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Disputing cleaning bill after vacating rented property (Scotland)

Whodunit
Whodunit Posts: 3 Newbie
in House buying, renting & selling
We have moved out of managed accommodation in Scotland, and have been presented with a cleaning bill of over £300. This is a 4 bedroom flat. We cleaned the apartment before vacating it, and it had been pretty dirty when we moved in, so we are disputing the full amount. My question is: should I use the ADR service offered by the deposit holder or not? The box to tick on the deposit holder's website says
By choosing to use the ADR service you agree to the following:
  1. The dispute will be referred to an adjudicator in accordance with our Terms and Conditions.
  2. You will be bound by the final decision of the adjudicator.
  3. You agree to send evidence in support of your claim or written confirmation that you have no evidence to submit. Your claim will fail if you do not provide evidence or written confirmation that you have no evidence to submit.
  4. Once the decision is issued, there will be a 10 working day period during which you may appeal the decision if you feel the adjudicator has erred in fact or law.
  5. After this review period the adjudicator's decision is final and cannot be appealed.
One thing I would like to know is whether the landlord is seeing a similar message. Surely the onus is on the landlord to prove that cleaning was necessary, rather than on us to prove that it was not?! To say nothing of proving that this amount had indeed been incurred, that there were no more competitive quotes available, etc.

It is also unclear to me what will happen if I choose not to use the deposit holder's ADR.

To me it really feels like the agent and landlord are just "trying it on", but I am a bit concerned about the nature of the incentives for the deposit holder. For example it is the agent/landlord who chooses the deposit holder, so these people must be interested in not losing a customer.

Many thanks in advance for your thoughts!

Comments

  • pinklady21
    pinklady21 Posts: 870 Forumite
    What evidence do you have of the state of cleanliness of the property when you moved in?
    Did you take photos? Did you note anything on the inventory?

    What evidence do you have of the state of cleanliness when you moved out?
    Again - photos, copy of check out inventory etc etc.

    The adjudication service is impartial, and will determine a case based on the evidence supplied to them. If you have already queried this with the landlord, and they have refused to change their stance, then ask for an independent adjudication and supply the evidence that you have.
    Best of luck.
  • Whodunit
    Whodunit Posts: 3 Newbie
    Thanks, pinklady. It was hard to get evidence of how filthy dusty the carpet was, since one couldn't see it on the pictures. But I did take a picture of a particularly dirty window, and also of various isolated spots on walls and carpets. We noted a few things on the inventory, attacking some of the most obvious euphemisms.

    We have already exchanged emails with the agents, so at this point it is time for an independent adjudicator. We will see how that goes.
  • Pixie5740
    Pixie5740 Posts: 14,515 Forumite
    Name Dropper First Post Photogenic First Anniversary
    The deposit is your money so the onus is on the landlord to prove any deductions are justified. If you can't negotiate with your landlord, or you have tried and failed to reach and agreement then your options are you use the ADR or go to court. ADR is a simpler and quicker process.

    The check-in and check-out inventories will be your strongest pieces of evidence. Does the check-in inventory say how clean, or rather not clean, the property was in at the start of the tenancy? When you noted a few things on the inventory did you send a copy of the inventory with your notes back to the landlord/letting agency?
  • Whodunit
    Whodunit Posts: 3 Newbie
    edited 5 July 2018 at 12:54PM
    Pixie5740 wrote: »
    When you noted a few things on the inventory did you send a copy of the inventory with your notes back to the landlord/letting agency?
    We did, in fact we gave them the version with our comments. I hope that we got them to copy it for us, I will have to check tonight. Otherwise I will have to rely on the agent's honesty in hoping that they submit the version with our comments, rather than their first version.

    Unfortunately, I did not comment on the state of cleanliness on the check-in report, we just cleaned the place. I actually took the kitchen sink apart myself, since it was smelling of rotten food, cleaned it out, throwing out a lot of disgusting stuff, and put fresh sealant on. We also got an automatic vacuum cleaner, and let it run almost non-stop for several days, until the bag stopped being full after every run.
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