Deposit issue - Stain on linoleum floor

aneary

Were you told about bathmats being on the flooring?

A previous house share I was in we were specifically told not to put metal items on the floors of both bathroom as if they got wet (common in bathrooms) they would stain the tiled floor. It came up on several inspections

Sirok86

aneary wrote: »

Were you told about bathmats being on the flooring?

A previous house share I was in we were specifically told not to put metal items on the floors of both bathroom as if they got wet (common in bathrooms) they would stain the tiled floor. It came up on several inspections

No, I wasn't told anything about having to use a specific bathmat. I did not know and I just bought a standard one from Wilko.

The landlord has now stopped asking for a full replacement after sending him the documentation that you guys helped me find. He is requesting now a total of £100. £42 for fixing a toilet roll holder & a coffee table (coming down from £84) and the rest for the stain. Still a bit too much in my opinion so we have not reached an agreement yet, but I am in a much better position than I was before, mainly through everybody's help here.

Thanks!

Sirok86

So, the landlord doesn't want to reduce the amount any further, so I have to choose between paying £100 or disputing it.
Things he is going to ask for:
- Fixing a toilet roll holder: It was a plastic cheap one and during my tenancy, one of the screws came out. He is asking me to pay £42 for fixing that. To me, this is fair wear and tear (I don't think the toilet roll holder was new and these things do not have a long lifespan). Even if it wasn't, charging £42 for an item that can cost at most most most £5 sounds way over the top.
- Fixing a coffee table: Check-in says the table was OK, although I found after a few weeks that one of the drawers was broken and that the table was not very stable so it could not be moved without care. Unfortunately, I didn't mention it and now he wants to charge me £42 for fixing it. I don't think the table was new when I entered and I have found new ones that look better for less than that.
- Stain on the floor: The whole thread story.

With all this in mind, and considering I have lived there for two years, what do you guys think? Should I be just paying the £100 and forget about it or should I be disputing it?

Thanks for your help!

otokonoko

Hi again Sirok86.

You have excellent grounds to dispute both the toilet roll holder and the coffee table and I have no doubt that you would be able to successfully reduce or eliminate the amounts in both cases. The question you have to ask yourself is whether you are willing to wait approximately 4 weeks for the ADR process to run its course, and whether you are willing to prepare the necessary evidence in support of your case.

In my own very recent case, my former landlord submitted a completely spurious claim for over £3000 and I was compelled to fight it all the way for that reason. It was utter nonsense of course and ADR helped me a great deal in winning my deposit back, but it was hard work gathering the evidence and preparing my argument. For £100, I'm not so sure I would have gone to the trouble, but you may feel differently depending on your circumstances. Burning injustice is a motivator in itself!

I would definitely recommend reading TDS's 'Guide to Deposits Disputes and Damages' and quoting it extensively in your argument should you decide to pursue ADR.

SuboJvR

Sirok86 wrote: »

So, the landlord doesn't want to reduce the amount any further, so I have to choose between paying £100 or disputing it.
Things he is going to ask for:
- Fixing a toilet roll holder: It was a plastic cheap one and during my tenancy, one of the screws came out. He is asking me to pay £42 for fixing that. To me, this is fair wear and tear (I don't think the toilet roll holder was new and these things do not have a long lifespan). Even if it wasn't, charging £42 for an item that can cost at most most most £5 sounds way over the top.
- Fixing a coffee table: Check-in says the table was OK, although I found after a few weeks that one of the drawers was broken and that the table was not very stable so it could not be moved without care. Unfortunately, I didn't mention it and now he wants to charge me £42 for fixing it. I don't think the table was new when I entered and I have found new ones that look better for less than that.
- Stain on the floor: The whole thread story.

With all this in mind, and considering I have lived there for two years, what do you guys think? Should I be just paying the £100 and forget about it or should I be disputing it?

Thanks for your help!

So it's £42 for both the toilet roll holder and coffee table together?

You said you have found toilet roll holders for much cheaper - therefore find one, send him the link, and say you'd be happy to pay £x for this similar model.

Coffee table again if you've found new ones that are similar (e.g. with drawers) then do the same. If you're happy with the cost to replace the lino now, then add that to costs for two of the above if it comes to an amount you're happy with, offer that to him.

If you'd like to take it further and may wait a bit longer to see your money then do raise a dispute as then the element of wear and tear will be considered so you may even get a bit more off!

If it were me though I'd probably then be thinking about how much of my time I'm spending on it and what that's worth, I think I'd offer something like £50 out of the scheme maybe and be done with it. But I work too much overtime whilst also trying to complete my MSc so at some point time is more valuable to me

Sirok86

SuboJvR wrote: »

So it's £42 for both the toilet roll holder and coffee table together?

You said you have found toilet roll holders for much cheaper - therefore find one, send him the link, and say you'd be happy to pay £x for this similar model.

Coffee table again if you've found new ones that are similar (e.g. with drawers) then do the same. If you're happy with the cost to replace the lino now, then add that to costs for two of the above if it comes to an amount you're happy with, offer that to him.

If you'd like to take it further and may wait a bit longer to see your money then do raise a dispute as then the element of wear and tear will be considered so you may even get a bit more off!

If it were me though I'd probably then be thinking about how much of my time I'm spending on it and what that's worth, I think I'd offer something like £50 out of the scheme maybe and be done with it. But I work too much overtime whilst also trying to complete my MSc so at some point time is more valuable to me

It's £42 for each he is asking for. So in total he is asking £84 to replace a toilet roll holder and a cofee table.

Regarding the lino, I am not happy to pay for the replacement. I think I should be paying a small amount for the diminuition of value of the element as the guidance says.

I do agree with you and otokonoko regarding the time issue. I am considering that as a factor also.

Thanks for the answers!

otokonoko

The toilet roll holder charge in particular is laughable. All the landlord would be doing is screwing it back into the wall; as you say, it's fair wear and tear. There is no actual damage as I understand it and therefore no grounds for a claim. Is the landlord really going to be able to produce a quote from a contractor for this pathetic amount of work? It's akin to screwing in a new lightbulb.

You may have to contribute to the coffee table by the sounds of it, but the amount should be very small indeed, particularly if it wasn't new at check-in, and it's not a particularly high-quality item. I would have thought a £20 contribution for repair would be more than reasonable.

I think the key here is to show him exactly how his case would be viewed in the eyes of an adjudicator. They are fair and reasonable and have seen plenty of money-grabbing landlords in their time.

FBaby

Sirok86 wrote: »

So, the landlord doesn't want to reduce the amount any further, so I have to choose between paying £100 or disputing it.
Things he is going to ask for:
- Fixing a toilet roll holder: It was a plastic cheap one and during my tenancy, one of the screws came out. He is asking me to pay £42 for fixing that. To me, this is fair wear and tear (I don't think the toilet roll holder was new and these things do not have a long lifespan). Even if it wasn't, charging £42 for an item that can cost at most most most £5 sounds way over the top.
This doesn't make sense. If the problem is a screw only, why does the toiler roll holder need changing. Either it was just loose and needed fixing - won't hold at all, or there was some damage done to it, in which case, he would be likely to get something for it. W&T for a roller? Never had one broken in my life!

- Fixing a coffee table: Check-in says the table was OK, although I found after a few weeks that one of the drawers was broken and that the table was not very stable so it could not be moved without care. Unfortunately, I didn't mention it and now he wants to charge me £42 for fixing it. I don't think the table was new when I entered and I have found new ones that look better for less than that.
What happened then? What needs fixing? £42 doesn't sound unreasonable for a table. Why £42 though, sounds a strange amount. Is it that he can show a receipt for it and then applied a certain percentage to take into account W&T? If he's done that, he has a better case to get agree.

- Stain on the floor: The whole thread story.

With all this in mind, and considering I have lived there for two years, what do you guys think? Should I be just paying the £100 and forget about it or should I be disputing it?

Thanks for your help!

I've been through the ADR twice as a LL and both times won 90% and then 100% of my claims. My experience as a landlord is about evidence and being reasonable. From what you've written, I would say that it's not impossible that his claim would be considered so, but again, it depends on the age of the items claimed for and the value paid for.

Personally, I would agree to it as going through the ADR process is time consuming and stressful.

By the way, saying that he can replace something for cheap is not a relevant argument. They are entitled to like for like bare W&T.

Sirok86

FBaby wrote: »

I've been through the ADR twice as a LL and both times won 90% and then 100% of my claims. My experience as a landlord is about evidence and being reasonable. From what you've written, I would say that it's not impossible that his claim would be considered so, but again, it depends on the age of the items claimed for and the value paid for.

Personally, I would agree to it as going through the ADR process is time consuming and stressful.

By the way, saying that he can replace something for cheap is not a relevant argument. They are entitled to like for like bare W&T.

Thanks for your answer, FBaby.

The figures come from an invoice he has forwarded me from his trusted builders (the ones that do everything in his properties and the ones that wanted to charge me £288 for replacing the flooring while I found the same work for half the price somewhere else thanks to the information provided here). To break it down, they have a £50 call out fee, plus £10 for fixing the table plus £10 for fixing the toilet roll holder. That makes £70 + VAT, which amounts to £84. This £84 is divided between two elements, so it is £42 each.

I understand that he is entitled to like for like, but my argument is that buying a better quality toilet roll holder would cost less than £5, so charging £42 for screwing an old one back onto the wall is not reasonable from my point of view.

In any case, you are both right that it is probably not worth to go through the hassle of the process for what I can save. It is just difficult to let go when you believe you are being taken advantage of.

Thanks for your opinions.

bouicca21

It's all a question of what evidence you have. You say the toilet roll holder only needs a screw - can you prove it with a photo? Can he prove it was all fine when you moved in? Likewise the table especially as you accepted the inventory saying it was ok.

It's up to you whether you can take the stress and whether you can wait for the money.