Rental property for holiday - Landlord withholding deposit

mathie

After a week long rental of a house the landlord is withholding deposit and saying that he had to get carpets cleaned and cleaners in.

One of the children staying the house go sick on a carpet and we tried our best to clean it.

By the time the next people arrived they said the house wasn't clean.

The landlord told us that he'd clean between rentals but now is looking for 400 euro to cover costs of cleaners and carpet clean.
Deposit was 150.

What are my options here?

Thanks
M

whippet

mathie wrote: »

One of the children staying the house go sick on a carpet and we tried our best to clean it.

By the time the next people arrived they said the house wasn't clean.

thats your answer there. You left the carpet dirty and the LL is entitled to use your deposit to have it cleaned (that is what the deposit is for) .. i'd imagine this isn't covered by the PRTB as it was a holiday rental. To get a carpet professionally cleaned from vomit will cost at least what your deposit was.

Michael D Not Higgins

Is that 400 total or on top of the 150 deposit? Either way, €400 seems excessive. Did he provide receipts? I'd cut a deal and say let them keep the 150 and walk away.

strandroad

He is entitled to have it professionally cleaned as vomit stains are certainly not normal wear and tear, but it doesn't cost €400 to do this. You should forfeit your €150 deposit and be done with it.

Mrs OBumble

The 400 is most likely the revenue they lost when the next booking turned up, went inside and came straight back out again complaining about the smell, and left. If you signed a contract you're probably liable for it.

Eldarion

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

The 400 is most likely the revenue they lost when the next booking turned up, went inside and came straight back out again complaining about the smell, and left. If you signed a contract you're probably liable for it.

Now we're getting grey.

One could argue he should've checked the apartment between bookings to assign liabilities, if any, to the previous booking. It sounds like the next booking showed up, found it wretched, complained and cancelled. It was only then the Landlord went about getting the place professionally cleaned.

Aware of speculation, but this does sound like the case. On the flip side if he did check it between bookings, didn't take action and continued on with the next booking aware of the current state of the property then surely he himself is liable for the lost revenue and can only assign the cost of cleaning to the previous booking.

Thargor

mathie wrote: »

One of the children staying the house go sick on a carpet and we tried our best to clean it.

Do you really need to make a thread to have this explained to you?

Why didn't you clean up your childrens vomit on someone elses property? Would you not feel embarrassed leaving it there for the next person to find?

cpoh1

Thargor wrote: »

Do you really need to make a thread to have this explained to you?

Why didn't you clean up your childrens vomit on someone elses property? Would you not feel embarrassed leaving it there for the next person to find?

This a thousand percent. If the next group turned up and spotted the issue its clear you made little effort to clean it up properly.

That's pretty embarrassing behaviour OP, what if this was your own house?

Michael D Not Higgins

Thargor wrote: »

Do you really need to make a thread to have this explained to you?

Why didn't you clean up your childrens vomit on someone elses property? Would you not feel embarrassed leaving it there for the next person to find?

They did clean it. We can't really judge how much effort they put in as we don't know. They should have notified the landlord but I'd expect a holiday letting to have a cleaner in between lettings who could have notified the landlord before the next family came to stay.

What we also don't know is the terms of the rental they signed up to and how much the cleaners actually cost. There is a possibility the landlord is chancing his arm to gouge them, or it could be that the cost of emergency carpet cleaning and agreed terms allowed him to charge it.

jmayo

I don't know how many times I have cleaned up kids vomit from floors, carpet included, at this stage.

And I don't want to get into a step by step guide, but it isn't that damm hard if you use some cleaning products and good old fashioned elbow grease.
It shouldn't even leave a stain depending on carpet and you shouldn't need to get in professional cleaners to do a good job unless it is some sort of special deep pile carpet.
And the chances of having that sort of carpet in holiday rental is slim to none i would bet.

Unless the OP was totally useless leaving a big smelly pile of vomit with stains and to compound it the landlord or their agent didn't do a proper cleaning before next guests, I can't see how it became such a problem that needed professional cleaners.

Pardon the pun, but something doesn't smell right about this story.

Sadderday

.................

I will never understand why people have carpets down in these rental properties