http://www.warwicksu.com
MOVINGOUT INFO Message #10, 2009/2010
Rubbish ling and recyc
What should I do with stuff I don’t want at the end of the year?
Start packing early. As with all things, the earlier you start, the easier it is to do a good job; try and avoid the inevitable panic on moving-out day when you’ve not packed anything. Do packing in phases to keep it manageable: start with items you don’t use that often but still want to keep, then pack vital items more towards the end of your tenancy. This should leave you with enough time to actually sort through your belongings to sort out what you want to keep from what you don’t, which should save throwing reusable stuff away, and may protect a bit of your deposit! Winner. Get rid of bulky waste. Anything too big to be put in a bin-bag, and that can’t be reused, shouldn’t just be left lying around in the garden. If it’s left lying outside, it could be classed as fly-tipping, and you could be subject to a fine; if it’s left inside, your landlord may have to pay to remove it, and may be subject to a fine between £75 and £20,000 — which will then get passed on to you! The new tenants may want furniture, so it could be worth trying to sell it on... Use your household recycling. To find out your recycling days, and what you can recycle, see here for Leamington and here for Coventry. Take a trip to recycling points. The end of term seems to generate more glass bottles than your average week. Get all your housemates together, and take the overflow from your recycling bags/ boxes to one of the local recycling points. There are generally points close by to most student houses: we have a map of those located in Leamington here, with all those in the local area being listed on the national website Recycle Now. Give your reusable items away yourself. It's not just recyclables that you may want to get rid of at the end of term. Many students have cupboards, books, saucepans, and many other items that they want to get rid of at the end of the year/university. If you want to do this yourself, then you can donate to a charity shop (or a reuse centre if you live in Leamington). Charity shops will accept a variety of good-quality items. For a more specific list of which shops in Leamington take what, click here; for a list of Coventry shops, click here. If in doubt, phone up the shop to check what they accept, and always ask in advance how they want you to donate items. The main reuse centre in Leamington is the Action 21-run "Recycle Warehouse" on Princes Drive, and the council also runs a recycling point on the site. There’s more info at the Recycle Warehouse site. Give your reusable items to us to donate on. If you live in Leamington, see the next page for an advert about our Leave Leam Tidy campaign!
Want to help out local charities and the environment at the same time? We're coming round south Leam and collecting up your unwanted goods to give on to charity, and informing you where you can donate yourselves. .
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The Union is forming a ‘Green Brigade’ to make sure that as few useful or reusable effects go into landfill, instead making sure they get reused or recycled. They will be collecting goods from outside houses, and then distributed out to local charities and shelters. .
The first collection will be Wed 30th June at 2pm, and the second will be Fri 2nd July at 2pm. .
Good-quality, clean clothes
Shoes
Stationery
Sealed toiletries
Small electricals
Linens, throws and duvets Crockery
CDs/DVDs
Bric-a-brac
Kitchenware
Cleaning products Books
Tinned/dried Small furniture food, sealed
Sports equipment
All items should be of a good-enough quality for a charity to sell on/ use. Don’t overfill the bag, or leave it out at the wrong time! .
If you’ve got any questions, you want to help with the Green Brigade, or you want a green bag for your house, e-mail us at welfare@warwicksu.com.
Cleaning r and repai
You will be expected to clean your bedroom, shower/bathroom, kitchen, lounge and other communal areas thoroughly before leaving.
