Rent deposit disputes

What should you do if you encounter problems?

If you are having problems with your landlord regarding the return of your deposit, you should contact the KU Leuven Housing Service immediately. The service will then attempt to mediate and help you, for example, by drafting a registered letter to the landlord in which you clearly state your position. From the moment that letter is sent, interest on the deposit begins to accrue and you can take further action. In the majority of cases, a solution will be found through mediation by the accommodation service.

If no solution comes out of it, the housing service will forward your file to LOKO. LOKO will then evaluate your case and, if deemed feasible, bring it to the peace court of Leuven. You do not have to pay anything for this, except if you lose the case. You also do not have to go to court yourself; the lawyer from LOKO will manage the file from then on and represent your interests.

Tips

• Paying the deposit in cash is no longer allowed! So make sure to pay via bank transfer, so you also have proof of payment.
• Always pay all due rent. Some students do not pay rent for the last (two) month(s) to compensate for the deposit or the inconveniences of a shabby room. This is highly discouraged. If your dispute needs to be resolved by the peace court, you run the risk of being partially found at fault and thus having to cover part of the court costs.
• Return the keys to the room on time. Holding your keys as a threat only backfires. You will then owe extra rent, and the judge will partially rule against you, meaning you will also have to bear part of the court costs here.
• Not every room works with an inventory description. But if your room does, make sure to get a detailed inventory description. On such a detailed inventory description, you can also indicate if, for example, things are broken, like a table or cabinet, so that your landlord cannot say at the end of the year that you did this.
• If you do not agree with the inventory of fixtures at the end of the tenancy, you are not obliged to sign it. Do not sign it if you disagree, as once you have signed, it will be difficult to dispute the inventory of fixtures.
• If you notice any serious negligence on the part of the landlord during the tenancy (such as a broken heating system, a faulty shower or electrical problems), you should report this to the landlord immediately by registered letter. Ideally, this will enable you to prove ‘loss of enjoyment’ at a later date and claim back part of your rent.
• Bear in mind that both the landlord and you may use ‘all legal means’ as evidence. This means, for example, that a statement from someone familiar with the room could also be decisive for the magistrate.
• If you happen to have any photos of the defects in the room before you moved in, and photos from
  when you left the room, these could also be useful. It is essential, however, that the photos are time-stamped
  with the exact time and date they were taken. It is best to include a physical object that proves the date, such as a newspaper showing the date, as otherwise it is too easy to forge.
• If you write a notice of default to the landlord, make sure that the letter is drafted in such a way that a third party can immediately understand what the dispute is about. Formal and clear language should be used. This starts with a description of the situation, followed by a statement of the problem and then the demands you make of the landlord, the return of the deposit within a reasonable time. A period of two weeks can be seen as a benchmark. Also clearly state the place and date of drafting in the letter, the name and address of the landlord, as well as your own.

Important documents

To resolve a dispute with the tenant through mediation by Stuvo or as a lawsuit through LOKO, several documents are important:

• The rental agreement (and the house rules if applicable)
• The payment receipts/bank statements of the rental deposit and the rent paid during the rental period
• Proof of the issued keys
• Correspondence/emails/messages/letters between tenant and landlord
• The final written settlement of the rent and rental costs by the landlord (if applicable)
• A notice of default and proof of the sending of the registered letter. (You will receive this proof at the counter of the post office when sending the letter. Attach a copy of the notice of default to this proof and take a photo of it)
  

The additional documents can improve the successful outcome of a mediation or lawsuit, but are not always available:

• A description of condition upon entry and exit of the property with the signature of both parties.
• Photos of the property upon entry (try to take as many photos as possible of existing damage, defects, dirt, stains on or holes in the wall, etc. upon entry)
• Photos of the property upon exit (this is mainly to demonstrate that the property was left clean)
• All other documents that you believe can prove that you are entitled to a refund of your deposit, such as a handwritten testimony from a roommate or person who knows your room.

Frequently asked questions

• Do I have to let LOKO handle my case?

No, of course not. We understand if you feel that it is taking too long for everything to be arranged. You can also take your own lawyer. Be sure to discuss the possible legal costs with your lawyer, so you are not caught by surprise.

