Tenants not sticking to the rules

Pennylane

We let out a little place which is no smoking. We think the tenant is smoking there though and are really disappointed because it was all in the contract/agreed etc.

I haven't said anything to him (yet) but I was discussing this with some friends and they seemed to think it was quite usual for people to lie like this. They said their daughter rents a house and it's supposed to be No Pets but she's had a dog now for about 18 months and never told the landlord.

I'm beginning to think I must be oldfashioned or something because I could never sleep at night if I'd gone against the agreement.

rsykes2000

Sadly, some people do think they're above contracts / the law etc when signing contracts and not sticking to them. Just a sign of how selfish a portion of the 'me me me' society has become. I can't offer you any advice on the problem, hopefully someone else has had this situation before and can assist.

giddypenguin

Install sensitive (and very loud) smoke alarms in every room. That'll learn them. ;-)

Wee_Willy_Harris

You have a "no smoking" tenancy agreement and a detailed inventory, both agreed to and signed by the tenant. You also have a deposit and the right to evict. THAT is your remedy.

maninthestreet

What proof/evidence do you have that the tenant is smoking in the porperty?

F_T_Buyer

Why don't you say you will be doing a house inspection, you can then see if there is any smoking evidence, and you could also install some more smoke alarms. If there is no sign of it, there's no problem.

sequence

Smoke alarms are easily disabled. I thought that no smoking rules were ruled to be unfair by someone somewhere (sorry can't remember who! ) . But that's what the deposit is for, assuming it's protected and you have an inventory.

clutton_2

you cannot enforce no smoking in someones home.. the legislation only applies to publilc places.. and a tenancy agreement cannot take away someones rights under any legislation

as a LL you cannot dictate how people live their lives... all you can expect is that they hand the propety back in the conditioin, less wear and tear, as they received it in..

having said that smokers never realise that all fabrics and carpets and wallpapers need cleaning/replacing to get rid of the tobacco smell and woodwork and emulsion needs to be repainted to get rid of the tar ......

scottishblondie

On the Shelter England website, it would seem to indicate that a no smoking clause is allowed:

Shelter wrote:

Most tenants can be evicted (providing the correct procedure is followed) if they don't follow certain basic rules. These include:

.......

Smoking

Unless the tenancy agreement says that your property is non-smoking, then you are allowed to smoke and allow visitors to smoke in your accommodation. However, smoking is not allowed in any parts of the building that are shared with other tenants.

While the deposit is there to cover damage it probably wouldn't be enough to get rid of the smell etc if a tenant is smoking in a flat every day, especially if the place is fully furnished by the LL.

concerned43

I think this would be a very hard thing to prove and you would need to prove it if you were going to evict them for that reason. I had a lease that said 'no smoking allowed', I am a smoker but would smoke outside (still do even in my own home).. My LL, if he came to the property, would see cigs, ashtray etc but that does not mean i smoked in the house!

clutton_2

OP you would never get an tenant evicted just for smoking..