I stupidly stood guarantor for my daughter on a flat she had viewed by herself. I was really cold and damp and the only form of heating was a small electry fan heater (wich broke after several weeks) During this time the damp was looked at once but nothing much changed and my daughter was ill on and off with chest infections etc through the full 12 month tenancy.

Upon moving out of the flat I asked the agent to meet me there to discuss any jobs he thought needed doing and to hand the keys back, he point blank refused and then after the keys were handed back sent a bill for £161 for the jobs that he said had been done. My daughter was in no position to pay this and I refused on the grounds that the flat wasn't fit for purpose during her tenancy. The agent threatened legal proceedings and then added more on for the place being unrentable while the jobs were being done. I spoke briefly to a solicitory who advised me to email the agent and advise him if he pursued this my daughter would counter claim for illness due to the lack of heating and damp in the flat and also loss of enjoyment during her time there as due to her being stuck in the tenancy and so unhappy she ended up on ante depressants. I emailed this and then heard nothing at all. That was 3 months ago and today i got an email saying the court papers would be with me shortly to wich i offered to pay the £161 to get all this to stop because it's now making me feel really low and the agent said I'd need to pay £518 (list provided) or else I'm going to land myself and my daughter with a CCJ and I'm so worried about getting a CCJ that I feel sick, can anybody help please?

rent 1 month of viewings-£275.00

rent during clean / repairs 12/213 - 18/2/13 inclusive £63.46

keys - £8.00

keys - £6.00

key - £3.00

travel - £11.00

staff time - £12.00

Clean - £45.00

Cooker knob missing - £7.00

re-grout shower - £45.00

boarder supply - £28.44

boarder affix - £15.00

Total =-£518.90

Offer to pay the costs @ £30.00 a month. Save yourself a lot of angst. Your landlord is one of many. Not all of them are so harsh. Just most of them. Allegedly

Don't allow yourself to be browbeaten.
The flat should have been serviceable, and after comments made about the damp, etc., it should have been dealt with. As it was not, I believe (speaking as a non-solicitor) that you have a reasonable case for refuting the claim and possibly for counter-claiming (as suggested by the solicitor).
I think you should go back to the solicitor, check whether what I and others have said is viable, and then write (or get the solicitor to write!) refuting the claim and if you wish, counter-claim.
Be prepared to sue for harassment if they persist in threatening you with a CCJ. They are NOT allowed to keep pressing you for the money without first getting the court's agreement that you are in default.
Do make/find all written evidence you can to support your case.

Good luck!

Yes, Clare, go to the solicitor or CAB - but if you start with CAB, treat this as only a sifting of what is worth pursuing and what is not, plus a bit of initial free guidance.
You will have to follow up with a proper solicitor visit unless the CAB solicitor says that |"it won't work/won't be worth it/you're in the wrong", or similar statement.

Thanks everyone for your replies, I sought advice from a Solicitor and as of yet I still haven't received anything else from the agent. I was told that if the agent doesn't send me a "Letter Before Action" then he isn't following proper procedure and I can ask for it to be dismissed purely on that basis .. also if he was to pursue it, it would be classed as a non priority debt seen as my daughter no longer resides in the property so she could pay the bare min each month..I'm still hoping he was just bluffing as the flat is sat empty at the moment.

Thanks again
Clare