Independent Check-in, Check-out reports
In typical claims for damage, redecoration or cleaning, an adjudicator will compare the condition and cleanliness of the property at the start, end of the tenancy and will attempt to come to a conclusion as to whether the landlord or agent is entitled to claim against the deposit. The law places the burden of proof on the landlord to show, on balance, that they are entitled to the claimed money by showing that the cleanliness or condition of the property has deteriorated (above and beyond fair wear and tear).
This means in practice that good, detailed, contemporaneously dated, and independent check-in, check-out reports are important for the landlord, agents and tenants alike. Photographs alone are often not detailed enough, however, to show the whole of the property nor, usually, can they easily show the condition or working order of an item.
Furthermore, photographs, videos that are undated will not hold as much evidential weight as dated photographs, videos.
In order to facilitate an effective pre or post tenancy comparison, it is also good practice to use the same inventory clerk or company for the check-in and check-out reports. This is due to the fact that reports can often take a very different format and may not be easily, readily comparable – for example, and typically, a check-out report may be far more detailed that an inventory or check-in report and this can lead to difficult disputes.
The “gold standard” would be independent check-in, check-out reports prepared by the same independent, accredited company, supported by dated photographs, video, and signed by the tenant, landlord or agent.
Such reports hold significant evidential value in disputes, whilst non-independent, unsigned reports that are not supported by video orphotographic evidence may not hold the same evidential weight and may be open to challenge.
Amendments to the inventory or check-in report can also be very important in a dispute.
Amendments, therefore, can be a crucial tool for tenants in a dispute, for example, where an item is marked as “good or clean” on an old or outdated inventory but which was found to be not in a good condition or unclean upon moving in and where a claim is made for its condition and cleanliness at the end of the tenancy. Similarly to check-in and out reports, however, amendments which are supported by (dated) photographs and videos will hold more evidential weight than those that do not.
So long as the amendments are shown to have been made contemporaneously with the start of the tenancy (usually within a week), an adjudicator will, usually, accept the amendments as part of the check-in report.
Furthermore – and importantly, any amendments should be communicated to the landlord or agent at the start of the tenancy (for example, via email/letter/SMS) however, signed amendments on the original report will also, usually, suffice.
As a final point as to the importance of an independent report, preferably from an accredited inventory clerk, from experience, I have seen numerous check-out reports which have been prepared by a contractor that may have or may appear to have an active interest in a case or dispute.
For example, a check-out report prepared by a landlord or agent’s contractor cleaner is unlikely to be seen to be independent as the cleaner, clearly, would face a conflict-of-interest in describing the cleanliness of the property at the end of the tenancy.
Such defective reports can be the basis of a complicated dispute, especially if, for example, an adjudicator is presented with alternative photographs or videos from a tenant. To reiterate, therefore, using an independent, accredited, inventory clerk or company can head-off potential disputes (which can often be time-consuming and difficult for all parties concerned).
John Bolton, adjudicator
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