Room Swaps
Room swaps with another student may be possible and potential swaps can be identified by one of the following routes:
Already found a student to swap with: If you have found another student also living in University accommodation and you wish to swap rooms with each other, you need to contact the Accommodation Service to confirm if the swap is acceptable.
Looking for a student to swap with: If you need help finding someone to swap with, you can register your interest on our Facebook page.
Not yet arrived at your accommodation: It is possible that room swaps can take place prior to your arrival at University, if both parties are happy to swap without viewing the actual room.
Already living in your accommodation: If you are already in Newcastle and living in your allocated room, we recommend both students view each other’s rooms to ensure you are happy with the proposed swap. You should then contact the Accommodation Service to confirm if the swap is acceptable.
How to arrange a swap: Once you have found a possible swap, both students should complete a web enquiry form available on the “Contact Us” section of the “My Details” page of your online application/contract. You should state the name, student number and room details of the student you wish to swap with and when confirmation is received from both students of this request, we will check the status of the swap and advise whether the swap is possible. If we are able to proceed with the request, we will agree a swap date and issue new online contracts.
Please note: You can only swap rooms with another student of the same gender, Undergraduates cannot normally swap with Postgraduates and vice versa. If one student is withdrawing from the University or leaving the accommodation to live elsewhere, this does not count as a swap. Room swaps cannot take place without the agreement of the Accommodation Service and the issuing of new contracts as there are legal and financial implications to each contract. No swap will be authorised where a student owes outstanding debt. Any students carrying out an unauthorised swap will be requested to move back to their original room and charged accordingly if cleaning is required. An administration fee of £25 will be incurred for second or subsequent swaps.
Important Information on Room Swaps
When swapping from one room to another, the contract on your first room will end on the day your new one begins. You will only pay rent on one of the rooms.
When you are issued with a contract for the new room, the contract will detail only the accommodation charges for that room, for the specified period and it does not reflect any payments that you may have already made.
If you paid your accommodation charges in full for your first room and the new room is of a higher rent, there will be additional charges to pay. You will receive an invoice within 14 days of your move for the extra charges. If the room is of a lesser rent, then you will be entitled to a refund. Staff will arrange this refund automatically by sending you a refund request form, or you can download a copy.
If you are paying by direct debit, your rent account will be adjusted automatically, taking into account the total charges for both rooms together with payments already made and you will receive an amended advance payment notice. This will clearly show what payments will be taken on which date. If your parent(s) show on our system as being responsible for paying the direct debit charges from their bank account, the advance payment notice will be sent directly to them. If the money is paid out of your bank account but your parent(s) send you the money to cover the costs, we recommend you send them a copy of the amended advance payment notice. You do not need to advise your bank of the changes.
If you are not on direct debit and are paying upon receipt of an invoice, you will receive new invoices depending on the time of your room swap. Termly invoices are issued with payment due dates of 1 November 2013, 1 February 2014, 7 May 2014 and 1 July 2014 (for 50 week contracts). If you have moved to a room with a higher rent in between these dates, you will receive an invoice within 14 days of your move to cover the additional costs for the duration of that term and then other termly invoices on the remaining dates stated previously. If you have moved to a room of a lesser rent, then any overpayment during the term in which you move, will be deducted from the next term’s invoice.
