for the distress and traumatic experience I had with them and am still suffering as a result of their unprofessional behavior.
I completed an application form to rent the above house on the 23rd of May and returned the application form with an admin fee of £264 to a Keys Estate Agent who supplied me with a receipt.
I was informed on the 28th May 2012 that my application had been successful and all checks had been completed and the Rental was mine.
I then viewed the place twice in June to check the lay out for furniture and appliances.
On the 5th of July I paid £1290 which was inclusive of £595.00 Rental for one month and a deposit of £695 and signed a contract which I was told the land lord had already signed.
On Friday the 6th of July I arranged to take a day off of work to travel to London to pick up some pieces of furniture. I was on my way back when I received a call from a gentleman who identified himself as the land lord of the property I was due to move into.
He informed said that both he and his partner owned the property and had not been paid rent by Keys Estate Agency for the last couple of months and thought I needed to know.
I then called Keys who informed me that there was some dispute they were trying to sort out
On Saturday 7th July (Move in Day )I attended the Keys office to find out what was going on and was met by the letting agent who did his best to try and sort it all out.
I informed him at this point I needed to know what was happening and when I would get the keys as I had services about to start in the new house, and several deliveries of my appliances and over the course of the weekend and it put me in a bad situation as I would need to cancel and as a result incur dept, plus would have no where to go.
I relieved a call about 2 pm informing me that the landlady was still unhappy about preceding as she had not been paid by them and thought that to let me in to rent would result in a 3rd month of non payment for her. I was then told they would contact the owner a Paul Moate to see about a refund on Monday 9th of July.
In the meanwhile my current landlord had re- let my room and the new person was to move in on the weekend of the 3rd of August.
As a result of the way that the whole situation has been handled I was left in the following situation at the end of Sat 7th of July 2012
1. Not having anywhere to live as my accommodation had been re rented for the 3rd of August.
2. Furniture that I bought from the outgoing tenant still in the house that now needed to store, which I would never have bought in the first place if I had not been moving into the house
3. Cancellation charged and delivery charges to possibly meet due to last minute cancellations.
4. Out of pocket a total of £1554 + with no place to live!!
All due to the negligence of Keys Estate Agency.
All the above should have been resolved prior to taking my admin fee, rent and deposit.
I was left with less than 15 days to find alternative accommodation before being homeless and had booked to take my older parents away to my brothers wedding for 9 days within that time which I was unable to cancel.
On Monday 9th July my month rent and deposit was returned but NOT the admin fee or compensation for costs incurred due to their negligence. They did however offer me in the event of extreme emergency use of their finished flat on top of their office for a week free with no mention of storage of my furniture etc.
I put in a second complaint and on several occasions have called, emailed and visited Keys Estate Agents leaving messages for the owner Paul Moate to contact me and he has not responded up until today.
The previous tenant who moved out informed me that she had to write to her local MP 4 times along side numerous phone calls before she finally received her deposit and a weeks rent over-payment.
As a result of the above I have put in a complaint to the property ombudsman, and made contact with 2 TV consumer shows and 1 newspaper in the hope that this never happens to anyone again.
Rather then advise you to steer clear of Keys Estate Agency in Bridgwater Somerset I would just say learn from my story and make your own mind up.
I am pleased to say that I found alternative accommodation with the assistance of Ivy Letting Agents who completed all the checks promptly and professionally. read more
