I recently moved out of a shared house where my cat caused some damage to the carpet on the first floor landing. I believe this to be about 5 square metres and my landlord is now charging me £220 for this as well as £60 for fitting. I know its possible for carpet to cost this much however I am sure the original carpetting did not cost as much as this and I feel he is ripping me off. I am at the moment waiting for him to fax me details of the quote. What I want to know is what are my rights? Can I stop him from ripping me off? Only the money he is charging is nearly all of my deposit.
I am willing to pay for the damage but £300 is ridiculous.
By the way, I moved in there before April so the new law about deposits doesn't apply. I checked :(
2007-05-29 03:36:42 · 10 answers · asked by Anonymous in Business & Finance ➔ Renting & Real Estate
When I said the original carpet didn't cost as much as the one he's replacing it, I meant in terms of quality. I know I need to pay for the damage my cat did, but I think he is using my money for an improvement rather than a replacement.
2007-05-29 03:47:06 · update #1
Just so you know, my landlord has been in touch with his solicitor and has been put straight. He is now letting me pick the carpet and price and will pay me back what he owes me. Thanks to those who actually tried to help as opposed to those who were just putting me down or DIDN'T READ THE QUESTION PROPERLY!
2007-05-29 21:29:19 · update #2
What you may want to do is get 3 quotes from a carpet company that was the same grade & quality.
Present the quotes to the landlord and explain that it is comparable to what was there. See if you can meet him at middle ground. If he wants to "upgrade" to a better quality carpet then he should pay that difference, not you.
2007-05-29 03:42:32 · answer #1 · answered by Deme21 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
£60 is a standard carpet fitting fee for stairs, £220 seems a little steep but if he's gone to somewhere like carpet right then it could well be the right price, you should ask him to look at other suppliers or offer to look yourself, indpendent carpet suppliers can often be cheaper and things like underlay and gripper rods are ALOT cheaper if bought from suppliers that only sell those things (look on the internet, I got really good quality underlay for half the price the carpet people were asking) If he is insisting that you pay for all the damage then I think it's only fair that you should be lalowed to see if you can get the quote down a bit! he should be nice as he is getting a brand new carpet out of it! If you are in the london area then Vincents flooring in surrey is excellent and cheap, there's a website that sells underlay by the meter, worthwhile as it will save you money
2007-05-29 03:50:51 · answer #2 · answered by Jody W 4 · 3⤊ 0⤋
The best way, and for future reference, would have been for you to get the damage rectified prior to you moving out. This way you would have control of the cost. Bear in mind that the landlord can't really get the property re-let until the new carpet is fitted. By rights, if this were to cause a significant delay, you could be charged for this as well.
The price does sound a bit steep, how about offering to pay the carpet fitters directly, this way you can be sure the landlord isn't adding costs on to the price.
2007-05-29 03:57:06 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 1⤋
You could have had the carpet replaced before you moved out. It's not up to your landlord to search the country for something cheap just to suit you. £220 doesn't seem expensive for carpet and fitting. The £60 will be a charge from the fitters for taking up the old carpet and removing it, plus tipping charges. I'd write off your deposit - your cat was the problem.
2007-05-29 08:21:35 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Your "right" is to pay for the damage caused by your cat. Your option was to have it fixed at your own expense prior to move-out. Since you opted not to do that you're largely stuck with the landlord's quoted damages.
What the carpet originally cost the landlord isn't a factor; what it costs to replace it today with "like kind and quality" is what matters. Unless you can substantiate that he's replacing it with something of significantly higher quality than what was there originally you'll have to pay what he asks for.
2007-05-29 03:44:35 · answer #5 · answered by Bostonian In MO 7 · 3⤊ 1⤋
if you wanted to replace the carpet you should have had it done .now the landlord is stuck doing it .ask for reciepts that is all you can do .next time YOU fix your cats mistakes don't leave it up to the landlord or this my happen again
2007-05-29 04:54:16 · answer #6 · answered by henryredwons 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋
It is possible that he has had to replace the entire carpet including the stairs, which he has a right to do, if he cannot find an identical carpet to patch!
2007-05-29 03:47:49 · answer #7 · answered by forgetmenot1908 3 · 2⤊ 1⤋
you have a right to see two seperate quotes and then go get an estimate of your own. if u find something cheaper u have a right to ask ur landlords to use them but he doesnt have to. just come to some sort of agreement so the matter can get resolved.
2007-05-29 03:47:27 · answer #8 · answered by spadezgurl22 6 · 3⤊ 0⤋
If you can get quotes for less why not offer to get it done yourself?
Landlords are notoriously self centred when it comes to their 'property' and feel they were doing you a big favour. They conveniently forget to remind themselves of your role in their wealth !
Best of luck !!
2007-05-29 03:46:39 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 1⤋
yes he is ripping you off
2007-05-29 03:44:44 · answer #10 · answered by wonderingstar 6 · 0⤊ 3⤋