Tenanted property has been burgled leaving the front door of the house needing repair. Who is responsible to pay for it? Of course I like to keep a tenant happy but should they be insured to cover the repair
Landlord is responsible to get it repaired and asap. Whether the tenant is liable for the cost depends on the circumstances.
On what circumstances does it depend
If it was in reality someone known to the tenant (eg a guest or their dealer or an angry suitor) who kicked the door in, you may be able to take it from their deposit. However, in practice this may be difficult to prove.
If it was a burglary they should have reported it to the police and there should be an incident number
At least you can use that to find out the circumstances
Your insurers will want to know
The neighbours may be able to help you
It would come under buildings insurance not contents so tenants can not claim. Get the crime reference number from the tenant and claim off of your insurance.
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Surely the landlord is responsible and should be able to claim from buildings insurer
The landlord is always responsible for the repair. Whether or not they can claim it from their insurance may depend on the type of insurance they have and whether it was malicious damage.
In my experience damage to front doors is rarely down to burglary as burglars don’t tend to announce their arrival with a lot of noise. If the tenant doesn’t have a crime report number it makes it even less likely. The most common cause is tenants forgetting their keys or an argument with one of their mates.
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