End of tenancy - unnecessary cleaning & deposit reductions

DragonQ

My letting agent has got a cleaning company to do some cleaning of the property I lived in until recently. Before moving out, I spent days cleaning the place and, in my opinion, it was at least as clean as when I moved in. In the check out report, they listed quite a few items as needing cleaning but mainly small stuff like "door frame dusty". They also listed numerous things as needing a "light wipe", even though I cleaned most of them thoroughly and know that a "light wipe" wouldn't make them look any better.

There were only two items that I'd just forgotten about and would've taken a bit of effort to clean - the rest required a duster and sponge. The cleaning company says that their £95 charge was for over 7 man-hours of cleaning, which I find ridiculous. An hour would seem reasonable, maybe two. To get the whole place cleaned would've only cost about £250 so I cannot see how such a minor amount could cost this much.

In addition, they are charging nearly £50 for a paint scratch and hanger indentations. This seems steep to me.

I've never dealt with a letting agent whilst moving out before. Should I dispute this? If so, is it likely I'll actually get anything considering they've already paid for the cleaning? Also, how long do disputes like this usually take to resolve? I'm not desperate for the deposit but I'd rather not wait months for it.

Thanks for any advice.

[Deleted User]

Just to check: your deposit was protected in one of the available schemes and you intend to dispute through that?

When you moved in was an inventory done and did you sign it? If so, did the inventory mention that the property was "cleaned to a professional standard"?

If the agent has told you in writing (email will do) that the cleaning that needed to be done was "light wiping" and simple dusting then reference that when disputing as 7 hours to complete that is unreasonable, however it's also possible that the "7 man hours" may include the travel time of the cleaners and the use of more than one cleaner and the cost of materials. If there were 2 cleaners (possibly the standard for the company used) that travelled 1 hour each way and cleaned for 90 minutes you're at 7 billable man hours...

You've agreed that some cleaning was needed (although depending on your answer to my question above it may have been not your responsibility) and most cleaning companies probably have a minimum fee so you're not going to be able to dispute most of the cleaning charge, depending on the work required to fix the scratch and hanger indentations it could approach £20 in materials and £30 in the time of a professional.

I wouldn't bother disputing as it'll just tie up your deposit for longer and it does sound like some work was required to return the property to it's original condition, it may have cost you less (in which case you should have done it yourself as you identify there were problems) but that's the sacrifice you made by choosing to leave the work required at checkout (even if it's forgetfulness and not intentional).

DragonQ

citricsquid wrote: »

Just to check: your deposit was protected in one of the available schemes and you intend to dispute through that?

Yes.

citricsquid wrote: »

When you moved in was an inventory done and did you sign it? If so, did the inventory mention that the property was "cleaned to a professional standard"?

Yes.

citricsquid wrote: »

If the agent has told you in writing (email will do) that the cleaning that needed to be done was "light wiping" and simple dusting then reference that when disputing as 7 hours to complete that is unreasonable

There was no specific cleaning report but everything was mentioned on the inventory.

citricsquid wrote: »

however it's also possible that the "7 man hours" may include the travel time of the cleaners and the use of more than one cleaner and the cost of materials. If there were 2 cleaners (possibly the standard for the company used) that travelled 1 hour each way and cleaned for 90 minutes you're at 7 billable man hours...

Maybe, I'd have to check with the cleaning company.

citricsquid wrote: »

You've agreed that some cleaning was needed (although depending on your answer to my question above it may have been not your responsibility) and most cleaning companies probably have a minimum fee so you're not going to be able to dispute most of the cleaning charge

Aside from the two items I'd forgotten about, there really wasn't much cleaning that needed to be done. My intention was to minimise how much I'd pay for it by doing most of it myself but evidently this hasn't worked at all.

citricsquid wrote: »

depending on the work required to fix the scratch and hanger indentations it could approach £20 in materials and £30 in the time of a professional.

Perhaps.

citricsquid wrote: »

that's the sacrifice you made by choosing to leave the work required at checkout (even if it's forgetfulness and not intentional).

The scratch was on my list but I ran out of time. The hanger indentations I didn't even notice; I'm amazed they did.

RupertTheCat

I always get my properties professionally cleaned prior to new tenants moving in, as most tenants idea of cleaning isn't, quite frankly, very thorough! And I have found that new tenants often insist on professional cleaning of the property before they move in. I always agree a price for the cleaning with the leaving tenants - £50 maximum as a rule.

My cleaner charges £10 an hour - I don't know how large the property is, but a one bed normally costs about £30 to clean. I would have thought you would have cleaning costs deducted from your deposit as that is normal procedure.

Without seeing the hanger indentations and paint scratches it's hard to say whether the cost is reasonable or not. Repainting usually involves having to do a whole wall, so can add up. Without seeing the damage it's hard to know whether it would count as reasonable wear and tear or not.

DRP

DragonQ wrote: »

My letting agent has got a cleaning company to do some cleaning of the property I lived in until recently. Before moving out, I spent days cleaning the place and, in my opinion, it was at least as clean as when I moved in. In the check out report, they listed quite a few items as needing cleaning but mainly small stuff like "door frame dusty". They also listed numerous things as needing a "light wipe", even though I cleaned most of them thoroughly and know that a "light wipe" wouldn't make them look any better.

There were only two items that I'd just forgotten about and would've taken a bit of effort to clean - the rest required a duster and sponge. The cleaning company says that their £95 charge was for over 7 man-hours of cleaning, which I find ridiculous. An hour would seem reasonable, maybe two. To get the whole place cleaned would've only cost about £250 so I cannot see how such a minor amount could cost this much.

In addition, they are charging nearly £50 for a paint scratch and hanger indentations. This seems steep to me.

I've never dealt with a letting agent whilst moving out before. Should I dispute this? If so, is it likely I'll actually get anything considering they've already paid for the cleaning? Also, how long do disputes like this usually take to resolve? I'm not desperate for the deposit but I'd rather not wait months for it.

Thanks for any advice.

Hanger indentations on what exactly?

Edwardia

The first place we rented it was written in the tenancy agreement that at the end of the tenancy we would have the house cleaned professionally and the carpets also, invoices/receipts to be shown to letting agent as proof.

That cost considerably more than £95 I think you're being too fussy