LEGAL ADVICE

[lizabi99]

 Hello. I have just joined the forum after spending a wonderful 10 days at our Villa. Had a great time but have unfortunately discovered that our previous Agent (we changed 3 months ago) has not paid any utility bills on the property for the last 3 years. As a result, out unpaid electricity bill in now being handled by the courts in Kas. I believe that this is not an uncommon problem and wondered if anyone could give me some advice as to how I might take this futher? I am thinking of hiring a lawyer & even writing to the mayor of Kalkan to bring this to his attention. Would be grateful for any advice at all? 

Linkback: https://www.enjoykalkan.com/forum/index.php?topic=5645.0

[DRBD]

lizabi99 - have pm'd you

[Will]

Unfortunate as your experience has been, writing to the mayor may make you feel better but will not be of any practical help.   Even if he sympathises, he cannot offer any assistance. It is not within the Belediye's remit to get involved in disputes between suppliers/agents and customers, whether the customers are British or Turkish.  You wouldn't expect your local Mayor in the UK to intervene if you had a dispute with a UK service provider would you?  We do not have the equivalent here of trading standards officers who investigate unreliable suppliers in the UK.

Did you not ask to see any receipts for your utility bills in a 3 year period?.  If you were letting out your villa, how were you paying tax on your earnings if you did not have receipts to claim against expenses?  If you were not paying tax, think twice about going to see a  lawyer, rather than getting compensation, you could be hit with a hefty tax bill.

Taking legal action in Turkey is  expensive and time consuming, so you may in the end have to write off this very unpleasant episode if it will cost you more to claim back what you have lost than you actually receive.  Also if the former agent has no current assets, legal action will be fruitless as they will not be able to reimburse you even if you win your case. All very frustrating I know .

We use a lawyer in Kas, a woman who speaks good English and is impartial and objective.  We don't use  a lawyer in Kalkan as you can never be certain of their affilliations and objectivity. If your agent has made a  habit of doing this with other clients, the Kas lawyer may already know about the situation and can advise you if anyone else is taking action.

Send me a PM if you would like her e mail and phone details.  Good Luck and hope this one bad apple hasn't spoilt your experience of Kalkan.

Will

[kim21]

The thing here is, were you charged anything by this agent for utility bills. If you were and they have not been paid then as long as you have the receipts then go ahead and prosecute as this is a simple case of theft on the part of your agent.
 If they were not paid or you do not have the receipts, then you don't really have a leg to stand on.
 These kinds of laws are not disimilar to those of the UK and of course if you have been wronged you should always persue justice, the turkish legal system is a very fair one,
Always heed advice given and don't enter into anything you don't understand.
 Good luck