Cleaning remains the number one dispute

Cleaning now accounts for 58% of all tenant disputes, up 5% year on year. Property damage is the cause of 52% of disputes, followed by redecoration 32%, gardening 17% and rent arrears 10%.

The report also shows that the average cleaning claim is the second lowest in value behind gardening and less than half the average damage claim.  Rent arrears top the claims cost, with an average value of £1,164, followed by property damage £475, redecoration £449, cleaning £220 and gardening £195.
 
Research from Imfuna Let reveals that landlords and agents using its software have seen a 60% drop in cleaning disputes.  

Jax Kneppers, Founder and CEO of Imfuna Let comments: “We work with many letting agents and landlords 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

Imfuna Let, allows users to make a very detailed inventory and record the cleanliness of the property with commentary and photographs.  The digital inventory can easily be shared with tenants at the start of the tenancy.  

Cleanliness and rubbish removal are responsible for most deposit claims and fewer reach the dispute service because agents and landlords email tenants 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, tenants are aware of the state of their fridges, ovens and the property in general, during the tenancy and make more of an effort to keep the property clean.

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.”