Unfair deposit deductions and possible fraudulent invoices

96mo

As per title and I'll keep it brief
Was expecting a small charge for end of tenancy cleaning (3 bed, 3 named tenants 2 of which were happy to pay the cleaning bill instead of actually clean) but have ended up with total fees of nearly 10 times this

Landlord claims for painting of rooms despite check in and check out pictures showing the same marks on the walls

Landlord claims for a broken TV stand which is also broken in check in and out pictures

Landlord claims for cleaning at an extortionate price.

I'm disputing all of these with the evidence they provided I'm sure this will get sorted.


As part of our initial inventory an invoice for cleaning of the house (before we got there) was attached. It is very very dodgy;

Name of road is spelt incorrectly.
House number is a purely residential address
Postcode doesn't match road name
(Checked online and in person as only 5 minutes walk away)

No VAT number
Very generic cleaning company name which doesn't appear on companies house or Google.
Postcode doesn't match the road name
Date of invoice and date of 'cleaning' are 3 weeks different
Website given is a parked and generic domain which is for sale and has been for years.
Phone number is not recognised
No denomination or currency given in invoice
Spelling mistakes in invoice description
House described as 2 bed and not 3

I'd bet my life this is fake, but an interesting point is that they've been billed half of what the landlord is claiming for cleaning.

It was billed to the estate agent and not the landlord and so who do I contact about this?
Also what would this be considered? Fraud?

Thanks in advance for replies

davidmcn

96mo wrote: »

Name of road is spelt incorrectly.
House number is a purely residential address
Postcode doesn't match road name
(Checked online and in person as only 5 minutes walk away)

No VAT number
Very generic cleaning company name which doesn't appear on companies house or Google.
Postcode doesn't match the road name
Date of invoice and date of 'cleaning' are 3 weeks different
Website given is a parked and generic domain which is for sale and has been for years.
Phone number is not recognised
No denomination or currency given in invoice
Spelling mistakes in invoice description
House described as 2 bed and not 3

I can't see any of this being relevant. Concentrate on what the difference is (if any) of the condition of the property was between the beginning and end of the tenancy.

G_M

If the deductions are fair, based on the fact that you left the property in a worse state at the end (damage, dirt etc) than it was at the start, then the landlord can claim an appropriate amount to rectify the problem.

Whether the LL actually has the work done does not matter. Similarly, it does not matter if the company that quoted is genuine or not - provided the amount they quote is reasonable. Yes, a genuine company making a genuine quote adds weight to the reasonableness of the amount being claimed, but ultimately it is whether that amount is reasonable that matters.

Alternatively, if you left the property in the same (or better) state at the end than it was at the start, thenno deductions are justified and the invoice becomes irrelevant. You simply refer the deductions to the scheme arbitrators.


* Deposits: payment, protection and return

96mo

I'm new here, thanks for replies so far.

I get what has been said so far.

Would it be fair to assume if the quote for cleaning before we moved in was £100 I should be charged the same when we moved out?

Also what is the general stance on items left by the tenants, that is not only us but the ones before us?

We have been charged for leaving knifes, forks and cleaning stuff.

Previous tenants also left similar stuff and other things like hangers in wardrobes.

Thanks in advance

Cakeguts

96mo wrote: »

I'm new here, thanks for replies so far.

I get what has been said so far.

Would it be fair to assume if the quote for cleaning before we moved in was £100 I should be charged the same when we moved out?

Also what is the general stance on items left by the tenants, that is not only us but the ones before us?

We have been charged for leaving knifes, forks and cleaning stuff.

Previous tenants also left similar stuff and other things like hangers in wardrobes.

Thanks in advance

What the previous tenant did or didn't do is not relevant. So their cleaning bill might have been £100 because the property was cleaner than you are leaving it. Yours could be £300 because it is very dirty.



