Phone mediation still a waste of time?

[drelly]

I put in an application for phone mediation 2 weeks ago. I've never done it before as I thought it was a waste of time but being the eternal optimist I am, thought I'd give it a go. Had the thone mediation today. They had no copies of the documents I attached in the online application and the tenant didn't answer her phone, so it's going to tribunal. What's the point?!?

[Learning]

You can't base all phone mediation attempts as useless because one tenant failed to answer her phone. The result could of been resolved quickly and easily if she had.

My phone mediation experience was an agreement form a former tenant to pay for damages in agreed instalments. She made one payment and then disappeared. I was able to track her down through a dept collector but thanks to phone mediation she kept her name out of the TT order database. I did place a reference on TINZ but heard she'd done the same to another LL a couple years later.

[Keys]

It can make possession faster.

[HouseWorks]

I found it good it resolved a tenants arrears by way of agreement and that tenant has stayed on top ever since. Best of all the phone mediation was completed in half an hour or less.

[flyernzl]

I think it works if you have already reached an agreement with the tenant and just want it formalized.