UK Landlord Forum / Life

I have a tenant who has just moved out an there is £750 help with DPS.  I have identified the following issues but are not sure what is fair wear and tear and what is damage.

a number of curtain pole brackets have been bent making the poles 'wonky'
Barels missing from door handles or door handles no longer working
Damage to calls  ie plaster missing from fixtures etc.
blinds broken and uncleaned
Mould in most rooms which seems to be caused internally prob from drying washing inside
Shower cubicles full or black mould from not being cleaned
generally poor cleaning
Garden lawn now full of weeds from not being cut regularly
Carpet smelly from dog (agreed dog cold be kept but carpets to be cleaned)

The shower is leaking and although she did report this I asked her to get the plumber to look at it and she didn't which has caused damaged to plaster etc.  (I live 150 miles away and she works so was easier for her to make the call to the plumber).

To me these items are damage and should be claimed but would appreciate feedback.

xx

How long was the tenancy?

How hungry are you for the paperwork and arguments involved in deducting things?

How good is your in-going inventory paperwork and pictures?

My feelings, if the carpets are less than 5 years old, then deduct the cleaning of them.

The rest of the items I would think are down to you to sort, but it's dependent really on your answers to the above.

I would drop all mention of weeds in the lawn mind, it makes you sound frightfully middle class!

Quote from: boboff on July 17, 2014, 04:00:09 AMHow good is your in-going inventory paperwork and pictures?

This is the key question.

If your Inventory and Schedule of Condition is comprehensive (and agreed, signed) then you could claim for any of these items (especially if the AST you had states things like the gardens would be kept in order). Not that I would claim for all, myself.

If you have no Inventory or a poor one... then you are not in a strong position at all, and I would be trying to obtain an agreement from the Tenant as to what is fair and then run for the hills once you get something. You do not indicate whether the Tenant is likely to challenge or accept. I'd separate out the actual damage from the cleaning and then itemise the damages with a reasonable £ value, then the cleaning (but be very sure it wasn't in a state when they moved-in of course) and attach a £ value to that.

However, I do agree about the weeds... gardens can still be cut regularly and weeds can spring up in no time at all. I have those little spiky star-shaped things in my garden and my Fiskars Weed Puller goes to town on them at least once a week.

My reading (line by line) goes...

Damage
Damage
Damage
Forget it, clean and air the house
Forget it, clean
Forget it
Forget it
A smelly carpet is not damage - a hole burned into it would be different