Letting Agency - Inaccurate Check Out Reports

[JAP123]

I was working abroad and therefore rented out my property via a professional letting agency, whose services I engaged to manage my property whilst I was outside the UK. I was told verbally and in writing that the agency would send a representative to check the condition of the property every 8 to 10 weeks and they would notify me of any defects. All reports have been fine. I now wish to move back into my property after returning to the UK, the tenant has moved out and I was given a verbal report concerning the condition of the house, (quote) "everything is fine and in good order". However, this is not the case, for example, the kitchen sink has a cigarette burn on it and the tap's outer casing has been chipped off, the kitchen working surface has lots of cuts on it, the fridge has a chunk out of the door, the walls are filthy dirty, the dressing table which is solid wood has gauges out of it, the oak flooring has gauges/scratches on it and the bathroom floor has a huge stain on it (there are other things wrong with the house but these are examples). I have telephoned the agent and given them a list of everything that is wrong (they did not list any of the items as being wrong, one wonders if they actually went to the property). They are saying that the stain in the bathroom was not caused by the most recent tenant but the one before that, therefore the damage should have come out of this tenant's deposit, BUT when the penultimate tenant moved out I was told that everything was fine and therefore agreed to release his deposit back to him. What can I do about getting compensation for the bathroom floor if it was caused by the penultimate tenant but he was been given his deposit back on the advice of the agent who was supposed to represent my best interests regarding managing my property? Please help!! Many thanks.

[MrShed]

Your agent has been negligent basically. Sue them in small claims court. Are they a member of a professional body? (eg NEAE, ARLA)

[mjpl]

Property inspections are usually of a cursory nature and often do not pick up issues at the property. They are designed to ensure that the tenants are living in the property in line with their agreement.

What is more important is the Inventory and Check-out. Have these reports been compiled by a professional clerk or by the agent or even worse not at all?

[JAP123]

The managing agency concerned is a member of 'NALS', it is on their headed paper and website. What type of organisation is NALS? Would they be able to help me in any way?

I was provided with some written check out reports during the period that my property was rented out, but not as often as I was promised they would be done. There was only ever one thing listed as wrong, it stated on the report that there was some damp on the bathroom flooring so I spoke with the agent who asked my permission to get a workman/contractor hired by them to fix the problem, I agreed to this and was chargd £260 for a new floor to be laid, the leak to be fixed and new taps installed - I was then advised that everything was fine. That was circa 10 months ago, I have now seen the bathroom with my own eyes and it is awful, the skirting boards are rotten where the bath has still been leaking, the 'professional' contractor mastic around the edge of the bath which barely sticks to it and has huge gaps and the new flooring that I paid to have laid down has a huge black damp stain on it that is the size of the whole bathroom. I am worried that the agency will say 'we told you about the damp patch as it says it on our report', however this was on the old flooring and not the new flooring that I paid to have laid. I forgot to mentoin, when I initially listed the problems with my house they agency said 'you should claim on your insurance' - why should I when it is due to their negligence that my property is in a shabby state?

I telephoned the agency on Monday of last week and listed every single item that is wrong in the house and they told me that they would get the 'top boss' to call me later that day - I haven't heard anything from them since. I am going to put my complaint in writing and if I do not hear back from them within a reasonable time frame I will then write to NALS.

Thanks for the advice so far, I appreciate it.

[Paul_f]

Put your complaint to Isobel Thompson at NALS.

I would be very interested to find out the outcome. I actually don't think they will be able to help you, but it's worth a try! At best all they can probably do is ask the agent and yourself to submit documentation to an independent arbitrator, who I understand is nominated by the agent about whom you are complaining! (What their level of expertise to do this
is anyone's guess!)

Now that's how to resolve a dispute!

[JAP123]

Update...in summary, the tenant moved out on 2 Oct, the agency did the check out on 3 Oct, I visited the property on the evening of 3 Oct and telephoned the agency on the 4th and several other times that week. Nobody at the agency could help me and nobody rung back so I telephoned again on 11th and asked a member of staff to list, by room, every single things that was wrong/damaged in my house. She told me that she would pass this information to the agency's area manager who would ring me back later that day - he did not. I left it a week and heard nothing so I wrote a letter to the head of the agency stating that I'd made several telephone calls, etc and listed everything that was wrong. Another week has gone by and I have heard nothing - the agency just ignores my calls and correspondence - they still have the tenant's holding deposit. I am absolutely fuming. I have now consulted a solicitor who today drafted me a letter to the agency, basically saying I want the holding deposit plus compensation for any other damages to the house. I posted it off. Tonight I got home from work and there was a letter from the agency. Was it a response to my previous letter? No, don't be silly - it was a check out report for my property that said 'condition - excellent', 'damage - nothing', 'general state - excellent'. I cannot believe it! Apart from the fact that the girl who did the check out report told me on the phone that the garage door was broken, I have listed every single thing that is wrong in the house and they've sent me a 'perfect' check out report! The person the check out report is from has been off sick for the last month and whomever has 'pp'-d it, well their signature is illegible. Unbelievable!! They are absolutely USELESS. I chose them because they were a supposed reliable agency - they are quite a large group in Essex and their promotion/marketing is very convincing, however the service (or lack of) that you receive is absolutely diabolical.

I will keep you posted! :mad: