Having started my ‘tenant penalties for breaching tenancy rules‘ series a few weeks ago based on the Direct Line survey results, I was surprised to read this post from Property Industry Eye which pointed out that there was another tenancy breach.
It seems that one-third of all tenants (according to this other survey) have stolen items from their landlords.
“A poll of 2,000 adults by landlord insurer Direct Line for Business found tenants have removed items such as fridges, freezers, light fittings, televisions and even sinks.
Tenants estimate that the overall value of items they had taken from a property stands at more than £500.
I sort of expected that some items would go missing but I have to say ⅓ of tenants is more than I thought.
Their reasons appear to be:
- They thought the landlord would not notice
- The took it by accident
- They forgot it did not belong to them, and (the most popular)
- They just wanted to keep it
Hmm. I suppose most landlords won’t mind much if it’s a teaspoon, but will feel differently if it’s (say) a double bed.
Excuses 2 and 3 won’t really wash with theft of big items. You can’t expect anyone to believe that you walked off with the kitchen sink by accident!
Advice for landlords
The items (let’s not mince words) stolen by tenants can be expensive so you need to make sure that you do a proper inventory (so you can prove that things have gone missing) and carry proper insurance.
I would also suggest that you don’t put anything you value particularly in the property in the first place. This is particularly important if you are renting out your own home.
Don’t expect the police to be the slightest bit interested by the way. They will just brush it off as a ‘civil matter’.
Advice for tenants
I suppose you may ‘get away with it’ if your landlord is not vigilant. However, if they spot it:
- The value will be deducted from your deposit and
- You are unlikely to get a particularly good reference from that landlord in future (unless the items are very minor)
I suppose, though, some tenants will feel justified if their landlord has behaved badly towards them.
What do readers have to say about this? What’s your story?
hoglet says
November 22, 2016 at 9:39 AMI do not agree with the comment that the police will take no notice or say “civil matter”.
I have had white goods stolen, I reported it to the police, they not only got my goods back but put it through court and I got compensation as well, all at no cost to myself.
Maybe it is because all my white goods have my postcode on them, also I have CCTV of them being removed.
I do not have a problem of Tenants taking things very often, but a lot leave me things, curtains, light shades and small furniture.
Terry Fitzpatrick says
November 25, 2016 at 5:47 PMI agree. I have used the police to track tenants who have left in this way but I manage my own properties and carry out the most exaustive inventory. I also insist on photo ID and in the final analysis do stringent checks on who I let to. Most of this is slip shod administraation and management.
Tessa Shepperson says
November 22, 2016 at 9:42 AMThat’s fantastic, still the Police might not have been co-operative had you not made it so easy for them.
Yes, it is often a ‘swings and roundabouts’ situation where some people treat you appallingly but others are really really nice. So concentrate on the nice.
Ian says
November 22, 2016 at 4:29 PMThe issue with the police is that they must prove “beyond reasonable doubt” that the tenant stole it. All a tenant has to do in defense is say “I left the door open when I went to the shops and it was gone when I got home”.
So without CCTV showing the tenant taking the item, or the item being found in the tenant’s new home, there is nothing the police can do.
Romain says
November 22, 2016 at 7:18 PMThis only applies when it comes to arresting the probable culprit.
The issue is that the police often denies that a crime was committed at all by claiming that this is a civil matter.
If they took the matter seriously, went to the tenant’s new home and found the missing items they would have no problem proving who stole what.
Terry Fitzpatrick says
November 25, 2016 at 5:49 PMHow can this happen if there is an inventory check before and after? I blame bad managing agents usually from the big ones. Darren or Jason on the minimum wage isn’t to fussed about what’s there or isn’t. It’s all about management. Be like me, hands on!
james says
November 22, 2016 at 6:08 PMI had a fridge and a washing machine stolen by a tenant, who left without notice after three months. I had done an inventory and taken photographs of them at the beginning of the tenancy, but as she left without notice I couldn’t do a checkout with her. I took a photograph of the space left by the washing machine, but sadly the fridge space wasn’t sufficiently in view. I eventually got the cost of the washing machine from the deposit , but not the fridge. I didn’t bother to inform the Police as I thought it was a non starter. This was my first tenancy for a number of years, so we live and learn!
Lyn Roberts says
November 23, 2016 at 8:26 AMAfter being let down by bad tenants and the Tenancy Deposit Scheme who, despite having an inventory signed by the tenant agreeing that everything listed was there, gave her half her deposit back even though she caused five thousand pounds damage and missing items. Because I don’t have detailed photos of every square inch of the house, before and after her tenancy, and receipts for each of my items, they gave her six hundred pounds back. So, I think landlords should take photos of every square inch of their property and contents including, in my case, every square inch of the kitchen worktops because you can’t rely on TDS to protect the landlord.
hoglet says
November 23, 2016 at 12:33 PMThere is not much you can do about bad Tenants.
I also do not take photos of everything.
I do do infantries every six months or shorter if I suspect something (Landlords nose after many years) I make them sign each time every page and the final page where I have a comment box for them to put any comments they please.re awaiting repairs and where they do not agree with my comments.
I use a scoring method which all my staff are trained in, so it always agrees no matter who did it. On the original the new tenant is given the chance to do their own infantry, or except ours. This way they cannot argue with what was there and the condition. I find the more you do at the beginning the less problems you have at the end.
eMoov says
November 25, 2016 at 10:47 PMNo one is exempted with this situation. Not every tenant is worth your trust as a landlord, so you have to be very vigilant as well. Secure your things as much as possible and always minimize the chance of being a victim of thieves.