Check Out Query...

[spinningfish]

Hello all

 

Moved out of my rented property around just over two weeks ago, which went through the proper procedures in respect of date of vacation.

 

Rather than it be a totally managed property, rent was paid to the letting agents, but the landlord was responsible for the upkeep etc.

 

Neither the letting agents, nor the landlord, turned up for the check out on the last day, as had been arranged, and after much chasing, the landlord sent in a company that says it is a "specialist in independent property inventories" in the last two days!

 

In his letter to me, the landlord has stated that the cost of hiring in the company to perform the checkout inventory, a fee of £60, will come out of my deposit.

 

So my questions are:

 

a) Is it normal for the tenant to be responsible for the cost of the check out?

 

b) In the check out report, the presence of mildew on the internal brick wall of the conservatory was noted and the charge of repair and repainting has been applied to me. The problem is that this is a clear case of rising damp. My responsibility?

 

c) Something else in the check out was that the freezer had not been defrosted. This was an impossible task for me, as the landlord has sealed a freestanding fridge in with silicon! It doesn't move, so you can't get to the plug to switch it off to defrost!

 

d) They are also trying to charge me to empty the council's black bins, even though they were left out to be collected. How canI be sure one of the other neighbours has not put additional rubbish in?

 

e) How should any additional cleaning cost be calculated?

 

 

Sorry for it being so long winded!!!

 

Many thanks in advance.

[Steve__M]

The cost of the checkout would need to be in the tenancy contract for it to be chargable.

 

Ask for invoices for the charges.

 

Was there an inventory when you moved in?

 

Was your deposit protected? This would give you an opportunity to challenge the costs. But start by challenging the charges - the landlord *may* be reasonable

[Ed999]

My comments only apply if the premises are entirely within England and Wales, and you were granted a shorthold tenancy (under which you - and your spouse/partner/children, if any - have exclusive use of a seperate dwelling, which is not shared with another tenant nor with the landlord), and you were over 18 years of age when the tenancy was granted, and the rent is less than £2,083 per month.

 

This posting is supplemental to the information in this forum's "sticky" threads and is NOT to be read in isolation.

 

 

Tenancy Deposit Scheme

 

The landlord or agent must pay the deposit into the custodial deposit protection scheme, or hold it in a separate account protected by a relevant insurance scheme.

 

The tenancy agreement must state which scheme is to be used, and the circumstances in which all or part of the deposit can be withheld at the end of the tenancy.

 

 

If you paid a deposit, read the FAQs about the tenancy deposit scheme, if you were granted a shorthold tenancy: -

 

• Tenancy Deposit Scheme

 

 

Alternative Dispute Resolution

 

If it is a shorthold tenancy, where there is a dispute concerning disrepair at the end of the tenancy the following matters apply.

 

If the deposit paid by the tenant is currently still protected within an authorised TDS Scheme, the Deposit Protection Service (DPS) - who administer all TDS Schemes - offer an alternative procedure for resolving disputes, to save you having to go to court.

 

They have issued a guide, explaining the disputes procedure they provide:

 

• A Guide to Tenancy Deposit disputes and damages

 

Where a deposit is protected by being placed in the TDS scheme, if a dispute arises at the end of the tenancy (e.g. over alleged disrepair) the parties can choose to resolve it by this procedure instead of going to court (but must begin the procedure within a time limit).

 

Both the landlord and the tenant must agree to use the DPS disputes procedure. It cannot be initiated by only one of them. But it can be MUCH cheaper than a court case.

 

 

The same procedure applies in ANY dispute concerning a tenancy deposit protected in a TDS scheme, regardless of the type of scheme involved (i.e. whether it is a custodial scheme or an insurance scheme), and regardless of which of the three authorised bodies is administering the scheme.

 

 

Further information: Deposit Protection Service (DPS) website

 

 

Tenant's Repairing Obligations

 

The tenant has a duty to treat the property in a "tenant-like" manner. This is defined by the Court of Appeal in the leading case of Warren v Keen [1953] 2 All ER 1118, CA.

 

Basically, the tenant must take proper care of the premises, and must repair damage to the premises caused, wilfully or negligently, by him, his family, or his guests.

 

But if the house falls out of repair owing to fair wear and tear, lapse of time, or any reason not caused by him, then the tenant will not be liable to repair it.

 

 

Disrepair

 

Note for regular users: This posting is my usual commentary on Disrepair.

 

Only the court can decide the outcome of each individual item of alleged disrepair. All we here can do is summarise some matters which you might usefully invite the court to take into account.

 

 

If the landlord alleges damage, he must prove it.

 

If there is no check-in inventory, the landlord really doesn't have a leg to stand on; so the tenant is in a stronger position where there is no check-in inventory.

