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Legal actions: what to do when tenants destroy your property

• James Pointon
  Jan 23 2017, 08:07 AM
  For a landlord, it has to be your worst nightmare. A tenant checks out, and when you go around to check the property, you discover that they have left it in a horrible state. There is damage and dirt everywhere, and parts of the property may actually have been totally destroyed. So what do you do? Here’s how to build your legal case as well as repairing and renewing the property itself.
  
  
  
  Take photographs
  
  The first thing that you need to do before you lift another finger is to start taking photographs. Do not move or touch anything, particularly to make a start on cleaning up. Photograph every room and every little bit of damage. Even if it looks mostly superficial, take a picture as evidence. These photographs could be your only evidence that the damage took place when you go to court, especially if the tenant tries to claim that they left the property in a clean state.
  
  Call the right people
  
  If you believe that you can see evidence of the law being broken, call the police immediately. This could include evidence of stolen goods, drug use, the use of firearms, or so on. If the property has been damaged by fire, then you may have a case for arson. Calling the police may not immediately do any good, but it will create a police report of the issue, and this is highly valuable. Having a written statement from a police officer that damage has been done is worth its weight in gold. Next, call a lawyer who specialises in property damage or tenancy law to start making a case.
  
  Start the clean-up
  
  In the meantime, start repairing things as best you can. For every bill you have to pay, keep a record. That includes repair or replacement bills, call-out fees from the very first moment that you noticed the problem, and cleaning bills. Make sure that you talk to an agent from OpenAgent if you are worried about the damage affecting the value of your property. If the issue is permanent, they may be able to give you an actual figure as to how much it has devalued your rental potential. This is a quote that you can show in court if you need to, as are all of the bills, demonstrating exactly what you have had to pay.
  
  Claim what you can
  
  Your first area of recourse from your tenants will be their deposit or bond. If they have paid you a deposit on moving in, you are within your rights to claim the damages from that deposit. In some cases, it may well be that the deposit does not cover all of the bills for the repair. You will need to claim the rest from them through the courts if so. If the deposit does cover all of the damages, then make sure that you get your clean-up done as fast as possible. It could be that one quote or another is inaccurate because of the size of the job required. You don’t want to find that out after you have already handed the rest of the deposit back to your tenant. Send them a detailed list which explains what the money from their deposit was used for to avoid further legal issues.
  
  
  Finally, it’s time to go to court. With a good lawyer and the right evidence, you should be able to have everything paid back. Be aware of going to the right court, as some courts have a cap on the amount that they can award.

  [Edited Jan 23 2017]

  
  

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