I rented a property for roughly 11 months in a pet friendly apartment and just moved out. The furniture in this apartment was all new and the place was professionally cleaned.
Over time my cat left 3 scratch marks on the sofa and as it’s was brand new at the start they’re asking me to pay for a replacement.
The original cost them £540 due to bulk buying and delivery cost being spread out. They’ve just come to me and told me the exact same sofa will cost £750 new and £350 delivery to replace and that’s how much I have to give them.
There has been no mention of potential repair costs instead.
Legally am I obligated to give them more than the £540 it cost them at the start? And if I approach them with looking into repairing the sofa would they only be able to charge me that?
If it can be repaired to an acceptable standard then you are only liable for repair bill.
If it needs replacing then its the cost of replacement that applies (£350 seems excessive for delivery) as this is the loss to the landlord for dealing with damage. You can make a deduction as you would be providing a new sofa rather than 1 year old one. Not sure what rate is used for sofa but assuming it is expected to last for 10 years then 10% should be knocked off the cost.
As @Richard19 says, if its repairable you’d pay for that. If the damage is only cosmetic, you wouldnt pay much at all. However, if it needs replacing, it wouldnt be the cost of replacement that applies. It would be the original cost less depreciation. The deposit schemes will tell you what they reckon is the life of a sofa and if its 10 years, the landlord must deduct 11 months worth of use from the original cost of £540 ie 11÷120 = £490.50. You would only pay for the delivery cost if its actually incurred.
When you say scratch marks, do you mean small scratches or is the sofa actually ruined? You’re responsible for damage that your pet causes, but asking you for a completely new sofa seems unreasonable. I also doubt they can require you to provide the exact same sofa if it’s now only available for an unreasonable price. It’s very unlikely that DPS would find in the landlord’s favour. If you can repair it or get it repaired, that’s the most they can ask for.
Why don’t YOU go figure out the repair costs? Why are you so passive in all of this when your money is at risk? If you had this to hand then you would be in a much better negotiating position. Most sofas come with a piece of replacement material stapled to the underside, have you even checked if it is there and if it would cover the damage? In other words, have you done anything to try to resolve the problem?