Room rental help!

[Jakatella]

I rented a room without any written contract, the cafe owner has used automated invoices and has charged me without realising all bank holiday and days where the premises was closed there is now 8 dates that I've paid for also as I pay in advance he is now trying to charge for dates after I told him I wouldn't be back due to ill health, he is of the opinion that I owe nearly £500. Whereas I think it is closer to 120
I'm feeling quite bullied into making the payments as he is still threatening to take me to court

 

[BannerPenguin]

If there is no written contract or emails outlining the agreement then he has very little luck at court.

 

[AcidPerm]

Essentially, he has to prove that you owe him the money, so he’s going to need evidence that you agreed to his terms of business. Without a written contract, he’s going to struggle to prove his case.

Work out what you think you owe him and pay him that. Add a letter stating what the amount covers and that this was what was agreed when you rented the room.

 

[Hope springs]

no contract leaves both of you with no rights its his word against yours etc pay him cash what you owe and walk away. Chalk it up to experience, lesson learned x

 

[House Beauty]

If there is no written contract or emails outlining the agreement then he has very little luck at court.

I rented a room without any written contract, the cafe owner has used automated invoices and has charged me without realising all bank holiday and days where the premises was closed there is now 8 dates that I've paid for also as I pay in advance he is now trying to charge for dates after I told him I wouldn't be back due to ill health, he is of the opinion that I owe nearly £500. Whereas I think it is closer to 120
I'm feeling quite bullied into making the payments as he is still threatening to take me to court

If you have a diary of when you had clients you can prove that you weren’t even there on those days, therefore he hasn’t a leg to stand on. You can also see if you can find anything anywhere and keep a copy at says they are closed on bank holidays. It would never end up in court because you have to pay to do that and it is likely more than you could ever have owed him.

Charging you for the room when you aren’t there is unfortunately very common for renters and why I stopped it. Not having a contract actually benefitted me more as the renter as not a single person i’ve rented off has had a heart or brain. Messing bookings up, neglecting to tell me they aren’t renewing their lease, charging for when I cleaned their room and bathroom in my own time, charging me more than agreed for the sake of it...it made it easier for me to up and leave when they caused trouble.