Seeking advice on court process for property damage claim?

Oh dear. You don’t quantify the damage value? Before going down any route ask yourself if it is worth the aggro. There is little point in winning a claim if the ex tenant is skint. Most landlords on this forum will have had issues on hand back but will budget for expenses between tenancies. If the ex tenant has no money, or cannot be traced, then it may be a fruitless exercise.

A likely Pyrrhic victory, the best likely outcome is you get to file a black mark on a credit file.

Anything under 5k walk away

What is the best way to go with a working tenant with good guarantors when damage is around £15000.00 to £18000.00
I am in this situation, tenant abandoned property about six weeks ago?

Unless it is a substantial amount don’t bother it will cost you more,the system is a utter discrace, bite the bullet and move on .

I would make a claim – MCOL is intended to be easy to navigate for most cases. Assuming the tenants are joint and severally liable, both can be listed on a single claim.

Raise a single claim naming both tenants. At worst they don’t repay, and they’ll find it difficult to get credit, and few landlords will house them. They may/should now start negotiating to avoid the court/CCJ. If you have good evidence and they fail to defend the court will decide without a hearing.

I was in a dilemma about pursuing further costs from my tenant as the damages were over the deposit amount. The trouble is he was living in the property for 15 years so the deposit paid back then was insufficient and I should have collected more deposit money from him with inflationary increases over the years.
He caused damage to my kitchen units, worktops and wooden floors which have had to be replaced, plus painted my ceilings blue and a mice infestation.
I got his deposit money paid back but decided not to pursue further on the basis he was a long standing tenant. He had lost his job 2 years ago and had a mental breakdown so started neglecting the place. I gave him a Section 21 notice this year so I can sell up due to rising costs. Luckily a family member was kind to take him in although will be sleeping on the sofa. The tenant paid me all the rent he owed and used this from his savings.
In this situation I look at it that they done me a favour and I didn’t need to pursue legal costs to get him out. The kitchen and bathroom are 22 years old so I can write it off as dated. I am currently undergoing a full refurbishment to put it up for sale and will make the money up on selling it.