Dear All
I have a query if I should proceed legally against my (future) landlord for intentional deception, mis-representation and mis-selling.
Background: 3 weeks before our move into a new apartment (planned for April 1), the landlord informed us that the lift will not work for over a month, despite the apartment being on the 6th floor. We are expecting our child soon, and the landlord had information of this prior to signing contract with us in january. We requested the landlord for clarification and to redeem their action for withholding this important information from us. Instead they immediately engaged a lawyer who gave us an ultimatum, stating that they are willing to take a loss by terminating the contract rather than correct their mistake with us.
As a result, we could not move into our apartment on 1 April and are still trying to find a place to live in an emergency. We have to spend large sums on service apartment every month. There is a real risk to health and wellbeing of my family that goes well beyond stress and financial strain.
The builder / repair management company of the building would have provided this information to all the landlords in the building, atleast 6 months in advance, since it is a tall building with many older residents. The landlord always planned to hide the problem with the lift, voluntary "remembering" to tell us about it just 3 weeks before our move date. Prior to this many emails and texts were exchanged on various topics regarding move date, cellar etc. but we were not told about the only thing that was defective.
Can the landlord be held liable for intentional deception, mis-representation and mis-selling, and be asked to pay us damages.
Many thanks for any pointers
Maybe the landlord had hoped that the lift would be ready on time and it isn ́t?
Why are you saying the landlord is hiding this from you and should have known? New builds often have issues with certain things not being ready on time so I doubt they did that on purpose.
They released you from the contract - don’t think you’ll get much more than that!
Be aware that there are some clear protocols and procedures which must be followed in case of rental disputes.
In general a non working elevator can result in a rent reduction of 10 - 15% (during the time it is not working).
Unless your wife has a doctors note, which forbid her using the stairs, I do not see a ground to not live in the apartment. If the lift was not working on the moving day you might claim damages for renting an external lift.
I couldn't imagine having to climb so many flights of stairs (up to the sixth floor!) while 9 months pregnant. Not to mention if your wife had to have a C-section when the baby is born. It would be extremely painful (if not impossible) to climb all those stairs afterward.
I'm sorry I don't have any useful information to share, but that's really is awful for your landlord to have hidden that from you (as well as all the other tenants) and especially if the landlord wasn't more understanding of your predicament and how inconvenienced you were. I really hope you can get everything sorted out and find an even better new place to live very soon.
You see no challenge for a heavily pregnant or post partum woman climbing 6 flight of stairs perhaps also then later with a newborn and pe haos multiple times a day?
I don ́t think that is what SwissintheUSA meant, I think he said this from a legal point of view?
The lift repair was always planned for 2 months after the planned move date.
The quantum of inconvenience to a tenant from a non-working lift, broken stove, peeling paint etc. is an issue but it is secondary to a more important issue. Isn't withholding important information the main crime here? Is there any answerability for that upon a landlord under Swiss law?
while the lift being out of order is no doubt an inconvenience. it was only going to be for 1 month. the hassle of getting a temporary apartment and doing 2 moves seems to be an even bigger hassle.
It's possible the fault developed after you signed the contract. It's equally possible the work should have been done by the time you moved in but the lift company did not keep to the anticipated delivery date, or took longer than they thought. This was certainly the case in the renovation of a lift in our apartment block. Climbing 7 flights of stairs from garage to home was no joke so I can understand what it would be like for your wife.
However, I think you went about this in the wrong way. From the sound of what you have written and the fact they immediately engaged a lawyer, makes me think you were being aggressive towards them. I stand corrected if this is not the case of course.
Perhaps if you had calmly and politely explained the situation, you could have postponed your moving in by a month. You would have needed a service apartment but at least you'd have had the place you wanted with a small delay and the rent saved would have offset that cost. Or, maybe he could have found something else for you for that month!!
Whatever the case is, I doubt you have any claim as it will be very hard to prove the landlord knew. Further, you'll need a lawyer and that won't be cheap - unless you have a legal aid insurance. Probably CHF 5 - 6,000 just to get started. Put it down to experience and move on is my advice.
No, as there is no "crime" here.
Tom
Thank you for your note.
Yes, we explained to them over several emails, that they did not explain to us. That they withheld a material defect , despite the knowledge of the family situation. We then explained the financial burden and health risk imminent upon us, as few have sympathetically understood above.
But no, they did not once say that they "just" found out themselves. They engaged a lawyer.
"Hard to prove landlord knew" - how does one generally prove that information has been received.
Tall building + older residents + major repair by professional lift company = advance notice to all landlords via recorded communication. Unless there is rampant unprofessionalism among all stakeholders and the people at the receiving end are required to accept this in Switzerland.
Our lift was replaced several years ago. I should have taken a month, but it took two.
That's life.
P.S. we live on the 5th floor. We survived.
P.P.S. My neighbor across the hall is about 80, yet she survived as well.
Tom
I hope she sued the landlord for PTSD suffered from those 2 months.
Post Traumatic Stair Disorder?
I am sympathetic, I just think you went about it the wrong way, and from what you've just written I'd have also given it to my lawyer.
It's now academic, but a friendly call and a request to delay taking the flat for a month would I'm sure have done it. As soon as you speak of financial burden, health risks etc, that's enough to worry any landlord and make them think you'll go legal on them, so as a landlord I'd strike first with a lawyer and leave it in their hands!
As she, like we, are owners, not in her interest to do so!
Tom
Your entire argument depends on this, if you can't proof this, then it will be a pointless and expensive exercise.
I can see you will enjoy living in Switzerland
It's a very unpleasant situation you're going through, and I'm sorry to hear about it. Nobody deserves to be put through the nasty inconvenience of going flat hunting again with your wife about to pop.
Having said that, Switzerland is not a litigious society (at least nowhere near as the US is) and there being no crime committed here and no tangible damages on your family, you stand to lose significant legal fees if you want to pursue this in court. As Island_Monkey pointed out, the landlord released you from the contract. I think that's as much as you're going to get.
Wish you the best of luck finding a new place soon.