Can i get rid of my useless letting agent??

[xt71]

The agency i have used while i have been away has on the whole provided a reasonable service but since my last change of tennant there has also been a different person dealing with the let as the previous person left the company.<br>
Since then i have had to deal with various issues which should have been taken care of by the agency both before & since the new tennants have moved in, these include;<br>

1.My agent last spoke to me some 8 weeks ago when he rang to tell me that the council had stopped the benefit for my tennant.He told me that in his experience this would probably be because the tennant had fraudulently claimed benifit and i should be thinking about issuing proceedings. This shocked me somewhat so i asked him if he could ring the council & get back to me, he said he would & i have heard nothing since.After three days i decided to contact the tennant myself & was told a totally different account of what had happened, after this i visited the house myself & saw or was told about a list of problems caused or not addressed by my agent, making it difficult for both me & my tennant.<br>
It turned out my tennant is a paraplegic in a wheelchair & as has been my previous experience this situation was caused by an administration error on the part of the council.Still neither i or the tennant have heard anything from the agent. <br>

2. Not getting a proper condition check done before returning the previous tennants deposit, the previous agent refunded me some money to cover the damaged missed but it has continued to result in increasingly extra cost to myself.<br>
3. A window tradesman was called to the house by the agency after the new tennants moved in & came to replace lost window lock keys, i can only guess that this was another point missed on a condition report as i was not told about it or asked to pay for it.The tradesman never returned & my tennants had their child sleeping in a room without a window that would open in an emergency. This only came to light when i began communication with the tennant myself, i have since addressed this problem at my own expense.<br>

4.The present tennant & his wife both say they were told by the previous agent when they were first shown the property that the estate my property is on is the second worst in the city. I fail to see how this can possibly be in my best interest>

I would appreciate any advice on breaking my contract with the agent, & if i have good reason to do this?? More importantly i need to know if i do break the contract, can the agent hold the tennants deposit??
Thanx in advance, Steve

[bwglaw]

You need specific legal advice and your contract with the agent needs to be reviewed as to what rights you have to terminate the contract. If you would like me to review and advise please email me at the address below

Jonathan