Should the guarantor be told about pets?

If there are changes to a tenancy for an occupational contract in Wales must the guarantor be told of these changes? Yes

If the guarantor is not told about the addition of pets to the tenancy could the guarantor legitimately refuse to pay for damages caused by a pet by saying that there are no pets mentioned in the original tenancy agreement? Yes

The guarantor should be told of all amendments to the original tenancy they signed up to guarantee

The guarantor needs to be told of any changes to any agreement made between landlord and Tennant and has the right to remove their gaurentee.

Reply to the comment left by Michael Booth at 17/11/2023 – 06:50The guarantor should be asked to agree to changes to the tenancy agreement. If the tenancy is amended to remove a prohibition on pets, that is very material as it increased the likelihood of a claim against the tenant for property damage. It is not so much a case of having “the right to remove their guarantee” but of the tenant seeking to avoid liability when a claim is made.
Worse, from a landlord’s perspective, even if the claim is unrelated to the pet, for example a claim for rent arrears. the guarantor may still avoid liability if the variation was made without his consent.
The original guarantee wording may say that the guarantor remains bound by variations. However, that does not always work and, given the cost and complexity of litigating abstruse legal points, the safe course is to get the guarantor to sign any amending documentation and expressly to consent to it.

As a guarantor, they might not be happy to agree to this amendment and then you are stuffed. I’d stick with no pets if I were you unless the guarantor is happy to sign for literally an unlimited amount! Who knows what damage Fido is going to make???

Speaking as a ex guarantor, this happened to me . I was guarantor for my niece because the landlord would not accept her dad as a guarantor because he was in the armed forces.
Anyway when she moved in she had no pets and there was a clause in the AST saying she had to get permission from the landlord for any pets .
Anyway 6 months in she gets 2 cats , landlord gave her permission but he never told me as guarantor, if he had told me I would not agreed to continue to be her guarantor. Anyway she leaves after the end of the tenancy, the landlord comes after me for damages due the cats doing what cats do . Told him I would not pay due to him not notifying me about a change in the tenancy, takes me to court, I get the deposit back plus interest and all my legal costs due to the fact he didn’t tell me about the change .
He ended up £8,700 out of pocket.

Reply to the comment left by Tom Jenkin at 24/01/2024 – 13:09Are you based in England? This has also just happened to me whereby a tenant was allowed a dog, without informing the other guarantors (said he didn’t need to – as long as the tenants are asked then it is ok?) and the Landlord is now claiming for flea infestation damages/lost rent, etc

Reply to the comment left by Jane Verrell at 04/11/2024 – 09:14
Yes I am in England.
The guarantor has to be informed of any changes to the tenancy agreement.

So if the landlord didn’t tell you , you are not responsible.

Reply to the comment left by Tom Jenkin at 04/11/2024 – 17:01
“The guarantor has to be informed of any changes to the tenancy agreement.” Yes, but it depends on the wording of the tenancy. Tom Jenkin was perhaps fortunate.

If there was “a clause in the AST saying [the tenant] had to get permission from the landlord for any pets” then that was in the purview of the guarantor when the guarantee was signed. We have not seen the reasoning in Mr Jenkin’s case but if the consent of the landlord could not be unreasonably withheld, it is hard to see why the guarantor was excused.

When the Renters Rights Bill comes into force and such a term is implied, the result might be different.

The best course for landlords is to draft guarantees with “no discharge” clauses and to make it clear the guarantor remains liable notwithstanding variations to the tenancy.

Surely this leaves the door wide open for collusion between tenant and guarantor.
Tenant to guarantor – I am 4k in arrears you can expect a call from the landlord.
Guarantor to tenant – get a dog quick and I can throw out my guarantee document!