A residential landlord is suing Foxtons estate for more than £16,000 in damages for allowing a 22-year-old ‘Russian prostitute’ to move into one of her Chelsea properties.

The woman did not pay further rent after handing over payment for the first month in advance. She left after three months, but not before damaging the property.

Karen Menzies, who works as a designer, also claims the estate agent gave the tenant a reference even though it knew she had already wrecked another property she rented.

Miss Menzies has been fighting a four-year battle to get money from the estate agent.

References should have been presented before she moved in. But 38 year old Miss Menzies claimed in a newspaper article that she 'acted in good faith' by giving her new tenant keys to the flat before the references arrived, because she trusted Foxtons after using them on seven previous occasions.

Foxtons described the tenant as 'a single professional female', but in an interview with the Evening Standard Miss Menzies said: “The first time I saw her she was dressed in a cocktail dress and off her face. She said she had been to a 60th birthday party and not been to bed. She knew she'd pulled off a move she should not have.

“I walked out of the door, down the road and told Foxtons about my concerns and said I was convinced she was a prostitute. When I asked about the references they said they hadn't come across from her previous property. Later they said, 'Actually, it's going to be a Foxtons' reference'.

“I said that was unacceptable and asked why the reference wasn't from her previous landlord. After meeting her and seeing the Foxtons reference I could see that there was a problem.”

Miss Menzies claims the Chelsea flat was badly damaged during the woman's stay and that she 'worked unusual hours'. She also says she found her collapsed in a drug-induced stupor on more than one occasion.

The £16,000 figure Miss Menzies is claiming includes money for rent, damages and loss of earnings incurred while dealing with a leak caused by the tenant.

Miss Menzies added that she had tried to negotiate with Foxtons several times over four years but had only been offered a refund of the one-year commission on the rental and a contribution towards legal costs incurred while evicting her from the flat.

A Foxtons spokeswoman has confirmed it is aware of the complaint but says the firm would not comment further.