Should I deduct my lodger's deposit?

jos5000

I have lodgers in my flat and one is now moving out. She was difficult from day one. I had to ask her to do several things like cleaning and not keeping a bike in her room on the carpet that all my other lodgers just did without having need to be asked as well as many constant relatively small things. She signed a lodgers agreement with a minimum term of 6 months. I decided i would not extend her term after this time and instead ask her to move out. However when she approached me after about 4 months asking to move out I readily agreed and she gave one month's notice. In the time she has been in my flat she has made more mess and damage than all the other lodgers put together, many small things like marks on the carpet and a constant refusal to do her share of the cleaning properly. However since she has vacated her room i have noticed some damage. There are some small things like a singe mark to the carpet where she kept an electric heater as well as a stain on the wall that looks like a cup of coffee spilled down the paint work.

My biggest concern though is the door to her room. I agreed for to hang a door hanger on the back of the door which she hung her coats on. But she had A LOT of coats that weighed a ton. the effect that it's had is to pull on the door and warp it which has damaged the door (one of the panels is pulling away) and its made the door slant in its frame which in turn is damaging the carpet as the door now scrapes on the carpet every time its open/closed. Its also damaging the metal keeper that secures the carpet at the threshold as it constantly knocks this. I can see no option but to have the door replaced which is likely cost £200 odd by the time a joiner has hung the door. The lodger signed an inventory when she moved in which rates the door state as 8 out of 10 with no damage of note. Including the re-painting (for which i will charger her just for ONE wall) and the carpet singe for which i would charge a 'nomimal' sum (not replacement of the carpet!) for she is likely to lose 60% of her deposit if i charge her for replacing the door.

However she is very feisty and argumentative and i am certain if i deduct this amount she will dispute it and most likely threaten small claims court. I have never had need to make major deductions from deposit before in 2 years, and feel nervous about doing this. If i felt i had a good chance of 'winning' in small claims court i would go for it but i am not sure. It seems judges seem to often be harsher on landlords than tenants/lodgers. Could she argue the door warping was nothing to do with her coats, or that because I agreed for her to use a door hanger she cannot be held liable, or indeed lie and say she never hung coats from the door at all? I would be grateful for feedback as i am not sure if i am just being nervous on this. On the other hand i feel i have done everything 'right' with an agreement and inventory, and what's the point of taking a deposit if im too scared to use it? If i do decide to charge her what 'evidence' would i need to convince a judge? Obviously i can take photos of the damage but is there anything else i would need to do? I guess ultimately my concern is that she could argue the damage to the door is nothing to do with her and unless i can 'prove' it that i would lose in court.

Any advice/ feedback would be much appreciated!

princeofpounds

Is the inventory in and out somehow independently evidenced or counter-signed by your lodger, or can you prove the lodger received it on entry?

If not, you may have trouble using it as evidence. If yes it is powerful.

You can and should charge her- costs you nothing - but if you get a letter before action you may be wisest to try to settle and only deafen in court what you can.

The money may be in your custody but it is still her property and so the evidence burden is on you. That's not biased.

BitterAndTwisted

Deduct from her deposit whatever you think is fair. Threatening court is not the same thing as actually doing it, and it could possibly cost her more than your deductions. She sounds like she deserves to lose her deposit. I think you've been very patient. I would have kicked her out with 48 hours notice and then changed the locks.

CKhalvashi

BitterAndTwisted wrote: »

Deduct from her deposit whatever you think is fair. Threatening court is not the same thing as actually doing it, and it could possibly cost her more than your deductions. She sounds like she deserves to lose her deposit. I think you've been very patient. I would have kicked her out with 48 hours notice and then changed the locks.

I'm with this opinion.

Small things I won't worry about, things like this I certainly would.

CK

G_M

You provide a 6month fixed term to a lodger??

You're mad!

Next time, have an open-ended agreement with a one week notice period. If the lodger is as bad as this one sounds - just ask her to leave.

How many lodgers in all and how much rent? Are you declaring for tax, or do you still fall within the Rent a Room Scheme (

You need to learn your rights/responsibilities and take a betteroverall approach tobeing a resident landlord.

LODGERS (Licencees/Excluded Occupiers)
A lodger (broadly) lives in the same property with their resident landlord, and shares facilities. Unlike tenants, lodgers have few rights.

The Housing Act 1988 (above) provides definitions of 'Resident Landlord' and 'same property'.

There is advice for landlords considering taking in lodgers here:

LodgerLandlord (General information site)

Landlordzone (General advice on taking in lodgers)

Renting out rooms in your home (Government info)

Rent a Room Scheme (Government scheme for tax-free income from lodgers)





As for your question, make a list of all damage etc, get quotes for repairs (or for replacement parts), and add tothelist. Give to lodger and make deduction.