UK Landlord Forum / Life

I would like some advice please, my house is let via a letting agent who recently called to say that a neighbor had called the office to let them know they should come and look at the house. Basically the tenant had smeared human feces all over the walls, and carpets and let his dog use the floors to do his business. The tenant was taken to hospital (where he currently is still) I want to know who's responsibility it is to clean the house? I am in no way being heartless and obviously hope the tenant gets well soon, but on the other hand I cannot afford such a massive cleaning bill (which I'm sure it will be!!), any help on this matter would be greatly appreciated and the letting agents are a little reluctant to offer any advice.

If an agent can't give advice to their client what are you paying them for? 

I'm beginning to wonder myself...they said you pay for it for now and then we can sort it out...but I don't want to get the work done without some sort of gaurentee that i will be reimbursed.

Oh man, that's Shit!

I think it depends on the situation really.

Things that would make a difference.

1. Is the tenant mentally ill, have they sectioned him, will they want him to return to his house, will they support him, does he have family that would help with the clean up. If he does give up his tenancy now, can you let it quickly once cleaned etc

2. With regards to the point of the tenancy he is in, will DSS keep paying his rent, how much is his deposit, can it be used up front to cover the costs of the cleaning.

3. Is your agent proactive, do the have knowledge of this sort of thing, how is there relationship with the tenant.

4. Have you got any Marigolds.


Anyway, all these things you know, but we both also know that without this sort of information its hard to form an opinion, plus, no one is going to give you any guarantees about this sort of thing, ever, Agents guarantee to charge you to do anything, and the tenant, it does not work the other way around I am afraid...

My feeling is if you could get the Agent to say the tenancy is over, you get the deposit to clean it up, do it quick, and you might be on a winner.

My Brother, who has Aspergers, and Schizophrenia and a large testicle, and is super hyper morbidly overweight had a break down during Euro '96, and after being asked to tidy up his rented flat, he painted everything Magnolia, walls, floors, tiles, TV, windows, lights and switches....... He was sectioned for 6 months, then they put in him supervised accommodation for a number of years..... I know, Magnolia! ( true story!)

rdk - your question is whose responsibility it is to clean the house - and, by this, you mean actually do the cleaning and, if done by a firm, pay for it.

Well, I don't think it's wrong of anyone to think it's the Tenant's responsibility to clean the house. However, the Tenant's situation simply means that it's very unlikely this is going to happen.

So, pragmatically, if your Letting Agent is being paid - by you - for a fully managed service, they should arrange this for you with a firm they will provide work to all the time, it really should not be hard for them to arrange this. However, this will be billed back to you, it's not a freebie. If they're being paid for a fully managed service (I couldn't see this in your post) and they aren't willing or able to arrange this for you then I would fire them immediately. On the other hand, if they only did Tenant Find for you, well, it's back to you.

Regardless, out of all parties involved, it's not the Agent's responsibility to pay for this clean-up - so, from your second post - it seems the sticking point might just be the payment aspect.

Ultimately, I think this is going to fall to you. If your Tenant wasn't in hospital (for whatever reason) then I'd have a different view. It does sound like there is a real problem here and you aren't going to have much luck (and probably really shouldn't push it) to get your Tenant to take responsibility.

I don't think anyone - professional or not - would relish taking on this job, so maybe you would consider doing it yourself, if feasible (you are close by etc.) and, at least, you can ensure it's done properly and you will avoid the cost. Gee, I'd probably only want to do it with a pressure washer and a mask / full protective suit. If you choose a firm, or your Letting Agent suddenly becomes responsible (doubtful, right?) after the dust has settled I would be looking to get paid by the Tenant... but who knows how / when that will happen with what's going on.

Tough circumstances... you have my sympathy.

If the house is in the state described, you're not really cleaning, you're redecorating.

Trying to clean it probably won't work - you'd need expert advice.
Put bluntly, you're not going to get shit out of a carpet sufficiently for it to be safe to rent in future.

You're going to have to do it anyway - who pays is going to be important obviously,
but you can't afford the place sitting there without an income.
Serve notice on the tenant (with the condition of the property as cause - damage), fix it and rent it to someone less prone to breakdown.
Recovering the cost would be ideal (how big's the deposit, is it a council tenant?) but that's actually a separate problem you're combining with the main issue.

Hi All,

Thanks for all your advice and tips...I don't think I would be able to clean it as mentioned I wouldn't feel happy about renting it out again. I have inquired about a professional service which does hospitals etc - and as I thought are very expensive- the carpets needs ripping up and replacing throughout. I think I may have to speak to the tenants family and see what they are planning for the future regarding their relative and what the medical professional have advised, But as mentioned above I can't afford for the place to be stood empty. Again I want to thank you all for taking the time to offer advice on my situation and will try and update once I figure out what the plan of action is   

My rental property was purchased as a repossession and I know the mortgage company used a cleaning company to "clean" it as it was in a similar state, I wouldn't think they would have paid much despite probably claiming the cost back.

I then donned some rubber gloves, paper mask, tucked my trousers in my socks and set about stripping the place, as dog excrement has a wonderfaul habit of seeping under laminate and vinyl flooring. 

I would advise to do it yourself, save some money on cleaning to buy new caerpets/flooring and re-let or sell.

The shower afterwards is wonderful!