UK Landlord Forum / Life

I have a 6-month fixed-term contract; however, there is a line in the AST that reads "The landlord may end the agreement at any time by serving 15 days' notice".  Is this an illegal attempt at a break clause?  It seems to read "it's a 6 month contract, but I can do whatever I like".
They (the Agents) have not secured my deposit, not informed me of who my landlord is, and it has taken them a month to repair the hot water and oven; so I'm thinking of causing a stink. But I don't want this 15 day break clause to be invoked just before Christmas!  I'm due to move out in March 2015.
Thanks for any advice.

A Landlord does not have a guaranteed right to possession during the first 6 months of a tenancy. The clause you refer to wouldn't stand-up, I reckon.

The Agents are not responsible for protecting your deposit, the Landlord is. You can take action against the Landlord at any time for this, up to a period of 6 years. The Agent doesn't have to pro-actively inform you who your Landlord is, but they must provide that information if you request it formally, in writing. See Landlord and Tenant Act, 1985, Section 1 - "Disclosure of Landlord's Identity" - http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1985/70

Repairs must be done in "a reasonable time"... this is a grey area.

Thank you Hippogriff! 
Decided to just go with repeating my request that they fix the hot water/oven, officially asking for the landlord's name, and a request that he/she contacts me with my deposit details.
Fingers crossed for a pleasant response.

As an aside, if they turn around now [well after the 30 day mark] and say "oh sorry, we forgot to protect your deposit and will do so now", would it still be possible to go after them under s214 subparagraphs (3), (3A) and (4) of the Housing Act 2004?  Not desperate to sue anyone, but it would be good to know I have ammunition if I need it later. [They won't have really forgotten; apparently every tenant has faced the same problem...something I didn't know until I moved in].

A deposit protected late is still just that... a deposit protected late. If it wasn't done within the timeframe then it quite simply wasn't done properly - as required by law - and a Tenant can sue and they would be successful in that.