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Letting agents have unrealistic expectations on deductions that can be made from tenants' deposits for the cost of wear and tear, according to the Association of Independent Inventory Clerks.

Figures produced by the Tenancy Deposit Scheme's annual survey shows that wear and tear costs - cleaning-related issues, low-level damage to property, redecoration, rent arrears and garden maintenance - dominate many of the deposit disputes at check-out.

I've lost count of the times that a letting agent or landlord has demanded that a property is repainted from top to bottom following a five year tenancy, when the marks on the walls are no more than normal wear and tear says Pat Barber, chair of the AIIC.

There are two main things to remember. Firstly, the tenant has a duty of care to return a property in the same condition at the end of the tenancy as found at the start - with allowance for fair wear and tear says Barber.

Secondly, the law does not allow for betterment or new for old' when assessing the action needed to be taken after a check-out inspection. If an item was old at check-in and after a two year tenancy, there is some additional damage, the law will not allow a landlord to simply replace this item with a new one.

The AIIC says agents should use these guidelines to decide whether a tenant should fund remedial work from their deposit over and above normal fair wear and tear costs.

Cleaning: This covers all rooms, especially kitchens and bathrooms. If an oven is dirty for example, then the tenant can be charged for it to be professionally cleaned. Cleaning is never a wear and tear issue. If something can be cleaned, then it should be, at the tenants' cost, providing there is documentary evidence in the form of a detailed inventory to prove the item was clean at time of check in.

Damage: Any damage to the property and its contents can be charged to the tenant. Common and expensive damage includes burns to carpets and floorings; chips and cracks to baths and sinks; serious scratches to ovens; cracked and broken windows; and burns to kitchen worktops.

Walls: If the tenant has painted the property with a non-neutral colour, without the landlord's permission, then the cost of repainting can be charged to the tenant. Any serious damage caused to walls and ceilings will fall under the tenant's responsibility also.

Gardens: A tenant's play equipment, swimming pools and trampolines can cause large areas of damage to lawns, as do dogs and other animals. This is not a wear and tear issue and the tenant must be held responsible for making good the damaged areas.

Comments

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    Typical blather from aiic. They still don't get the relationship between landlord and agent and who it is who makes the decision about what is claimed from the deposit.

    • 26 August 2014 08:50 AM
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    When will the AIIC accept that it is the Landlord who has unreasonable expectations and not the Agent. Spend your advertising budget educating the Landlords rather than wasting your money on patronising Advertorials targeting Agents

    • 26 August 2014 08:40 AM
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