Rental check out - what is fair charge for stain?

Christyt

Hi all,

Checked out of rental flat and only significant damage was a 1.5 foot diameter tea stain in middle of living room carpet.

The carpet is quite thin and old - with lots of fading and bits of staining around the edges and fading.

Admittedly this is almost in middle of floor and much more offensive to the eye so I'd expect a deduction. But how much is reasonable for them to deduct?

The carpet must be a few years old already and was far from pristine?

Room is 5m x 4m or so.

CloudCuckooLand

Made a scorch mark in a 12x12 carpet, letting agent accepted £75 contribution saying they could replace whole room for around £150 - half agreed in view of it being a few years old - if that helps.

Does tea not come out with elbow grease/Rug Doctor?

http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en&source=hp&biw=1596&bih=1042&q=how+to+get+tea+stains+out+of+carpet&aq=0&aqi=g10&aql=&oq=how+to+get+tea+stain&gs_rfai

BitterAndTwisted

The price of an equivalent replacement carpet minus a percentage depending on the age.

So, if you accept for argument's sake that the useful life of a carpet in a rental property would be five years and the carpet was new at the start of a two-year tenancy, the cost to the tenant would be 60% of the original cost.

Was there a dual-signed inventory at the start of your tenancy? If not, no damage can be charged for as there is no documentary proof than any damage was caused during your tenancy.

Was your tenancy in England and Wales and if so, which deposit-protection scheme was the deposit lodged with?

Christyt

We signed formal inventory so all above board. Tenancy Deposit scheme is Tenancy Deposit solutions - mydeposits.co.uk.

The carpet must have been at least 3 or 4 years old (I would guess older) - our tenancy was for 9 months. It was actually wearing through in some places and with lots of faded, washed out stains mainly around edges. I'm thinking a max of £200 contribution would be fair???

N79

Christyt wrote: »

We signed formal inventory so all above board. Tenancy Deposit scheme is Tenancy Deposit solutions - mydeposits.co.uk.

The carpet must have been at least 3 or 4 years old (I would guess older) - our tenancy was for 9 months. It was actually wearing through in some places and with lots of faded, washed out stains mainly around edges. I'm thinking a max of £200 contribution would be fair???

Wait and see what figure the LL wants to charge (if any) and then ask for their logic and see if you agree with the figure. I agree that your figure is in the right area.

Katie-Kat-Kins

See what the landlord says, if they were planning to replace the carpet you might get away with it..... As the carpet was in need of replacement anyway I would argue that the charge shouldn't be much. You could find out the cost of a proper steam clean for a room of that size and have that figure in mind to offer the landlord if you don't think the charge is fair. Tea should come out with a carpet cleaner, they shouldn't need to replace the carpet for the stain.

Christyt

We already paid £50 for a steam clean - the stain was old. We left it too long and I don't think it will come out now. The letting agent left a msg to 'talk through' the inventory assessment so I'm sure we'll have to pay something even though the carpet was on its last legs.

Good idea about asking their reasoning though. Thanks.

tbs624

So what does the inventory actually say about the condition of the carpet at the start of your tenancy?

I think a 200 quid contribution may be in excess of what could be held to be reasonable. Assume carpet age when your tenancy ended was 4 years 9 months ( from your post above)and you also stated that there already stains visible at the edges. Generously allowing 10 years as the full expected life of a carpet in a rental property ( because LLs don't generally go for top of the range stuff) you have effectively deprived LL of 5 years and 3 months use of the carpet *if the stain won't come out*. Thus you should be paying around 50% of the cost of necessary replacement.

It won't cost a LL c400 quid to recarpet a room unless it's huge. As N79 says, wait and see what the LL comes up with

That said, presumably if it had been your own carpet you would have cleaned the stain up properly at the time - tea is not difficult to get out of fabric/carpet if dealt with promptly.

flora48

£200 seems too much for you to pay IMHO. Blooming expensive cup of tea!!

Christyt

Yes - got list of 'issues' from agent. They listed every little thing, down to a bit of dust on a skirting. Seems to expect the house to be unlived in. Complained that Belling oven, new when we moved in actually has signs of being used. Agent seems to think landlord will want us to pay for a clean of flat and a 'small' amount towards carpet. The carpet was actually wearing through in some places so yes, £200 is probably far too much. Maybe £100 nearer mark... Now have to wait for Landlord to reappear to make his assessment.

BitterAndTwisted

You're not entitled to leave a property dirty. A "bit of dust" is dirt and you should have cleaned the place from top to bottom especially if it was spotless when you moved in and the inventory reflects that. Would you want to move into a new rental with someone else's dirt?

The landlord most certainly will charge you for cleaning but if the carpet was threadbare when you took over the tenancy I'd want to see the original receipt as it must have been well past its useful life from the sound of it.