RESIDENTIALlettings


Tenants from Hell – and how to avoid the flames


Bribing inventory clerks, growing cannabis plants in the airing cupboard and building an extension without permission – just a few eyebrow-raising crimes allegedly committed by UK property tenants. The survey of 40 UK


inventory clerks, carried by The Video Inventory Agency (TVIA) uncovered a litany of damage, disastrous decorating and petty theft – enough to make you wince. Topping the list was an


occupant who built a two storey extension without the landlord’s knowledge or planning permission. Cases where tenants have tried to bribe clerks not to report damage also featured strongly, whilst one clerk reported finding cannabis in the airing cupboard of a doctor’s flat – he claimed it was for medicinal purposes. Landlord and investor


Frazer Fearnhead, who founded TVIA last year, said, “I have seen more


Whoever is responsible for determining


Frazer Fearnhead


than a few ‘interesting’ cases way beyond the boundaries of fair wear and tear. “Whilst cases like this


aren’t common, there is no doubt that the problems caused by a few rogue tenants can have major financial ramifications for landlords. It’s important to ensure inventories are watertight so there is no room to refute a claim for damages, neglect or blatant vandalism.”


TVIA offers video


inventories designed to protect landlords’ interests. Using similar practices to police standard operating procedures for filming crime scenes, each inventory produced by TVIA is supported by high- definition video evidence that has been designed to stand up in court. Frazer launched TVIA


after an incomplete photographic inventory on one of his own properties resulted in a lack of evidence to corroborate a deposit dispute. He continued: “When


Cannabis grows so well! The Top 10 TenanT ‘crimes’


1 Structural damage to a ceiling committed by a female tenant in Birmingham who installed a pole dancing studio in her front room.


2 A tenant who built a two storey extension without the landlord’s knowledge or planning permission.


3 The inventory clerk who went to a supposedly ‘empty’ property to find the tenants had moved back in.


4 The doctor who had several cannabis plants growing in a cupboard, claiming they were for ‘medicinal purposes’.


5 The tenants who tried to bribe an inventory clerk not to report damages.


6 A decorative whip and other sex toys left in a city centre flat – the tenant was very embarrassed and claimed she was into horse riding.


7 The trainee medical students who


landlords hand over the keys to a property, they are completely reliant on inventories to protect their assets, and many old- fashioned inventories just don’t cut it.”


claimed doctors were exempt from having to tidy up after themselves when the state of the flat was queried.


8 The female tenant who objected when the inventory clerk claimed the carpet was dirty. She denied it needed vacuuming stating, “Why does it need cleaning, I’ve only been here for six months?”


9 A tenant who stole a 10-year-old cherry tree from the back garden having lived in the property for six months – he claimed he had planted it himself.


10 An interim inspection which revealed several illegal immigrant families were living in a two bedroom property, including one in the attic. www.videoinventoryagency.co.uk


fair wear and tear, it is essential that the landlord is appreciative of the need to make allowances for depreciation – whilst accepting that he or she cannot use the tenancy as a means of ‘betterment’ ie seeking out replacement of damaged or missing items with new ones (unless the items were brand new at the start of the tenancy). No Letting Go assesses fair wear and tear


and depreciation values based on APIP and ARLA guidelines as well as those laid down by the Tenancy Deposit Scheme. Decisions are made taking into consideration a number of key criteria including the type of tenant. Depending on whether the tenant is a family, professional couple, single occupancy or students, the type of tenant will have a huge bearing on the overall wear and tear on items in a property. For example, a family of four is likely to


use a washing machine more often than a professional couple and therefore this needs to be considered and reflected in the decision. Likewise a medium quality carpet with a professional couple living at a property would last for typically five years, whereas a family occupancy would reduce the lifespan to typically three years. The length of occupancy will also need


to be taken into consideration – the impact of a two-year occupancy will be greater than the toll of a six-month occupancy. Equally, when a tenant has enjoyed a five- year stay in the same property, it becomes very difficult to prove unacceptable wear and tear. Consent for smokers or pets in the property will have implications on the expected condition of the property at the end of the tenure.


The Tenancy agreemenT The tenancy agreement may contain specific clauses relating to the required care and attention of particular items and amenities which the tenant has access to during the tenancy. Care of external living areas; the garden is a classic example, so often the cause of heated debate between landlord and tenant. In the majority of cases the garden will be treated as an ‘outdoor room’ and as such, should be returned to the landlord in the


same condition or state of maintenance


as when the tenancy agreement or inventory is first signed. This is an accepted requirement regardless as to whether or not the tenants take advantage of the garden facilities.


60 NOVEMBER 2010 PROPERTYdrum


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