witholding deposit for cleaning

BitterAndTwisted

Six hundred quid for a full deep-clean and professional carpet-cleaning is not a joke. To avoid all this you could have chosen to have the same thing done and paid it yourself.

But no, you skip off leaving nearly two month's rent owing, the place dirty and the carpets stained. This is not the action of a responsible adult.

John1993_2

superstud wrote: »

i accept that they will take some of the deposit but 600 is a joke

It's pretty usual. Even when moving out of places left immaculate I've had landlords (or more likely agents) try to charge me for a "deep clean" or an "industrial clean".

If you don't agree it, you can ask to have it taken to arbitration. They can't unilaterally withold your deposit, and would need good evidence that you've left it in a state.

However, you should expect them to use some of it. Unfair of not, they will doubtless find the odd mark or two that they can justify some tens of pounds to clean.

John1993_2

BitterAndTwisted wrote: »

Six hundred quid for a full deep-clean and professional carpet-cleaning is not a joke. To avoid all this you could have chosen to have the same thing done and paid it yourself.

But no, you skip off leaving nearly two month's rent owing, the place dirty and the carpets stained. This is not the action of a responsible adult.

It is if it's more than the carpet is worth, or if the job can be done adequately for far less.

A deposit is not to cover any elevated quote that the landlord is happy to sign off on. I'd also not be at all surprised if they charge that amount then not have the work done.

Even i a high-end rental (£5,000 / month) I've seen this; previous tenant charged a large cleaning bill, then me turning up to find it filthy.

The OP is well entitled to query and challenge the costs.

moromir

superstud wrote: »

i owe just under 2 months rent i'm thinking to get companies of my choosing to give LL some quotes as he will just get his business assocoates to exagerate any quotes in order to keep more dep IMO

You are obviously free to do so but be aware the landlord is free to ignore them, he doesn't know if the contractor you choose is any good or is likely to do more damage than good.

BitterAndTwisted

John1993 wrote: »

It is if it's more than the carpet is worth, or if the job can be done adequately for far less.

The flat was brand-new and the property may not be let again at a premium rate with a manky stained old carpet. The landlord could choose to replace the carpet and charge the ex-tenant for a proportion of its original cost.



A deposit is not to cover any elevated quote that the landlord is happy to sign off on. I'd also not be at all surprised if they charge that amount then not have the work done.

The landlord is at liberty to charge the ex-tenant for any necessary cleaning but it's up to them whether they decide to have it carried out or not.

Even i a high-end rental (£5,000 / month) I've seen this; previous tenant charged a large cleaning bill, then me turning up to find it filthy.

You were at liberty to not accept the property in its dirty state. Just as you were at liberty to return it at the end of your tenancy in the same uncleaned state.

The OP is well entitled to query and challenge the costs.

Challenge the costs by all means but the OP needs to bear in mind that professional cleaners charge a minimum call-out, so they may not want a job for just a couple of hours, so would probably charge a whole, or if lucky, a half-day rate.

The OP has admitted that they gave the place a cursory clean, so should fully expect to be charged the full going rate.

The OP should have scoured the place from top-to-bottom if they didn't want to be charged top-dollar for someone else doing it.

moneyspendexpert

I think if you are the cause for the excessive cleaning bill, then you have the opportunity to clean things up. The agents should have informed you of any cleaning deductions and given you the opportunity, instead of lumping you with such a high cleaning bill.

I would contact LL and explain that you will go back to property and clean it up close to the standard it was in initailly. Explain you will compromise for any damage you caused and take it from there.

what you or I, as tenants, may see as wear and tear, an agent may see $$$. Ask to speak with the LL direct and find out exactly what requires cleaning/fixing and make an offer.

BitterAndTwisted

The tenancy has ended therefore the OP will have no opportunity to go back to the property to do the cleaning. I expect the landlord has already arranged it by now.

An inadequately cleaned property with stains on the carpet can never be wear and tear

moneyspendexpert

BitterAndTwisted wrote: »

The tenancy has ended therefore the OP will have no opportunity to go back to the property to do the cleaning. I expect the landlord has already arranged it by now.

An inadequately cleaned property with stains on the carpet can never be wear and tear

superstud wrote: »

prior to giving the keys in, the agent said that using my deposit to clear arreras was fine; Once i gave the keys in the next day they backtracked

so why, did the agent or LL fail to mention that the property was so bad when inventory and checkout was being completed ?? The cleaning issue could of been discussed then but the OP was non the wiser what would be acceptable or an adequate clean to the agent or LL.

what defines an an inadequately cleaned property? in the OP's case it is the agent or LL's definition.

have you been given details about the TDS ? if so, they should sort this out for you if the LL refuses to compromise with you.