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I live in Colorado. My previous landlord has emailed me a security deposit withholding statement, but has not mailed a physical statement by U.S. Postal Service, or any other physical mailing service. I will be taking the landlord to court for the withholdings, as they are inaccurate, however I am also wondering if I can sue for the treble damages for failure to mail the statement? Thank you.
Thank you for contacting our JA team for guidance.
You could sue for treble damages, but the court could grant only the amount of the deposit if you received actual notice (ie, the e-mail) within the time allowed. Small Claims court is generally the least expensive and fastest way to obtain a judgment.
Please let me know if you need additional information.
Best regards XXXXX XXXXX
TG
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TG: Thank you for your response. Just to confirm, you believe that the emailed statement of deposit withholdings could be considered by the Small Claims Court to be sufficient in meeting to statute requirements for:State of Colorado Statutes Article 12, Part 1, 38-12-103. Return of security deposit. " (1) A landlord shall, within one month after thetermination of a lease or surrender and acceptance of the premises,whichever occurs last, return to the tenant the full securitydeposit deposited with the landlord by the tenant, unless thelease agreement specifies a longer period of time, but not toexceed sixty days.The landlord is deemed to have complied with thissection by mailing said statement and any payment required to thelast known address of the tenant." Emphasis added"(2) The failure of a landlord to provide a writtenstatement within the required time specified in subsection (1) ofthis section shall work a forfeiture of all his rights to withholdany portion of the security deposit under this section. (3) (a) The willful retention of a security depositin violation of this section shall render a landlord liable fortreble the amount of that portion of the security depositwrongfully withheld from the tenant, together with reasonableattorneys' fees and court costs; except that the tenant has theobligation to give notice to the landlord of his intention to filelegal proceedings a minimum of seven days prior to filing saidaction."I'm unclear on whether or not the courts have "updated" their requirements as to notices and delivery methods to include modern email.Also, when I file with Small Claims: For the Service of Process - the landlords currently live in Germany, and the husband is active U.S. military. Who can I personally serve? Will a named property manager here in Colorado work? I've also noticed that the court forms for Small Claims includes an option to have the Court Clerk mail the Notice and Summons by certified mail. Would that be sent to the Germany address, or the property address?Thanks for your help.
No. The statute, as most state statutes have not been updated to include e-mailing. However, a court MAY consider the fact that you received actual notice, satisfying the intent, if not the plain language of the statute.
Make sure you provide the required 7 day notice to the landlord and its agent as required by the statute or they could use this language to dismiss your suit and you would have to refile.
All the best to you.
You would need to serve the landlords in Germany and the management company who acted as their agent.
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