My landlord is ‘holding my mum’s ashes to ransom’ so I pay £300 cleaning fee after I was kicked out of home
A GRAN claims her landlord is holding her mum’s ashes to ransom so she pays a £300 cleaning fee after she was kicked out of her home.
Geraldine Glanville, 67, was evicted from her home in Chatham, Kent in December after missing rent payments.
In her rush to leave after bailiffs turned up she forgot a bag of mementoes – and the urn holding her late mother’s ashes.
Now Geraldine claims that her landlord said he won’t give back the urn unless she pays a £300 cleaning fee.
The landlord, who does not wish to be named, said Geraldine left the flat in a state of “devastation”.
He also claimed that Geraldine’s daughter was repeatedly rude to him even though he kept the gran’s rent low.
He added that he did not chase missing rent payments and gave Geraldine plenty of warning about the mess.
The landlord told KentOnline: “I still have Geraldine’s mum’s ashes and even though I threatened to dispose of them I would not do that.
“I was just so angry that Geraldine and her daughter think it is perfectly OK to just walk away from the mess Geraldine left and expect it all to be cleared up at no cost to Geraldine.
“If Geraldine and her daughter treasured the ashes, why did Geraldine not take them initially to her daughter’s flat?
He added: “She had months of notice and ample time to do so before the court bailiffs evicted her.
“How important to them are the ashes that they would not pay a small amount towards the damage and money owed from the court fees?”
The landlord said he would return the ashes if Geraldine paid the cleaning fee and her daughter apologised.
He added that he would accept a donation to charity if the gran preferred.
Geraldine’s daughter Charlotte said: “My mother has offered to pay the money back in monthly instalments.
“This is blackmail and is upsetting my mum.”