 

The landlord isn't allowed to improve the premises through "betterment" (replacing an old or worn item with a brand new one).

 

Likewise, the tenant is not liable for the cost of cleaning or repairing an item which was already soiled or damaged before the tenancy began. A check-in Inventory can be evidence that an item was already in bad repair before the start of the tenancy.

 

 

Read this document - Fair Wear and Tear

 

And read this document - Wear and Tear Guide

 

Those documents explain some aspects of the law regarding fair wear and tear, applying the principle that a tenant is NOT liable to pay for the cost of remedying ordinary wear and tear.

 

This link gives examples of what is fair wear-and-tear, and what is not:

 

• http://www.rta.qld.gov.au/print_page.cfm?menuItemId=510.00

 

 

Also, the landlord can't ask the tenant to pay (i.e. out of the deposit) for the cost of repairs which the law requires the landlord to do. What those repairs are is explained in this FAQ -

 

• Disrepairs in privately rented accommodation

 

A detailed analysis of the landlord's repairing obligations, prepared by a Barrister, is set out at -

 

• Interpreting Repairing Covenants

 

 

Any deposit paid at the beginning of the tenancy belongs to the tenant. So the burden is on the landlord to prove that any deduction from it is justified.

 

Read the FAQ about what deductions the landlord can lawfully make from the deposit -

 

• Unfair deposit deductions

 

 

There is a vast amount of additional information about the tenant's legal rights in cases of disrepair on the website of Shelter, the housing charity -

 

• Repairs and Bad Conditions

 

 

Reasons given by the TDS for resolving a dispute in the tenant's favour, in similar cases, have included:

 

1. Grossly inflated charges for the repair work.

2. No receipts produced for the cost of work supposedly carried out.

3. No competitive quotes sought for the cost of the work.

4. No mention in the check-in inventory of the condition of the item.

5. No opportunity given to the tenant to put right damage, despite the tenant offering to do so.

6. The item claimed falls under maintenance, for which a tenant is not liable.

 

The Dispute Service puts great emphasis on the initial inventory if it mentions not only the items in the property, but also quite specifically their condition.

[Ed999]

Moved out of my rented property around just over two weeks ago ...

 

In his letter to me, the landlord has stated that the cost of hiring in the company to perform the checkout inventory, a fee of £60, will come out of my deposit.

 

 

a) Is it normal for the tenant to be responsible for the cost of the check out?

 

b) In the check out report, the presence of mildew on the internal brick wall of the conservatory was noted and the charge of repair and repainting has been applied to me. The problem is that this is a clear case of rising damp. My responsibility?

 

c) Something else in the check out was that the freezer had not been defrosted. This was an impossible task for me, as the landlord has sealed a freestanding fridge in with silicon! It doesn't move, so you can't get to the plug to switch it off to defrost!

 

d) They are also trying to charge me to empty the council's black bins, even though they were left out to be collected. How canI be sure one of the other neighbours has not put additional rubbish in?

 

e) How should any additional cleaning cost be calculated?

 

 

a) As has been pointed out, read your tenancy agreement: that sets out the charges which you have agreed the landlord shall make. If this charge is not covered by the express terms of the agreement, it is unlikely the court will imply a term allowing the landlord to charge for this.

 

 

b) There is no such thing as a 'clear case' of rising damp. You are not a qualified surveyor, so you cannot give evidence on the point. If you intend to dispute this finding, you might have to employ a suitably qualified expert to inspect, to write a report, and to appear in court.

 

See my previous posting in this thread for further guidance.

 

Disputes of this sort can be submitted to alternative dispute resolution: see my previous posting in this thread for guidance.

 

If the damp is due to condensation, the tenant pays the cost of the repairs. Condensation is due to the tenant's failure to keep the premises properly ventilated.

 

But if the cause is rainwater or groundwater getting in, i.e. due to the landlord's failure to comply with his statutory duty to repair the structure and exterior, the landlord pays the repair cost.

 

General advice on mould:

• http://tenancyanswers.ucoz.com/index/damp/0-15

 

 

c) Not true. My home has an circuit board with a seperate circuit-breaker for each of the electric circuits in the building, including the kitchen, and any circuit can be isolated without disrupting the electric supply to the rest of the house.

 

 

d) Read your tenancy agreement: that sets out the charges which you have agreed the landlord shall make. If this charge is not covered by the express terms of the agreement, it is unlikely the court will imply a term allowing the landlord to charge for this.

 

How canI be sure one of the other neighbours has not put additional rubbish in?

 

I can only suppose you intended this as a purely rhetorical question.

 

 

e) Read your tenancy agreement: that sets out the terms which you have agreed to. See my previous posting in this thread for further guidance. The links I included there give some possibly helpful examples.