Fair Wear & Tear Question

izzybusy23

clare1076 wrote: »

We have just moved out of our rented property and the landlady has pointed out a couple of scratches on the leather sofa, i have two small children who climb on the sofa with toys etc.. and the scratches were caused by this, i would say that these were fair, wear & tear but she is saying she disagrees and will get the letting agent to decide. Obviously i don't want to be paying for a new sofa but the scratches are not huge and would not prevent her from renting the property out.

In your opinion would these be classed as fair, wear & tear or am i looking at forking out for a new sofa?:mad:

Can I just say what a silly bint your landlady was even leaving a leather sofa in a rented house with children!!! I have leather sofas and a 3 year old and she drew on it in biro. I got it out, but lesson learnt not to leave her with a biro again. Kids are kids.. you can't put restrictions on their development by them not doing things that normal kids do.

Sorry, your landlady cannot expect immaculate stuff when there are children around and if they want to furnish it with expensive furniture then they truly are dumb.

Good luck..

izzybusy23

Captain_Mainwaring wrote: »

LOL? what's funny? some people do look after things.

Not in rented... you CANNOT expect a cream leather sofa to be immaculate in a rented house with children.

If you do then you have your expectations way to high and will drop back down to earth with a short sharp shock.

What idiot furnishes a rental house with a cream leather sofa... dumbasses!!

izzybusy23

Captain_Mainwaring wrote: »

I have two smallish children - they aren't allowed to play on the furniture with toys that could damage it.
quote]

My god, I would hate to be your kids then... get a life mate... lifes too short to worry about stuff like that. Your kids need to remember having fun, not their parents being anal over materialistic cr&p. :mad:

Trollfever

What idiot furnishes a rental house with a cream leather sofa... dumbasses!!

The idiots who buy fully furnished BTL investment properties that they have never visited.

tbs624

Was the sofa new or in pristine condition at the start of the tenancy? Is there an inventory, signed by both you and the LA/LL?

The LA is acting for the LL and is not an impartial third party, so you do not have to just accept what they say. If your tenancy started after Apr 6 2007 your deposit should have been protected and you will need to notify the relevant scheme that you are in dispute. The balance of your deposit should be returned to you minus the disputed amount, and its best to deal with it all in writing, keeping a copy for yourself: if you are going to challenge the amount the LA/LL wants to keep then make sure that you confirm in writing that any cheque you bank for part of the deposit is not accepted as full and final settlement.

Agree with Poppysarah & Izzy that anyone who lets a property with cream anything in it to a family with small kids is IMO lacking in foresight. Okay so scratches would obviously show up on a darker leather too but they would probably be more easily dealt with.

Agree with Pru on bargaining over this one if there is proof that it was in good condition at the start: there can be no “betterment”, so allowances have to be made for the age of the sofa, its expected lifespan etc. I think if you are aware that your kids did scratch the sofa, then you do need to “play fair”, and it probably would have been a good idea to have sorted it out before you moved out , maybe by getting some stuff for leather car upholstery from somewhere like Halfords.

Families’ attitudes to furnishings vary wildly - my own view is that I’d rather live in a real home than what amounts to a furniture showroom so it may be best to stick to unfurnished properties whilst your kids are really young - its less stressful.;)

clare1076

Captain_Mainwaring wrote: »

I have two smallish children - they aren't allowed to play on the furniture with toys that could damage it.

I'd hardly call it it fair wear and tear if it was avoidable in normal use.

Common sense say to get a connolly kit before the LL sees it.

If someone scratched your car you could still use it but you wouldn't want it left like it - why should the LL tolerate it?

Whilst it's not my furniture, i still let my kids play like kids, i feel for your kids with an attitude like yours they must be scared to move in your house. My kids are 3 and 1 and like any other parent i don't have eyes in the back of my head and can't watch what they are doing every minute.

clare1076

The deposit is held with the deposit scheme.

I said to my husband last night that she knew she was letting to a family with small children so couldn't expect an immaculate house back. The whole house is cream, cream walls, cream sofa, cream curtains, cream carpets you get the drift. We cleaned the house throughly bought the paint to retouch all the walls up, the carpet had patches on it were the kids had spilt drinks but we cleaned as best we could and she acknowledged this but will get a the carpet cleaned which i'm happy to pay for.
I just wanted some advice as to whether it would be wear & tear or should i start saving for a sofa for her.

Thanks for the people who have given me some helpful advice.

clare1076

Captain_Mainwaring wrote: »

LOL? what's funny? some people do look after things.

I do look after things its not as though the sofa has dozens of scratches on it there is 2 or 3, 1 or 2cm long. Get a grip mate do you live in a museum is all your furniture roped off so your kids can't get at it.:rotfl:

Accidents happen god forbid this happens in your house.