Will the Tenant Fees Act Result in Inventories Being Taken Back In-House?

Back in the day, there were no such things as inventory companies, and letting agents had to undertake inventory on their own. This meant employing an inventory clerk, or clerks, and supplying them with a clipboard, paper, biros, and a camera. The inventory clerk may also have had other duties to attend to and, bearing in mind that you had to send rolls of film off to have the photos produced, completing a full inventory could take from several days to a couple of weeks.

Then along came inventory companies who did nothing else but carry out inventory, so letting agents who used their services didn’t need to employ their own inventory clerks. However, the introduction of the Tenant Fees Act 2019 may well encourage some agents to take inventory back in-house, and it has been suggested that this may result in inventories not being as accurate as those done by an independent company.

However, writing in The Negotiator magazine (https://flickread.com/edition/html/free/5cc80db634c3f#45) , Frances Burkinshaw says that she started her business in the 1970s when there were no inventory companies and she employed her own inventory clerks and trained them thoroughly. She said that times changed, and she invested in technology, doubtless using a free inventory clerk app such as the Reports2Go app, but that she would never be persuaded that an outside company would do a better job.

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A Free App Will Save You A Lot Of Time On Inventory

When you are a managing agent looking after many properties on behalf of your landlord clients, possibly one of the worst jobs that you have to do is carrying out inventory. And yet it is an essential part of your work.

It is one of the worst jobs because it can be extremely time-consuming. It is repetitive. And one might say boring. Yet it is important because it is vital to note any damage that the tenant has caused to the property during the tenancy. Equally, from the tenant’s point of view, it is necessary to take note of fair wear and tear. This happens to all properties, and the tenant cannot be expected to pay for wear and tear which will automatically happen in a property as time passes.

Certainly, under the TDS, the tenant has provided a deposit for the precise purpose of the landlord being able to recover the cost of repairs to damages caused by the tenant, but that cannot be claimed without some evidence. The tenant can go to arbitration and it costs him or her nothing, so it is almost in his interests to do so. The only way that you can supply evidence of damage on behalf of your client is through carrying out inventories at check-in and check-out, and on regular inspections in between. 

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If You Are A Landlord, A Check-In Report Is Vital

Whether you are a landlord who owns a property or a number of properties, it is essential that you carry out what is known as a check-in report. This is simply an inventory of the condition of your property at the point that your tenant moved in and is designed to ensure that if the tenant causes damage during the course of the tenancy you can claim damages for repair work to be carried out. This applies to the property itself and also to any furniture, white goods, and so on that you own but that are there for the tenant to use.

Any such damages are to be deducted from the initial deposit that the tenant is required to pay you under the Tenancy Deposit Scheme and is there for both your protection and that of your tenant.

A check-in report is a written report of the condition of the property at the beginning of the tenancy and is usually followed up by interim reports every year or so that will show any damage cause by the tenant. It also protects the tenant because the interim reports will show fair wear and tear for which the tenant cannot be held responsible.

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The Purpose Of The Tenancy Deposit Scheme

If you rent your home, it is normal for your landlord to require a deposit under the Tenancy Deposit Scheme (TDS). The purpose of such a deposit is to cover any damage that you may cause to the landlord’s property during your tenancy. Such damage could be accidental, or could even be wilful, but at least the landlord has the opportunity to cover the cost of some repairs.

However, the money which is the deposit remains yours, as the tenant, until your tenancy is terminated either as a result of the limit of the tenancy, because you decide to move on, or because the landlord terminates the tenancy on grounds of your behaviour.

Even if you have caused wilful damage, the landlord cannot automatically deduct any money from your deposit without your approval. If he claims damages you are entitled to a hearing under the TDS, and this costs you nothing. It is free. Arbitrators will look at the circumstances and decide whether the landlord is right to claim part, or all, of the deposit to cover his expenses in putting right any damage.

Many landlords, or their managing agents, today use an end of tenancy app which they can download to a smartphone and which allows inventory to be taken by an inventory clerk simply walking around the premises and making notes as he or she goes. The results are then compared with a similar inventory that was taken a day or so before you moved in.

The end of tenancy app enables the landlord or his managing agents to make a comparison of the state of the property over the period of time during which you were the tenant, and makes it a simple matter to note any damages caused by you. It also allows for fair wear and tear.

This would appear to be a simple and fair method for both landlord and tenant and was the way in which it was designed. The landlord cannot charge you for fair wear and tear, and equally, subject to arbitration, can recover costs to which he is legally entitled.