check out inspection, tenants right to be there?

choccywoccy

As I understood it, I have a right to be present during my end of tenancy inspection however my letting agent is telling me they wont allow me there "as the agent prefers to conduct his inspection alone so as to remain impartial" she added that I will have the right to dispute any deductions from the deposit via the deposit protection scheme afterwards!


Can someone clarify this for me please? The tenancy ended on 1st November and they wont be doing the inspection until the 5th. Now I have £850 deposit riding on this, so of course I wish to be given every opportunity to correct anything myself if it isn't right! I had problems replacing some of the light bulbs as they are so tightly fitted into the ceiling for example so I have left the replacement bulbs there.. I don't wish to be charged an extortionate fee for that! I have cleaned it to a high standard and repainted plus had every carpet professionally cleaned, but the landlord has been a bit shirty sending me messages about the garden being "properly done" as he wishes to sell the house, well he agreed I could fence a steep wooded area off and leave it as I have young children it was a danger, which I allowed to over grow, I have paid a gardening company to have it cleared and all the trees pruned and tidied, it looks good now, but it isn't all freshly turned over soil as it is in the check in inventory photos.. I have an inkling this is going to be also mentioned and deducted from my deposit!! how to move forward?

Guest101

choccywoccy wrote: »

As I understood it, I have a right to be present during my end of tenancy inspection however my letting agent is telling me they wont allow me there "as the agent prefers to conduct his inspection alone so as to remain impartial" she added that I will have the right to dispute any deductions from the deposit via the deposit protection scheme afterwards!


Can someone clarify this for me please? The tenancy ended on 1st November and they wont be doing the inspection until the 5th. Now I have £850 deposit riding on this, so of course I wish to be given every opportunity to correct anything myself if it isn't right! I had problems replacing some of the light bulbs as they are so tightly fitted into the ceiling for example so I have left the replacement bulbs there.. I don't wish to be charged an extortionate fee for that! I have cleaned it to a high standard and repainted plus had every carpet professionally cleaned, but the landlord has been a bit shirty sending me messages about the garden being "properly done" as he wishes to sell the house, well he agreed I could fence a steep wooded area off and leave it as I have young children it was a danger, which I allowed to over grow, I have paid a gardening company to have it cleared and all the trees pruned and tidied, it looks good now, but it isn't all freshly turned over soil as it is in the check in inventory photos.. I have an inkling this is going to be also mentioned and deducted from my deposit!! how to move forward?

Agents are fairly spot in for a change.

No right to be there and no right to remedy anything.

Hope you took lots of pictures when you left.

And got it in writing re the garden.

And yes you might be ( rightly) charged for the light bulbs, they weren't on the side when you moved in, so no reason to be on the side when you move out.

nidO

As your tenancy has ended, you basically have no right to be there.

That said, they're also the ones shooting themselves in the foot as:

choccywoccy wrote: »

The tenancy ended on 1st November and they wont be doing the inspection until the 5th.

If they do attempt to make any deductions you feel are unfair and use the checkout report as evidence, you raise a dispute through the deposit protection service telling them that the non-dual-signed checkout inspection report was produced several days after you actually checked out and isn't an accurate description of the flat at the time you checked out.
It's then up to the landlord to prove that any issues they're attempting to take deductions for were there at the time you checked out and caused by you, which will be largely impossible.

choccywoccy

those light bulbs were literally painted into the ceiling in the bathroom - I would have had to paint them back in if I changed the darn things!

choccywoccy

I copied this from the DPS website about the check out inspection it says


"Ensure your tenant is present for this and signs the document, or be able to prove you offered them the
opportunity to be present."


??? confused!!

franklee

choccywoccy wrote: »

I copied this from the DPS website about the check out inspection it says


"Ensure your tenant is present for this and signs the document, or be able to prove you offered them the
opportunity to be present."


??? confused!!

That's DPS guidance not the law however if the agent isn't following DPS suggestions then it should count in your favour if any dispute goes to arbitration at DPS. I hope you have in writing that the agent said they won't allow you to be there, if not get it now. Suggest you write an email to the agent summarising what was said and request to be present. That way you can show DPS that the agent didn't follow the DPS guidance.

Also does your tenancy agreement mention anything about how the checkout will be done?

G_M

Many check-out inspections are done by independant professional inventory clerks. They have a job to do, and the last thing they want is someone breathing down their neck as they go round trying to influence what they note down.

If you disagree with any deductions the LL claims based on their report, there is a procedure.

I doubt a court would automatically uphold a dispute based on the 4 day gap between tenancy end date and inspection alone, especially given that the 1st was a weekend when few inventory clerks are at work. The tenant would have a stronger case if he could show or suggest that the LL had been in during that period and caused damage/made changes. ....

Personally I would not make deductions for (working) lightbulbs left on the side, but strictly speaking they should wherever they were when the tenancy started.

The garden should be as it was at the start too (subject to time of year etc), but it sounds as if you have made reasonable efforts, employing both a gardener and cleaner, so I should not worry too much. Wait and se hat the LL decides and then respond as appropriate.

As for " I wish to be given every opportunity to correct anything myself " I'm afraid once the tenancy has ended, that is only an option if the LL agrees.

choccywoccy

Yes I have it in writing that the agent won't allow me there. I just got this email back after asking her to clarify why


"The report is carried out after you have departed and it is a true reflection of how the property has been left. If there was an ingoing inventory, this is what the DPS will compare the outgoing check out report to should the deposit go to a dispute.

If after the check out report is carried out, the landlord decides to make deductions, you will then be given the option to dispute this and give the landlord the option of putting anything right. Once the keys are handed in, you are not allowed to re-enter the property for the purpose of changing things. Any cleaning or changes to the property need to be done prior to handing the keys in.

If you have any further queries, please do not hesitate to contact us."

G_M

choccywoccy wrote: »

Yes I have it in writing that the agent won't allow me there. I just got this email back after asking her to clarify why


"The report is carried out after you have departed and it is a true reflection of how the property has been left. If there was an ingoing inventory, this is what the DPS will compare the outgoing check out report to should the deposit go to a dispute.

If after the check out report is carried out, the landlord decides to make deductions, you will then be given the option to dispute this and give the landlord the option of putting anything right. Once the keys are handed in, you are not allowed to re-enter the property for the purpose of changing things. Any cleaning or changes to the property need to be done prior to handing the keys in.

If you have any further queries, please do not hesitate to contact us."

which seems a fair and accurate description of the process.

choccywoccy

G_M wrote: »

which seems a fair and accurate description of the process.

Yes... I think confusing to read the advice guidelines from dps that the tenant be offered the opportunity to be present though? maybe they should clarify that this isn't in fact law only a recommendation

nidO

choccywoccy wrote: »

Yes... I think confusing to read the advice guidelines from dps that the tenant be offered the opportunity to be present though? maybe they should clarify that this isn't in fact law only a recommendation

You said it yourself though:

choccywoccy wrote: »

advice guidelines

The PDF you got your quote from does also clearly state at the bottom:

This is for information purposes only and is not an exhaustive list. It is not intended to constitute legal or other professional advice or be a legally binding document