London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Mar 06, 2026

Woman, 20, loses £210 deposit after landlord ‘finds a single pea in her fridge’

Woman, 20, loses £210 deposit after landlord ‘finds a single pea in her fridge’

A WOMAN lost her £210 deposit after her landlord found a single PEA left in her fridge.

Matilda Hargreaves, 20, was stunned when she was sent a photo of the tiny green vegetable by the angry homeowner.

Matilda Hargreaves, 20, branded her landlord 'ridiculous' for keeping her £210 deposit

The property owner sent a pic of the single pea by way of explanation


The student has hit out at her "ridiculous" landlord and said the property was in a "much better state" than when she moved in.

Matilda had been living in the seven-bedroom house with only three others after Covid caused chaos for uni-goers across the country.

The 20-year-old English Literature student shared her plight on Tik Tok.

She said: "To be refused the deposit and sent a picture of a single pea in a freezer as way of explanation is just beyond ridiculous.

"We were also sent a picture of a bottle of Febreze we’d left in one of the rooms.

"We were shocked so much had been taken," she said. "I felt like replying saying for £210 I’ll come and clean it myself. It wouldn’t have taken long."

The clip has taken the internet by storm, encouraging hundreds of other tenants to share their stories of hard-hitting landlords.

Matilda, from Crewe, continued: "We did have a good chuckle at it. One of the images they sent that really made us laugh was the outside area.

"When we moved in, there was a lot of cardboard and we cleared it. But because we left a couple of bits of it, behind they’ve charged us for that as well."

But although she saw the funny side, the 20-year-old thinks her landlord should have "cut us some slack".

"We were debating appealing it, but we were so fed up with everything we thought, let’s just take it."

The video, which gained over 700,000 views, inspired social media users to open up about their struggles with landlords who have upped costs due to Covid.

"When we moved out, our landlord took half our deposit for a deep clean for Covid purpose…Cuz Covid was definitely our fault," one said.

Another ticked off tenant wrote: "Our landlord charged £500 for (unnecessary) carpet cleaning and then we walked by the place a week later and all the carpet was in a skip."

A bottle of Febreeze also cost the group more than they bargained for

The English Literature student's TikTok video sparked a wave of social media complaints about landlords

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Iceland Supermarket Drops Trademark Challenge Against Icelandic Government in Long-Running Naming Dispute
UK Defence Secretary Visits Cyprus Following Scrutiny of Britain’s Response to Drone Attacks
Questions Grow Over Britain’s Military Readiness as Response to Iran Conflict Draws Scrutiny
UK Offers Failed Asylum Seeker Families Up to Forty Thousand Pounds to Leave Voluntarily
Saharan Dust Could Bring ‘Blood Rain’ to Parts of the UK as Weather Systems Shift
UK Deploys Additional Typhoon Fighter Jets to Qatar and Helicopters to Cyprus Amid Rising Middle East Tensions
Experts Urge Britain to Accelerate Renewable Energy Push as Global Conflicts Drive Up Costs
British Public Shows Strong Reluctance to Join Wider War in Iran
First UK Evacuation Flight Departs Middle East After Lengthy Delay
United Kingdom Imposes New Visa Requirements on Travelers from St. Lucia and Nicaragua
Iran Conflict Strains U.S.–U.K. Alliance as Trump and Starmer Clash Over Military Strategy
UK Interest Rates Could Rise Above Four Percent Again if Energy Shock Continues, Think Tank Warns
Starmer Defends Britain’s Iran Strategy as Badenoch Urges Stronger Military Support
Labour MP Says She Saw No Sign Husband Broke Law After Arrest in China Espionage Investigation
UK Jobless Rate Overtakes Italy’s for First Time in Years as Labour Market Weakens
United Kingdom Suspends Student Visas for Four Countries in Unprecedented Immigration Move
Campaigners Warn UK Student Visa Ban Could Push Migrants Toward Dangerous Channel Crossings
First U.K. Charter Flight for Stranded Nationals Set to Depart Oman Amid Middle East Crisis
France and United Kingdom Deploy Warships to Eastern Mediterranean as Middle East Conflict Escalates
U.K. Arrests Three Men Including Lawmaker’s Partner in Suspected China Espionage Investigation
Trump Says UK–US ‘Special Relationship’ Is Diminished Amid Middle East Dispute
UK Economic Forecasts Face Fresh Strain from Middle East Conflict and Rising Energy Costs
UK Reaffirms Close US Ties After Trump’s Public Criticism
Reeves Stresses Stability and Fiscal Discipline in UK Budget Update as Growth Outlook Shifts
UK Deploys Royal Navy Destroyer HMS Dragon to Cyprus After Drone Strike on RAF Base
Green Party Surges Past Labour in New UK Poll as Traditional Party Support Crumbles
Majority of Britons Oppose U.S. Use of UK Military Bases in Iran Conflict
UK Intensifies Evacuation Efforts from Oman, Working with Airlines to Boost Flight Capacity
Trump Condemns UK and Spain in Unusually Sharp Rift Over Iran Military Action
Trump Repeats UK Claims That Diverge from Verified Facts Amid Diplomatic Strain
UK Arrests Prominent Figures Linked to Epstein Network as Questions Mount Over US Action
Trump Says UK ‘Took Far Too Long’ to Approve Use of Airbases for Iran Strikes
Scope of Britain’s Role in the Expanding Middle East Conflict Comes Under Scrutiny
Trump Says He Is ‘Very Disappointed’ in Starmer Over Iran Comments
U.S. Embassy in Riyadh Struck by Drones Amid Escalating Iran Conflict
Starmer Confronts Strategic Test After Drone Strike Near British Base in Cyprus
Rolls-Royce Chief Signals Openness to Germany Joining UK-Led Fighter Jet Programme
UK Stocks Slip as Escalating Iran Conflict Triggers Global Market Selloff
UK Overhauls Asylum System to Make Refugee Status Temporary
Starmer Warns of ‘Reckless’ Iranian Strikes Amid Escalating Regional Tensions
British Base in Cyprus Targeted as Drones Intercepted Amid Expanding Iran Conflict
Starmer Diverges from Trump on Iran Strategy, Rejects ‘Regime Change from the Skies’
U.S. and Israel Intensify Strikes on Iran as Conflict Expands to Lebanon and Gulf States
Violent Pro-Iranian Protesters Storm U.S. Consulate in Karachi
Missile Debris Sparks Fires at Dubai’s Jebel Ali Port Near Palm Jumeirah
Iran Strikes U.S. Fifth Fleet Headquarters in Bahrain Amid Wider Gulf Retaliation
When the State Replaces the Parent: How Gender Policy Is Redefining Custody and Coercion
Bill Clinton Denies Knowing Woman in Hot Tub Photo During Closed-Door Epstein Deposition
Former U.S. President Bill Clinton Testifies on Ties to Jeffrey Epstein Before Congressional Oversight Committee
Dyson Reaches Settlement in Landmark UK Forced Labour Case
×