Tenancy Agreement - Unfair Charges

[Bentham7246]

Hi. My 1 year tenancy agreement has just ended and the landlord has visited the flat to check it over before the deposit can be released. fyi the deposit is held by DPS

 

Last week the landlord sent out a document detailing what had to be done upon my exit of the property.

 

It contained quite a few things but the following especially stood out to me (not exact wording):

* All light bulbs must be in working order. if not there will be a charge of £30 for 1 to 4 bulbs and more charges if 4+

* Flat must be professionally cleaned. Including Carpets.

....

I've looked through the tenancy agreement that I signed before moving in last year and it does say that light bulbs need to be replaced however does not state the charge. Likewise it doesn't mention anything about professional cleaning

 

Surely the tenancy agreement is the binding contract and that if I breach the contract by not fulfilling the term to replace the bulbs then the remedy would be damages, which should be the true cost of replacing the bulb!...not a standard charge of £30

 

Some bulbs are within a fixed fixture that I can not get into. I told this to the landlord. I said i was happy to buy the bulbs but that I can not physically change them! He said the charge would be £30 regardless!

 

This seems unfair to me and I don't know how the landlord will justify the charge to DPS when trying to deduct this

 

re the carpet......it is dirtied by the door as you walk in. Can this be classed as general wear and tear?

 

Again, the tenancy agreement doesn't say the carpet needs to be cleaned, however the landlord is trying to charge for this because he sent a list of "things to do before you move out" and charges last week.

 

In summary, should I just disregard the document that he sent out last week and just concentrate on ensuring the terms of the contract (and inventory) are fullfilled? Obviously, I can't replace the bulbs but I'm not paying £30!

 

It's principle more than anything.

Edited October 22, 2013 by Bentham7246

[honeybee13]

Hello there.

 

I think at this stage as there are no court proceedings involved [at least that's my understanding but your post is a wall of text], I'll move your thread to the lettings forum. The guys there should be able to help.

 

I'll leave a short term redirect for you to follow from this forum to the new one.

 

My best, HB

[honeybee13]

PS You can edit in some paragraphs by clicking on Edit Post in the grey band at the bottom of your post.

 

Anything you can do to make it easier to understand will get you more advice.

 

HB

[Bentham7246]

Thanks. I should have previewed before submitting. I did write it within paragraphs but doesn't seem to have posted as intended.

[honeybee13]

It looks OK now.

 

Now we just need the property guys to come along. I expect they'll be here soon, please bear with us.

 

HB

[mariner51]

Welcome, by your own admission there are some bulbs that you cannot replace, so prob not your basic 100W bayonet fitting.

LL is entitled to return of property to similar condition at start, less reasonable allowance for fair wear & tear, so if LL can show property was prof cleaned at start of T, that is the benchmark. Tracking muddy shoes across lounge carpet or upstairs is not FW&T IMO. You may have kept a household pet with or without LL permission. T & LL ideas of clean can vary wildly so the requirement for an ind prof clean at start and end of T is a reasonable request as this will not rectify normal wear & tear but abrogate some T routine cleaning deficiencies.

AST only has to state LL & T responsibilities, not detail cost of rectification as this will change with time.

 

LL has provided estimate of cost of expected deductions from deposit. If you disagree, then you register a dispute with DPS ADR or claim for deposit via SCC. In both cases LL will be required to show his proposed deductions are 'reasonable'

[Bentham7246]

Thanks for the information mariner51I've actually managed to get into the lighting fixtures (with a little help from my dad ). So I can now fit the bulbs myself without fuss. Just the carpet issue now. I admit it's not perfect but it's looking like it was when I first moved in so hopefully i'm not charged.

[Bentham7246]

The LL has come back with £30 quote to replace two bulbs for the bedside lamps. I had replaced these lamps the other day because the previous ones had broken but forgot to buy the bulbs. They take the cheap bayonet ones.

 

it fair for to dispute the charge of £30 to replace bulbs that cost £2 each?

[mariner51]

It is T's responsibility to replace light bulbs or pay replacement service cost.

£30 will hardly cover any call out fee and most contractors would be miffed if called out to replace 2 cheap light bulbs.

 

You had chance to pay £2 for 2 bulbs when you replaced the bedside lamps, but 'forgot'.

 

IMO it shows you did not adequately check property before vacating, or perhaps hoped that LL would not deduct deposit for a few ££.

[Bentham7246]

Thanks. I will dispute regardless . Ll is in the flat currently painting so he probably put them in himself. No call out fee necessary. Suppose I will let dps decide as they're the ones holding my money