Landlord claiming £12k though TDS!

prowla

Did you take photos before vacating?

Pacerpilot

prowla said:

Did you take photos before vacating?

Yes. Just submitted 80 odd photos to TDS

caprikid1

please keep us updated

GDB2222

It's a moot point about the blinds. You perhaps should have wrapped them up and stuck them in the loft. Or, got permission to dispose of them. 

Clearly, if they were very old, he can't charge you the cost of new ones, anyway. 

MeteredOut

GDB2222 said:

It's a moot point about the blinds. You perhaps should have wrapped them up and stuck them in the loft. Or, got permission to dispose of them. 

Clearly, if they were very old, he can't charge you the cost of new ones, anyway. 

..then the mice could have cleaned them

OP, best of luck with this chancer!

Skiddaw1

OP, that's just awful... what a chancer! Please do keep us posted and goood luck. Hope your lovely new home makes up for some of it.

Gavin83

Pacerpilot said:

Hi all,
 We recently moved out of our rental house after finally buying a home of our own.
  We'd lived there for nearly 7 years and considered ourselves to be good tenants.
 However, the landlord has submitted a claim to TDS for nearly £12k. £6k for decorating, £3.5k for damages, £2k for misc and another £1k for cleaning. 
  We are absolutely shell shocked. The house was extremely clean upon return of the keys. No mention of poor cleanliness on the check out inventory (his own check out inventory-not independent)
  He's claimed for new carpets, complete redecoration through out, new blinds (which we took down as they were 20 years old and extremely brittle due to sun exposure and we're not compliant with ant-strangulation rules). The list goes on and on. There was a single cracked tile on a fireplafe hearth which we expected but he's claimed for a whole new hearth and £95 delivery. Even the Carbon monoxide detectors which are now life expired. Nothing was new upon moving in, as noted in the check-in inventory and then has been subject to 7 years of wear and tear with a young family. 
  The deposit is £1050....can he take us to court for the rest if this doesn't go his way?
 

Does he give a breakdown of what the 'misc' includes?

It sounds like he's trying to redecorate before selling/new tenancy and pushing those costs onto you. You certainly aren't responsible for this. It might even be that he's angry you're moving out and trying to use this as a way of punishing you.

Whatever the reason 95% of that claim sounds ridiculous. In your shoes I'd fight it all the way.

jj_43

Don’t worry TDS will judge, wear and tear can’t be claimed for, carpets have a recommended lifespan etc. I do have some sympathy when damage in part to an expensive object is caused as the full object can’t be claimed for. 

Momanns

Please don't give in or accept this. The landlord is taking the absolute **** and the TDS will (hopefully) see through all of it. 

bunnygo

the words 'it doesn't work like that' come up in big flashing letters. He's trying for betterment, but English law allows for wear and tear. Carpets, decor etc are deemed worthless after about 6 years even if brand new at the start of the tenancy. The deposit scheme will laugh in his face, so just follow the process to dispute it and all will be well.

BTW even if new stuff is trashed, the compensation takes into account the amount of it destroyed and the age of the item. e.g. if carpet burnt by an iron, compensation is only for the fraction of the carpet burnt so a fragment of not much. Unless a tenant completely wrecks a place (and that obviously isn't you) then very little ever comes back from legally protected deposits.