Wear and tear or?

Wear and tear or?

18:07 PM, 17th March 2022, About 2 years ago 9

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I have just had a tenant move out. My understanding is they should leave a place as they found it.

Immaculate when she got it, but now it’s a dirty tip, belongings everywhere (which I can deal with no problem) looked like it hadn’t been hoovered or cleaned in over a year. I expect a minimum of at least having hoovered before leaving, after which the cleaner takes @2 hours, but this time took 2 people 3 hours = 6 hours.

I’ve never had anyone leave lots of stains on a quite new carpet. A professional washer has not got rid of them. She did advise me of one accident which I sent a professional steam remover during the tenancy, which she had paid for @£50.

Do I put the stains down to wear and tear or bill her, as well as the excess to normal cleaning I would’ve expected? The new tenant is complaining about the stains on the carpet.

Any advice, please

Bec


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Comments

Puzzler

18:19 PM, 17th March 2022, About 2 years ago

Normally deducted from the deposit, for the carpet you can charge a small amount towards replacement

Helen

18:48 PM, 17th March 2022, About 2 years ago

I have no sympathy for people who leave places in a mess. It is totally avoidable. I would take photos and charge for everything, including the time and cost of removing the rubbish. A professional rubbish remover would charge quite a rate for this as it needs to be sorted before taking to a recycling centre.
I would also charge for full carpet cleaning. If it can't be cleaned, then carpet replacement. I hope the deposit will cover all of it. I hope the deposit will cover it.

Ian Narbeth

10:23 AM, 18th March 2022, About 2 years ago

The rule is that "fair" wear and tear is allowed. What that is depends on the circumstances. Factors to be taken into account include:
What was the condition of the property at the start?
How long was the tenancy?
Did you allow pets?
There is useful guidance here: https://www.depositprotection.com/learning-centre/disputes/in-disputes-be-fair/
I quote: "[I]t is an established legal principle that a landlord is not entitled to charge their tenants the full cost for having any part of their property, or any fixture or fitting, “put back to the condition it was at the start of the tenancy.”"

Mike Newman

12:17 PM, 18th March 2022, About 2 years ago

A while ago we had a tenant who didn't believe in ventilation. The short story is that when they left there was mildew and the chrome towel warmers in the bathroom had developed rust. We took pictures of everything and I wrote my name in the dust on top of a cupboard, we replaced the towel warmers. The overall cost came to more than the deposit but we offered to settle at the limit of the deposit. The tenant disputed this and we went to arbitration with the TDS. We had pictures and receipts for everything. The TDS without offering any explanation split the deposit 50/50. So my advice is if you can agree a deal with the tenant that is preferable to going to arbitration.

David Judd

12:43 PM, 18th March 2022, About 2 years ago

Depends on the age of the carpet. You say the flat was immaculate when she moved in, but that doesn't mean the carpet was new, just clean. If its an old carpet, then you can't charge for new. If its a new carpet, and youve already charged her for cleaning once and the stain doesn't come out, charge he replacement

SCP

13:56 PM, 18th March 2022, About 2 years ago

The DPS do some helpful videos on how they tackle such claims.

Blodwyn

17:16 PM, 18th March 2022, About 2 years ago

PLEASE PUBLISH THE RESULT of this dispute, it must happen a million unreported times?

AP

7:47 AM, 19th March 2022, About 2 years ago

The comments about being able to claim for a new carpet are slightly wrong.

If it was new when tenants moved in, and it is completely destroyed - you still have to deduct the length of tenancy from the expected lifespan of the item. So if a one year tenancy and expected 7 year lifespan, 1/7 of the cost cannot be claimed.

All deposit adjudicators starting point is that the deposit belongs to the tenants and you have to have very strong evidence to be entitled to any of the money.

When it comes to mould / mildew you are onto a losing battle. You need to prove via a specialist surveyor or council inspection report that the mould is due to the lifestyle of the tenants rather than a building defect. It’s almost impossible to do.

If you end up in a dispute, make sure you list every little tiny thing that you would as a reasonable landlord usually let slide. I always try and give the whole deposit back, and ignore small things. But the system is stacked against landlords because of the unscrupulous ones out there who took advantage in the past.

The problem is that there are plenty of people out there who think they are really tidy and clean, yet live in what other would say is squalor! When you then basically politely and professionally tell them that things are not as immaculate as they imagine, they often get very offended!

Manu Patel

18:37 PM, 19th March 2022, About 2 years ago

At the end of day you have to be practical and decide what is the cost of replacing with a new carpet.
Any claim must allow for fair wear and tear and the
age of the carpet.
Another issue is taking the Tenant to Court and proving your claim and being awarded damages, are you going to get anything out of the Tenant as they would plead poverty. I have had this although Tenant was in good full time job!

Manu

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