Replacing burnt carpet - betterment?

libster51

Hi, am hoping for some advice on how much I am liable to pay towards the cost of replacing a carpet in my previous flat. I moved in on 28 January 2008 and moved out on 31 October 2010. The carpet was new when I moved in, so was around 3 years old when I moved out - it had already been laid when I viewed the flat in December 2007.

I gave a month's notice on 28 September, and 4 days later I managed to cause an iron burn in the carpet - iron fell off the board and I couldn't catch it in time.

I have told my old LL that I would contribute towards the cost of a new carpet and she has sent me an invoice as follows (sorry, can't post attachments yet!)

Carpet - 19.5 m2 @ £7.99m2 = £156.60
Underlay - 17.6 m2 @ £8.99 = £158.22
Delivery charge - £39

She has also quoted £98.75 for fitting charges, but this is just in her email and does not actually appear on the invoice. She has requested £350 from my deposit (protected!) which would cover the entire cost, but since the carpet was three years old when I damaged it, and not brand new, is it correct that I should not be charged for the whole cost of a new carpet - would this be betterment?

I don't know the cost of the original damaged carpet, but I assume that logically it would not be more expensive than the replacement one, which comes to £314.82 without delivery and fitting.

I have looked on the ARLA website and downloaded their table for apportioning costs - does anyone have any guidelines on how long a rental living room carpet would be expected to last? I have seen figures from 2 years to 15 years plus depending on the quality of the carpet. Also, should I factor in delivery and fitting, or just the actual carpet cost?

Thanks in advance for your help

Libster

bristol_pilot

A good quality carpet three years old will look as good as new if looked after properly. It is not unreasonable for your landlord to ask for full cost of replacing carpet to the same quality, plus fitting. It would be unreasonable IMO to request cost of replacing the underlay - I take it the iron did not burn a hole in that too. In which case it does not need to be replaced.

I think you will have to pay most of this. But insist on receipts. I think you can also insist that the LL gets three quotes and chooses the lowest.

DogsBody

Did the iron damage the underlay?:eek:
I'm assuming not, so certainly wouldn't be happy about paying for new underlay! Have no idea about how long a carpet is supposed to last though, sorry - but I would expect more than 3 years

I'd offer the actual cost of the new carpet (no underlay) and feel generous in doing so . Delivery and fitting would be a point for negotiation. Good luck

McKneff

Did you have contents insurance, hopefully accidental cover.If you dd,then claim on that.

anselld

On the basis of 10 year expected carpet life (and that would be generous for a 7.99 carpet!) you should only pay 70% max for the carpet and nothing for the underlay.

mynameisdave

£5 psqm for fitting?

LL got mugged.

BitterAndTwisted

The maximum I would expect a £7.99 p/sq metre carpet to last would be 5 years in a rental property, so I think you should offer 40% of the new purchased price plus a REASONABLE charge for the fitting plus the delivery charge. It would only be fair to pay for fitting and delivery as if you hadn't burned the ruddy thing no fitting or delivery would have been required.

Do your own research on what you could get a quote for on the fitting and get it in writing so you've got a sensible reason for querying her charge for it.

flora48

This appears to be a new catch, since when did underlay cost more than the carpet? I think someone is being taken for a ride here, maybe the LL, but you should not need new underlay after 3 years, especially at that price. Get your own quote for a similar carpet and fitting etc.
Good luck

clutton_2

""Delivery and fitting would be a point for negotiation."" - so are the carpet fairies going to magically and for free transport the carpet from warehouse and fit it ? of course some of the fitting costs can be apportioned to the tenant... the tenant did the damage.

An excellent quality underlay will double if not triple the life of a cheap carpet, so it is not unrealistic that underlay could cost more than the carpet.

However... i see no reason for replacing the underlay either... unless you dropped the iron and fell asleep for a couple of hours before picking it up .

Ulfar

Even if you somehow damaged the underlay only the damaged area of the underlay would need to be replaced.

They would just need to cut a square patch out of where it is damaged and put a new square patch in you then staple the edges and lay carpet over the top.

I would not pay for complete rooms worth of underlay, but would expect to pay fitting and delivery.

I would also pay towards the carpet but I would want to see the price of the original carpet and would pay an amount based on the original cost less a deduction for depreciation against the life of the carpet. I certainly wouldn't be paying for carpet costing £7.99 per metre if the original carpet was say £4.99 per metre(this would also apply to underlay but if it is being patched is not as much of a concern).

clutton_2

i absolutely agree about the patching of the underlay