18 months ago the police were called to our rental property as one of the neighbours reported a domestic and they were worried about the female tenants safety. The police did not contact me and because the tenants did not open the door they kicked it down and entered. The first I knew about it was when another neighbour rang me and I went over to find the police still there who were unwilling to discuss anything with me. They took the male tenant to the station and later released him without charge. The tenants replaced the damaged door and I thought that was the end of the matter. However, 18 months later I have received the bill from the company who boarded up the door (as instructed by the police) for £264. The tenants state that the police had told them that they would pay for this as they admitted that they should not have taken the action to kick in the door. However, as the police will not discuss the incident with us, and the tenants are prone to bend the truth, I am not sure who is ultimately responsible. Any ideas?
I think it all boils down to if the police acted lawfully and took correct measures in trying to contact the landlord, key holders, agent, neighbours etc before smashing it down.
I think the reality is you are stuck with the bill as trying to pursue police won’t be worth the cost or effort.
The cause is ultimately the tenant so I would look at pinning it on them as if they had answered the door it wouldn’t have happened. By replacing the door they accepted their liability.
Get a report number form the police. Charge it all to the tenants and check your tenancy agreement , there should be a PAR saying something as follows :
The Tenant must not use the Property for any illegal, immoral, disorderly or anti-social purposes. The Tenant must not do anything to or on the Property or any Common Parts which may reasonably be considered a nuisance or annoyance to the occupiers of neighbouring properties.
Get an incident report number from the Police to back up your claim and check if your tenant will have a record now.
Many thanks for the advice
I could have bought and had a new door fitted for that price.
It goes on the tenants account.