Renting deposit dispute

Nj04

Hello,
I lived in a flat for more than 4 years and I have 2 kids. When we left we forgot to wipe couple of walls which has some pen marks made by my kids. Now my landlord wants to keep £350 from the deposit to cover the painting of the flat as she says she cannot just patch up the marks and has to do the whole flat! She says she is being generous with us!
Do you think it is reasonable for the landlord to charge us for something that is considered normal wear and tear? Shouldn't she be painting the flat anyway after a long tenancy? Thank you

Carrot007

Yes a deduction seems reasonable, unclean and pen marks are not wear and tear.


However doing the sntire flat is bettermeant and they are not entitled to so much (but getting someone out fo rlittle will obvuiously not be propotionally less).


Dispute it.

KatrinaWaves

Children drawing on the walls isn’t wear and tear.

I’m not saying that means you owe her £350, but you do owe her something.

[Deleted User]

I'm afraid she can charge the going rate for a painter / decorator as well as paint costs. But only for one room, not the whole flat unless she can prove damage in other places.

tacpot12

I think £350 is steep after a four year tenancy. Pen marks, particularly if in a dark colour, can be difficult to cover. They can bleed through the paint, so need to be sealed.

But the flat was going to need decorating after four years to my mind due to wear and tear, so I think a token deduction of £100 to cover the extra work to seal over the pen marks is more than enough.

judy_mitchel

I am also facing the same dispute. I own an apartment but the landlord is threatening because of keeping my holds He says you are not allowed to keep these things, Now I want to leave this house but he is not giving the deposits back.
anyone can help me out with this

Marvel1

I would dispute it through the scheme and let them decide what is fair, could be less.

Note: May charge more than £350.

tacpot12

judy_mitchel wrote: »

I am also facing the same dispute. I own an apartment but the landlord is threatening because of keeping my holds He says you are not allowed to keep these things, Now I want to leave this house but he is not giving the deposits back.
anyone can help me out with this

You really need to start your own thread, so that you can get advice on your specific situation.

It is not clear what you mean by "because of keeping my holds". If you have taken some of the landlord's property that is not allowed. The inventory tells you what belongs to the landlord.

The deposit protection scheme will help you with this.

sillyhilly

Playing devils advocate here, I actually think £350 is neither too little, or excessive. I think it is entirely reasonable.

You've left pen marks on the wall. Of course that needs to be fixed. That includes a painter and decorator, a primer/sealer and overcoat (maybe 2x). And they won't be able to 'patch up' after such a long tenancy and will, realistically, need to do the full wall as an absolute minimum (and depending on colouration of existing paint, the whole room).

I doubt she is painting the whole flat for £350.

Don't let your kids draw on the walls, and if they do, clean it up.

MEM62

sillyhilly wrote: »

I doubt she is painting the whole flat for £350.

+1 on that. Unless it is miniscule, you won't be painting the whole flat for £350. The last time I had a 2-bed flat fully painted it cost me something in the region of £1,800.

Nj04

UPDATE: Thank you everyone. The flat had a mould issue for the longest time which we let go, saving her a lot of money. I reminded her of it and she agreed to take £100 I offered to cover the walls!