RENTAL PROPERTY LAW - SHOR TERM TENANT WRECKED GARDEN - CONTRACT SPECIFIES CARE OF GARDEN

zoologiy

I rented my property via a short term let via Estate Agents who rented through a relocation company who put forward a tenant who arrived with husband and two dogs at the beginning of July to stay for a five week tenancy in my property. On the contract it advised the garden was to be cared for. This was important and I realise tenants are often not wanting to care for a garden and I said I would come in once a week to care for the garden myself as it was important. The garden had been something I had worked on for the lockdown and prior three months and I had spent a lot of money on new plants, compost and tools for the garden. 

The tenant arrived and I greeted them and said I would be in once a week to check on the garden as it was important.   She said (married couple but she was the 'trousers' liked to tend gardens and I need not worry.  
At the end of the five weeks, I arrived to collect the keys - she advised she had finished earlier and had left them for me - and found my garden with dead plants (over ten - a dead pigeon in a gardening bag and feathers strewn everywhere saying they didn't have time to tidy up and that a cat had got it the day before.   

It was a dreadful mess and I sent photos to my estate agent and asked for them to reimburse one hundred and fifty pounds towards the dead plants and general condition of the garden.   Although it had been hot during their stay, I checked on all the other gardens in the road and they advised no plants had died.   Indeed the only property where plants were dead was one which had not been inhabited for five weeks.  

I was told that property law meant that despite the evidence and despite the fact they said they would do it when I said I would, that it does not protect me.  I am very upset about this if this is the case, but I have been met with contempt by both the relocation agent and tenant who is want to exaggerate (she described the home when she arrived as a pigsty - it was professionally cleaned -  and said my claims the plants were dead as 'blatant lies'.  

I am very upset about this but from a purely legal, non emotive point of view, the contract says the tenant must look after the garden. there was no evidence of due care. I have photos of the before and after.  She failed to give due care. She failed to do so during her tenancy and therefore has broken the contract. 

The estate agent says that the plants needed to be on an inventory of stuff and therefore couldn't be claimed.  I don't want it to happen to other unsuspecting landlords who aren't covered despite the mention of garden care being in the contract.   But I also don't believe this is the case, and believe I have been purposely lied to either by the Relocation Agent as well as definitely by the tenant who failed to give due care to the garden. It is only 5 foot long so not exactly a huge ask.  

I have considerable photographic evidence for the before and after so evidence is not the issue.  
Any one any ideas?  Am I being misled by my agent, by the Relocation Agency? 

k3lvc

Post is too long but did your contract literally just state 'Garden to be cared for' ? That's a seriously subjective phrase and as you've found out to your cost gives you no cover at all. No-one seems to have misled you based on those words 

theoretica

Plants are most vulnerable when they have recently been transplanted so I am not surprised some died with the weather we have been having and probably would with normal garden care rather than special post transplant care.  It reads to me as though you might have left the tenants something of a booby trap in the garden with it needing more than normal care.

tacpot12

Professional landlords know that generally tenants do not want to care for gardens, so make the gardens very easy to maintain. If you are going to put expensive and delicate plants into a garden of a rental property, I think this is asking for trouble, especially if you let to tenants with dogs. Dogs like to dig!

Do you have photographs of the garden before and after the let? Bear in mind that photos are not always good at showing the extent of damage. Sometimes they work well, other times they made the damage look a lot less severe.  
Were all the tools left and were they included on the inventory? If not, give the Agent a list of the tools to be added to the inventory. 

I do feel that the tenant owes you something, but I can't see a court siding with you. It's very much your words against theirs -that they committed to caring for the garden in the five weeks they were there. 

You can sue them of course, but I don't think it would be a good use of your money. Better to move the plants to your own garden where you can look after them, and turf the garden and add a mowing strip around it. The tenants still won't mow it, but at least when your contractor has to do it it will be easy and therefore cheap. 

The dead pigeon could have been a matter of unfortunate timing. That they didn't clean up is unfair, but it will only have taken minutes to clean it up rather than hours. 

JJ_Egan

What has the OP to do with the Forum Rules ??

pogofish

Do you really rent from MSE..?

anselld

Did you take a security deposit?  Protected in a scheme?
The deposit is your responsibility, as is the decision to make any claim for damages.  If you think you have the evidence that damage has been done then make the appropriate claim via the deposit scheme.  If the agent has protected the deposit for you then *instruct* them to do likewise.  They can advise whatever they like, but you are "the trousers".

Splatfoot

I'm struggling to keep my plants alive and I own mine!

AdrianC

zoologiy said:

I rented my property via a short term let via Estate Agents who rented through a relocation company who put forward a tenant

Who is your actual legal tenant here?

What form of tenancy or licence?

What deposit was taken? Was it protected in any form?

On the contract it advised the garden was to be cared for.

What was the precise wording?

It was a dreadful mess and I sent photos to my estate agent and asked for them to reimburse one hundred and fifty pounds towards the dead plants and general condition of the garden.

Why is it the agency's problem? Not the relocation company or the occupier?

I was told that property law meant that despite the evidence and despite the fact they said they would do it when I said I would, that it does not protect me.

It's all about what's in the contract, tempered by what's enforceable legally for your type of tenancy or licence.

Ultimately, if the other party to the contract (whoever that is) does not agree to pay, then you need to lodge a small claim against them for the value of your losses. They then lodge a defence, and the court decides who is right and how much is justified.

theartfullodger

Is your agreement with the estate agent that where the estate agent is you tenant, please??

Short term tenant: What sort of tenancy agreement please?

Which country - NI, Wales, Scotland, please?

Slinky

Splatfoot said:

I'm struggling to keep my plants alive and I own mine!

Same here. New plants in our new garden. One of them is seriously struggling even though I'm watering twice a day.

OP you are on a hiding to nothing here unfortunately.