A tenant who does not want to be named disputed the charges, saying they are “not in accord” with those given in the welcome brochure. She was charged £50 to repaint the whole ceilings after “some slight scuffmarks” were found on the ceiling above the wardrobe. She said one year ago, during the initial inspection, she would not have dreamed of looking at the ceiling in that area for marks. Therefore, she could not even have made them. In her letter of complaint, the student defined the charges as “unnecessary, extraordinary and unreasonable” and said there is no damage to the flat. She also argued the paint used is unsuitable, as it does not “mitigate wear and tear”. She added that such a use of paint is not environment-friendly, in opposition to the green credentials the hall promotes.

Other students complained they were charged with their flatmates’ damage. However, each tenant had to pay the £200 deposit at the time of booking and the Assured Shorthold Tenancy Agreement states that once the responsible for the damage is found, he or she has to pay for it. J.S. said: “We don’t decide who lives with us in the flat. They decide who will live with whom. How on earth are we then responsible for people we do not really know?”

Complaining is nothing new to the residents. The students lamented that despite the fact that everyone paid the same amount of money to rent a room, some tenants had much bigger or smaller bedrooms than others. T.S., a City University student and hall resident, said: “You can’t charge the same price for different products surely.” J.S. said: “I complained about that and the only excuse they could give me was the hall is not a hotel, therefore the rooms are ‘a luck of the draw’.” She added that she does not understand why some students are still booking halls of residence with the company.

Some students raised their complaints even before moving out. T.S. said: “I woke up one morning to find a member of the staff rubbing a bathroom sink with a dry tissue and a bill for £25 cleaning in the kitchen. We just refused to pay and they dropped it. It kind of implies they knew they were trying it on.” What’s more, many residents lamented a lack of courtesy in the halls. Some people were rudely told off if they cooked with an open door or if they made the alarm go off. Many students also complained they were not given enough information about their flat’s damages.

The City University Accommodation Team said the halls of residence are third party housing providers. This means the University selects the students who are eligible to stay in the halls and then refers them to the accommodation providers, with whom the students book independently. All the university grants is a discount. The Accommodation Team said: “We have not yet received complaints from the students. Most of them have just moved out of the halls and their deposits are still being calculated and sent.” They said their relation with the halls has been going on for a couple of years and it is likely to continue for next ones.

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Picture from: catsfather

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