Any Legal types care to comment - Getting rid of tennant

[dowie]

Hi guys, I have a bit of an annoying situation at my flat. Basically one of the girls I live with is away working as a dancer on a cruise ship and decided to sublet her room - we advertised and ended up with an aussie backpacker (who is becoming increasingly annoying).

Basically the aussie backpacker is due to move out in approx 4 weeks though is becoming unbearable to live with. She has a coke habbit and so is always short of cash (didn't pay the rent on time for the first few months). Has about 3 different blokes round each week and recently just decided to move someone in for a few weeks (who we've only managed to get rid of today). She is regularly moody and the other two girls in the flat can't stand her. She also seems to think the flat can be used for any of her backpacker mates to come and crash for a few days.

The question is, given that she hasn't signed any form of contract, how much notice do we have to give her if we did want her to move out sooner than 4 weeks time? (she has already paid rent in advance for this period too)

I.e. could we give 2 weeks notice and and pay back some of the rent she has paid.

Or even, given the drugs situation (I don't care if she wants to do it but I don't want it in the flat - especially not laid out in lines in her room on a plate from the kitchen) can we simply change the locks and tell her to **** off. - leave her stuff in the porch with a cheque for the rest of the rent or something?

Before anyone mentions it - punch to the ovaries has been considered!

 

[dowie]

Thanks for your replies guys - much appreciated

I guess the best solution is to just stick it out - it was more, I suppose a case of what are my options if things get really out of hand (am stressed enough at work without having to deal with stuff at home).

FWIW the girls I live with are dancers and do go away (though it is excluded in the standard contract we've signed) the landlord is well aware that they get people in to cover the rent for a few months. Myself and one of the girls are on the contract - the auzzie girl isn't.

Sorry, that meant to be Exclusive Possession, not Absolute Possession.

Anyway, as I said, you can call it a Lodging, Lease, Mickey Mouse what all the court cares, if the Person living in the property has :

1 - Certainty of duration
2 - Fixed term
3 - Exclusive possession

OK I'm a complete layperson when it comes to the Law so would you mind expanding on how that fits into this situation - i.e. she does have a moving out date (though not on paper), has been here for less than a year and it is a shared flat so I'm not sure how any "exclusive possession" can come into play?

 

[dowie]

So, in my opinion, she doesn't have exclusive possession, no lease....give her a short notice and get her out. AG Securities v. Vaughan [1990] is your friend.

Don't you love the law?

Cheers dude - you are a star - she is going to be leaving in 4 weeks anyway and hopefully we won't have any more incidents - but I guess if we do then we could feasibly say to her - listen this isn't on can you please find a hostel to go and stay in at the weekend and we'll reimburse you with any rent owed.