• What if I want to transfer my case from LOKO to my own lawyer?

Just send an email to huwabo@loko.be, and we will send you your entire file, along with the current status.

• I would like to know the status of my case. Who should I contact?

Since we are the intermediary between the affected party and the lawyer, it is best to contact us at huwabo@loko.be. Because we cannot often meet with the lawyer, it may take some time before we can answer your question.

• I think this is all taking a very long time. Why is that?

Because our lawyer does these cases for free, we have the advantage of no escalating costs. However, this means he has to do it among all his other work. Therefore, we bundle the cases so that everything can run a bit more efficiently. This can mean that it may take several months before the case is actually started.

Unfortunately, it doesn't always go that fast afterwards. Not only is the judicial system painfully slow, but for the lawyer, it is also a juggling act to fit this in among their other work.

• Who is that lawyer you always talk about?

Master Johan Bruyninckx is a lawyer and specialist in Ecclesiastical Law. He has always had a warm heart for student life and has also been a volunteer for many years at LOKO and at his student circle Canonica. Even after his studies, he has remained involved in the workings of LOKO, and he now contributes by taking on the rental deposit cases for free. He even has his own Wikipedia page.

• How long does it take before I get my money back?

That depends a bit on how quickly we can complete the procedure (see below under procedure). Expect at least a procedure of at least a year. If the landlord still refuses to pay after the original procedure, the case can drag on for years. Fortunately, interest will accrue on the amount owed.

Procedure

What does the complete procedure of a rental deposit case look like? It can vary from case to case, but most cases follow the following timeline:

1. You have a dispute with your landlord regarding the settlement of the rental deposit or its refund.
2. You take up contact with the KU Leuven Housing Service.
3. The housing service initiates a mediation attempt

If the mediation attempt yields no results, the following procedure will be initiated:

1. KU Leuven Stuvo will ask if you want to forward the dispute to LOKO (Note: only if the dispute involves an amount greater than €50).
2. KU Leuven Stuvo forwards the file to LOKO, LOKO evaluates the file and the documents for the first time. LOKO may request additional documentation that is missing from the file. This request is usually communicated through Stuvo.
3. In the meantime, LOKO tries to discuss the file with its lawyer regarding the feasibility of the file and whether there is a need for additional documents and information. The lawyer decides whether to accept the file or not; if a file is accepted, it does not immediately mean that the case will be won.

Throughout the academic year, LOKO receives a number of files regarding rental deposit issues. LOKO consolidates files from various rental deposit cases to submit them together to the peace court, as handling and submitting files takes a lot of time. When LOKO has a certain number of files, the following steps will be taken:

1. LOKO prepares the necessary petitions to present the case to the peace court. For this, LOKO requests a number of personal details, directly or via Stuvo. If there are still specific details missing according to the lawyer, LOKO will follow up on those.
2. In the meantime, the lawyer tries to gather the necessary information from the landlord to further supplement the petition for the court.
3. When the petitions from the various files have been compiled, they are submitted to the court registry.

From this moment, the judicial procedure begins.

1. The landlords receive a summons from the court.
2. The case comes before the peace judge, who makes a ruling. Most rulings are made in absentia. This means that the landlord does not even bother to show up. If the landlord could not be present due to force majeure, they can still file an objection.

If the case is ruled in your favor, the next steps are followed. If the case goes against you, you must pay the court costs, and the procedure is closed by us.

1. With the judgment in hand, we ask the landlord to refund the rental deposit. Hopefully, you are lucky, and the landlord will now refund the deposit. Otherwise...
2. The landlord files an appeal, and the case comes before the peace judge again. The judgment is usually the same. Hopefully, you are lucky, and the landlord will now refund the deposit.
3. If the landlord still refuses to return the rental deposit, we initiate a procedure with a bailiff.
4. The bailiff is contacted and visits the landlord to seize the money or goods. This may need to happen several times before it is actually successful.
5. In the end, you will get your money back, unfortunately often after a long wait, with interest.

Fortunately, if your case is accepted by our in-house solicitor, you won’t have to worry about it once it’s with LOKO. After all, we’ll continue to handle your case as described in the procedure!