Cleaning responsible for over half of deposit disputes

The research, conducted by Imfuna Let, reveals that over the last three years cleaning disputes have leapt by 13% from 40% in 2011, whilst damage has dropped by from 60% to 46% in the same period.

Jax Kneppers, Founder and CEO of Imfuna Let comments: “Many tenants fail to leave their property in the same condition at check-out and are often very surprised when they are told that professional cleaning is required.  Deductions made by landlords in relation to cleaning charges are regularly disputed by tenants. Many tenants claim that the cleanliness of the property at the start of the tenancy was not clear, or that the tenancy agreement did not make clear what was expected of them.

If agents and landlords wish to make deductions for cleaning costs, they need to be careful to record the cleanliness of the property in sufficient detail, at the start and end of the tenancy. They will also need to ensure any charges they claim are a fair reflection of the property’s condition at the start of the tenancy.

We know that landlords and agents using Imfuna Let have seen a 60% drop in cleaning disputes.  We work with many letting agents and the majority have seen a vast improvement in the condition of their properties handed back at the end of the tenancy.  This has in driven down the post-tenancy cleaning bills and reduced the number of disputes over cleaning.”

Simon Smith, Managing Director of KS Property Rentals comments: “Since we started using Imfuna Let, we have seen a sharp decrease in the number of cleaning disputes we experience.  I believe this is down to the very detailed inventory we carry out using the Imfuna Let software.  We are able to record the cleanliness of the property with commentary and photographs and the digital inventory is shared with tenants at the start of the tenancy.  

Cleanliness and rubbish removal are responsible for at least 90% of our deposit claims, less and less of those claims are reaching ADR due to the fact that once a tenant moves out, we email them a copy of their check-in and check-out reports, showing the clear evidence gathered with the Imfuna App, which speaks for itself.  

As a result of seeing a thorough analysis of the property’s condition, more and more tenants are aware of the state of their fridges, ovens and the property in general, during the tenancy.  Tenants are aware of cleaning issues and generally make more of an effort to keep the property clean during their tenancy.”