Arrange a cleaning schedule with housemates. You will need to arrange with your flatmates who will be cleaning the various communal areas. Make sure the schedule takes into account when people are leaving, so that one tenant isn’t left with the bulk of the cleaning work. Any items that aren’t clean or places that aren’t tidy may result in a deduction from your deposit, or from a proportional deduction from all housemates’ deposits. Everything means everything. Everything doesn’t just mean floors and inside cupboards: it means under sofas and fridges, walls, skirting boards, windows, cleaning bins, sink holes, toilets, ovens… How deposit deductions may be apportioned In the absence of any evidence to the contrary, your landlord will probably apportion any cleaning, repair and redecoration charges for all communal areas (including kitchens, hallways and bathrooms) equally amongst all tenants of the flat/house. These charges will be at commercial rates. Even if you are the first person to leave, you will be charged according to the condition of the flat at the time of your final inspection. Shared tenancy, shared responsibility to report any communal damage. If you’re in a joint tenancy, any repair costs for individual areas rooms may also be split over and deducted from all tenants by your landlord. If you’re an individual tenancy, they shouldn’t be. General estimated prices for repairs: £5 for plug and chain; £10 for a kitchen bin; £20 per square metre of carpet; £30 for door handle; £50-£70 per bedroom chair; £140 for a chest of drawers General estimated prices for cleaning: £20 per carpet shampoo; £25 for deep clean of room; £30 for fridge cleaning. What students are most often charged for: Disposal of domestic waste left outside the property or tenant possessions Replacing door locks where keys have not been returned or are unidentifiable Unblocking drains or plug holes where a build up of hair, food, domestic waste etc is evident Replacing tile grout or silicon stained or mouldy from the build up of dirt or mildew Replace smoke and heat detector units where pulled off ceilings Replacing light bulbs, doorbell and smoke detector batteries that are not working
Hopefully when you moved in, you took photos of your property when you moved in. Before moving out, make sure to check all items — and their states of (dis)repair— against your inventory/ schedule of condition. If you can, get your landlord to visit a week or so before you leave, so that you can see what they want you to do. Part of the joy of tenancy deposit schemes (see next page) is that it’s highlighted how important inventories are. If people have had a problem, then without an inventory, it ends up as your word against your landlord’s at arbitration. Take photos. Try to make sure the date the photos are taken is clear (e.g. by holding up a newspaper in them). This could really help in case of a deposit dispute.
Deposit
Your deposit should be protected in one of the tenancy deposit protection schemes. If the landlord doesn’t want to deduct anything from your deposit, then the protection scheme should refund you all the money; note, they may just refund the lead tenant, who will then have to refund all other tenants. If the landlord wants to deduct money from the deposit, then you have two choices: either you accept the deductions (and so you will get refunded the remaining money, if there is money left) or you can dispute the deductions (the scheme should then explain how the dispute process works). The landlord can’t charge for reasonable wear and tear, but can charge for cleaning or substantial damage. As mentioned in the previous section, deductions will generally be charged at commercial rates, so you may be able to find some savings if you just do the cleaning/repairs yourself. If you have any problems, contact the Student Advice Centre (see end) or the Welfare Officer.
Last week jobs
Check your contract. It may include extra bits here and there that your landlord is expecting you to take care of that you didn’t know about, or had forgotten.
Check date your tenancy ends, and when need to return keys by. If you’re being told to move out, you need to be sure you’re not moving out after the end of the tenancy. If you are, the landlord may charge you extra for staying in the house. If you have a good relationship with your landlord, they may let you stay in the house without charge for a few extra days. Change your address. If you have subscriptions, make sure they’re updated to your new address. Tell your bank, and people like the DVLA (if you told them that you’d move in the first place). The Royal Mail runs a fancy redirecting service if you don’t mind spending a few pennies... Get a TV Licensing rebate. In most cases, you’ll only be able to get a rebate if there’s at least a full quarter left on your TV licence. Click here for how to go about it.
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Last minu jobs
Get final meter readings, and inform the relevant companies. Provide utility companies with an address for the final invoice. Cancel internet account and return equipment, along with other hired goods. Make sure lights work, doorbells have batteries in etc. (or the charge will come to you out of your deposit) Make sure all gas and electrical appliances have been switched off before the last person leaves the house. Unless it specifically says that you should in your tenancy agreement, don’t turn off the main gas, electricity or water supplies. Take photos in case of deposit deductions. Shut and lock all doors and windows. Return keys, or you may be subject to a deduction from the deposit (not only for the keys, but also maybe for changing locks)
I’ve also included an advert at the end for the Student Advice Centre: if you have trouble with your exams, or you end up getting a lower degree classification than you were expecting and you’d like to appeal, get in touch. It’s been emotional. Sami Wannell Welfare Officer 2009/10