# The landlord evicts a tenant during COVID-19 and refuses to refund the deposit



## laywerneeded (13 Mar 2022)

A Dundalk college staff posted ads. on students' social media to find student tenants to rent one of the rooms in her property. I replied to her ads and rent one room and shared her property with another student. Because it is not a tidy place to live on my first sight, I requested I need one weeks' time to move in and tidy up the stuff in the house. The landlord's agent agreed I moved in earlier and gave me the key. So I agreed with her to a 7-month contract and paid an extra month's rent as a deposit as rental confirmation. Unfortunately, after one or two weeks' living, I found there were many tiny dirty files flying everywhere in the kitchen, in the bathroom, and even in my bedroom. A few days later after I moved in, I also found there was one room, next to my bedroom, fully filled with rubbish. I complained about this to the landlord and her agent, requested them to clean the next room and solve the problems of the flies. They refused to do anything about it given two excuses, one is ' the tiny flies are from grasses outside' and the second is ' the room filled with rubbish was rented by another student who is away from Ireland due to COVID '. Then I told her if nothing could be done I had to terminate the 7-month contract and move out once I found a new place. Then she pushed me to pay her rent one week earlier and warned me if I terminated the contract I must move out immediately. (When the landlord asked me to move out immediately, it was in DEC. and JAN of 2021-2022 when there was a peak of COVID-19 and there were over 10,000 new COVID cases each day.) I disagreed to pay the rent one week earlier, nor could I move out immediately during a serious COVID situation. Then her agent started to make all sorts of trouble for me. She sent me warning messages to my Whatsapp, to my phone SMS, to my email box, and posted the warning letter in the kitchen and everywhere on the property asking me to move out immediately. Even she came up to my room without my permission and tried to throw my belongings out, and she hit me, waved me back and forth, and her hands were on my neck and tried to get me choked. Bad luck she got her glasses and one nail broke during the fight with me.  Then after that, she called the police and reported I made house harassment. She told many lies to the police. After the fight, I found a new place in less than a month and moved out. When the room was empty, I asked the landlord to return my deposit, the landlord refused to give it back. 
Now I not only want to get my deposit back but also compensation to cover my physical and mental suffering. They ignored my complaints and refused to make any repairs I requested, they threatened me and tried to evict me illegally during COVID peak season, and even invaded my human rights. 
How can I sue the landlord and get my deposit and compensation back? Anyone can help me?


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