What should you do if the seller has left rubbish / junk in the house?
Whether the items left behind were rubbish or a brand new sofa, these items still belong to the seller and as such the seller should organise to collect these at their own cost. The most common areas where a seller may have accidentally, or on purpose, left items are:
- Loft
- Garage
- Shed
The legal position is as follows:
"Unless stated otherwise, the seller will be responsible for ensuring that all rubbish is removed from the property (including from the loft, garden, outbuildings, garages and shed), and that the property is left in a reasonably clean and tidy condition"
If the seller fails to meet with their responsibility then the buyer has a right to pursue the seller for the costs of removing the rubbish.
Can a seller sell items for an additional cost on top of the purchase price?
There are two ways items can be given by the seller to the buyer, either:
- marked as 'Included' within the Fixtures and Contents form as part of the sale price; or
- listed, either separately or within the Fixtures and Contents form, with an agreed price per item.
Items that are sold on at an additional cost are called 'Chattels'. Chattels are defines by HMRC as "item of tangible, movable property – something you can both touch and move". You can read more on this here - HMRC Guidance on Chattels.
What happens if the seller won't collect their property?
From a legal stand point, the ownership of property left behind still belongs to the seller. You are required to inform the lender of the items that are left at your property in writing. In your letter you should confirm to the seller that you are storing the items on their behalf for a period of time at a cost. After this time the items will be removed or kept by you.
Can I claim for the loss of disposing the seller's property?
Yes you can, however whether you wish to pursue this yourself or through the legal system requires you to assess the loss you have incurred through disposing the seller's items. Depending on the amount of items the losses you incur could be one or some of the below:
- overnight stay at a hotel (if the property was uninhabitable - to prove this you would need photos and videos to evidence the property was uninhabitable. You would also be expected to get the property to be made habitable as quickly as possible so that you limit the loss)
- petrol to drop the items at the local tip
- 6 yard skip at a cost of £200-£250
- storage costs for looking after the seller's property (research what a local storage company would charge and to ensure you have a reasonable figure obtain 3 quotes for a daily rate of storage). You should note that if the seller doesn't respond after a number of days has passed then you would be expected to either keep the items as your own or dispose of them as it is not reasonable to charge a seller, without their consent to the cost, to store items with a storage cost that is in excess of the costs to dispose the items.
Important: If you have paid something that forms part of your total loss then you must keep the receipt to evidence the loss
Once you know your total loss you can decide whether to instruct a litigation solicitor or pursue the seller yourself. For losses under £500 you may find it more cost effective to seek settlement through a small claims court application yourself as it'll cost you legal fees to instruct a solicitor who will normally charge between £200 to £300 per hour plus VAT and their costs are not reclaimable within small claims.
My conveyancing solicitor won't help me?
Solicitors or conveyancers normally specialise in one area of law which for you will have been conveyancing. If you decide to seek settlement of a loss then you need a litigation solicitor which is a different area of law and most solicitors don't specialise in both conveyancing and litigation.
If you find that your solicitor won't help you pursue a claim, then they should agree to send a communication to the seller's solicitor listing the items left in the property.
