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Since the introduction of the Tenancy Deposit Schemes in 2007, tenants have a right to dispute any deductions proposed by a Landlord or Agent at the end of the tenancy. In order to avoid deposit disputes and also to have a good chance of being successful should a dispute arise, it is important to be able to distinguish between what is considered as tenant damage and what falls under fair wear and tear. The Landlord is responsible for maintaining a property to include repairs and redecoration and thus fair wear and tear falls within the scope of this liability. The simple definition of fair wear and tear is “damage that occurs during normal use or something that happened due to aging’. However, it is not always so black and white and there is a very fine line between what can be termed fair wear and tear and what constitutes damage. ARLA Provide that fair wear and tear means “making an allowance/ deduction for:- • The original age, quality and condition of any item at commencement of the tenancy • The average useful lifespan to value ratio (depreciation) of the item • The reasonable expected usage of such an item • The number and type of occupants in the property • The length of the tenants occupancy” For example, a landlord cannot therefore charge the tenants for redecoration just because a property is looking tired. On the other hand, tenants are responsible for any damage caused by their malicious use or negligence. For example, if a tenant spills a glass of red wine or there are cigarette burns to a carpet this would be chargeable to the tenant. However, a landlord is not entitled to charge his tenants the full cost for having any part of his property, or any fixture or fitting, ".....put back to the condition it was at the start of the tenancy”(ARLA). In other words a landlord is not allowed to replace old items with brand new ones even if they have been damaged by the tenant. Instead a landlord will be asked to make a deduction to the cost of the new item to take into account wear and tear. The biggest deductions to a tenants deposit often relate to the cleanliness of a property and uncleanliness is not considered to be wear and tear. If a property is professionally clean when a tenant moves in then the tenant has a responsibility to leave it in a professionally clean condition when they vacate. Tenants often dispute a cleaning bill arguing that the property was not clean when they moved in and it is often wise of a Landlord to therefore invest in a professional cleaner before the tenancy begins and retain the invoice for future evidence. It is also important to note that the deposit is considered to be the tenant’s money and not the landlords and thus the burden of proof is on the landlord to prove that any deductions they wish to make are reasonable AND that the tenant has broken the tenancy agreement. In light of all of the above, it is so important that landlords or agents carry out comprehensive inventories to include photographs that show the condition of the property and its fixtures in fittings. It is also important to include details of brands of appliances of furnishings and their age and whether there is any damage. Many landlords assume that all tenants will leave the property in a good condition and therefore leave themselves vulnerable to not having any solid evidence at the end of the tenancy should a dispute arise. iInsure365 offer buildings insurance for damage that isn’t classed as ‘fair wear and tear’. Visit our website http://www.iinsure365.co.uk/ for a full breakdown of cover or to obtain a quotation. Alternatively please feel free to give us a call on 01273 827090.
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