What is important is the state of the house at the end of your tenancy. Did you leave some of your things behind?

tom9980

96mo wrote: »

As per title and I'll keep it brief
Was expecting a small charge for end of tenancy cleaning (3 bed, 3 named tenants 2 of which were happy to pay the cleaning bill instead of actually clean) but have ended up with total fees of nearly 10 times this

Landlord claims for painting of rooms despite check in and check out pictures showing the same marks on the walls

Landlord claims for a broken TV stand which is also broken in check in and out pictures

Landlord claims for cleaning at an extortionate price.

I'm disputing all of these with the evidence they provided I'm sure this will get sorted.


As part of our initial inventory an invoice for cleaning of the house (before we got there) was attached. It is very very dodgy;

Name of road is spelt incorrectly.
House number is a purely residential address
Postcode doesn't match road name
(Checked online and in person as only 5 minutes walk away)

No VAT number
Very generic cleaning company name which doesn't appear on companies house or Google.
Postcode doesn't match the road name
Date of invoice and date of 'cleaning' are 3 weeks different
Website given is a parked and generic domain which is for sale and has been for years.
Phone number is not recognised
No denomination or currency given in invoice
Spelling mistakes in invoice description
House described as 2 bed and not 3

I'd bet my life this is fake, but an interesting point is that they've been billed half of what the landlord is claiming for cleaning.

It was billed to the estate agent and not the landlord and so who do I contact about this?
Also what would this be considered? Fraud?

Thanks in advance for replies

The invoice is nothing abnormal often small one man companies throw out invoices like this in my experience. In fact i got one just two days ago that is laughable really. The work this person did was spot on just their administration poor which should not be a surprise, not everyone is academic enough to produce something smart, professional and accurate.

All the information you need is linked by G_M

G_M

96mo wrote: »

....
Would it be fair to assume if the quote for cleaning before we moved in was £100 I should be charged the same when we moved out? No.

Also what is the general stance on items left by the tenants, that is not only us but the ones before us?

Items left by previous tenants? Were they on the inventory? If yes, you must leave them there. If no, you should remove them.
Items of your own? Should be removed.
The lanlord can charge you a reasonable cost to remove anything you leave behind that was not on the inventory.


We have been charged for leaving knifes, forks and cleaning stuff.
I agree this seems petty and you probably left them thinking they would help the LL or next teant. But legally speaking, the LL can charge for the cost of disposal. However he should first give you an opportunity to collect your possessions.


Previous tenants also left similar stuff and other things like hangers in wardrobes.

Is the LL charging you for disposal?

dimbo61

So why did you not clean the property before you left ?
Or at least get a quote from a cleaning company ?
Do you know what the minimum wage is, Tax, NI, fuel costs, etc
If you had spent £30/40 pounds down at the supermarket buying the right products and Two days cleaning yourself you would have No cleaning charges.
It is up to the Landlord to prove the condition of the property before you moved in and when you moved out.

buggy_boy

96mo wrote: »

I'm new here, thanks for replies so far.

I get what has been said so far.

Would it be fair to assume if the quote for cleaning before we moved in was £100 I should be charged the same when we moved out?

Also what is the general stance on items left by the tenants, that is not only us but the ones before us?

We have been charged for leaving knifes, forks and cleaning stuff.

Previous tenants also left similar stuff and other things like hangers in wardrobes.

Thanks in advance

Cleaners charge by the hour...

I can't believe you decided you could not be bothered to clean the house before you left because you would rather have paid someone, now you are moaning about the cost..

You dont have a leg to stand on, you should have either cleaned it yourself or got a cleaner in to clean it for you rather than just walking away leaving the cleaning to be sorted by your landlord. Getting anyone in is expensive, cleaners charge more for one off jobs as they prefer more regular work.

Personally I would be embarrassed if I received a property clean and handed it back without even attempting to clean.

Just pay your bill and next time either clean it or pay for someone to clean it yourself so the property is handed back in the same condition (minus acceptable wear and tear) as you got it.