Bedbugs in rented flat - who pays?

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buswell
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Bedbugs in rented flat - who pays?

Postby buswell » Wed Oct 09, 2019 4:56 pm

Hi all,

Long time reader, first time poster!

I had an infestation of the dreaded bed bugs but I think they're gone now (second round of fumigation was over a week ago and I haven't seen them since)

I'm in a rented flat in central Malaga. While there's every chance I, or a guest, have brought them in, it is a flat in a large building, and I have seen other residents chucking things away...

The fumigation wasn't exactly cheap at €380, and I pay the not small price of €700/month for the flat, so is it fair that I paid the whole fumigation fees?

Just wanted to get people's opinions on whether I was right to pay it, or whatever I should ask the landlord for half (if not all!)

Thanks,
Buswell

Beachcomber
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Re: Bedbugs in rented flat - who pays?

Postby Beachcomber » Wed Oct 09, 2019 5:27 pm

Did you inform the landlord at the outset? How long have you been in the apartment? How long after you took possession of the apartment did the bed-bugs appear?

I am neither a renter nor a landlord but if I became so desperate that I needed to rent out my apartment I would expect, unless my tenant had an agreement with me that he could pay for items as they arise then claim back the money from me (or knock it off the rent), that I would be involved in any situation that required a considerable outlay at the outset rather than be asked to pay a bill subsequently especially for something that may not even be my responsibility.

It obviously depends on the size and exact location of the apartment but I would say that €700 per month for an apartment in the centre of Málaga far from being 'not a small price' is at the very bottom end of the rental scale.

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costakid
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Re: Bedbugs in rented flat - who pays?

Postby costakid » Wed Oct 09, 2019 8:53 pm

Paying 700 euros in the centre is not a lot of money the way things have gone over the last 3 years. Air BNB have slaughtered the private long term rental market. I actually dont think you have much of a chance legally of getting any money from your landlord unless you have just moved in. Morally he may feel obliged to give you something.

buswell
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Re: Bedbugs in rented flat - who pays?

Postby buswell » Thu Oct 10, 2019 4:32 pm

Thanks Costakid. Two things there

A) RENTAL PRICE: thanks for the price confirmation. When I rented a year ago, I thought it was about market value (and I'd just moved from London where I was paying the same for one room way out in Leytstonstone). Since then people have made "WHAT 700?!" type statements, but I don't think they know the market recently. Obviously we can all hate on landlords, but who knows what the future holds for Spain (el crisis, negative equity?) so I don't blame them for "making hay while the sun is shining"

B) FUMIGATION: cool. The main thing is for me to not feel cheated. I've read in the US people go half-half, but over there bed bugs are seriously more of a problem

jhonie99
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Re: Bedbugs in rented flat - who pays?

Postby jhonie99 » Thu Oct 10, 2019 6:06 pm

Unfortunately, u put horse before cart!!

Mentioning other countries is irrelevant. It's Spain and we operate to Spanish law only.

U fixed the problem without consultation with your landlord, so it's totally your liability.

Any problems with a rental should firstly be communicated to your landlord, verbally initially with a followup via burofax with an instruction to fix the issue. If they fail to keep the rental in a fit and habitable condition, only then would it be acceptable to fix it yourself and invoice the landlord for the cost (take it off the rent).

Additionally, pressure can be put on the landlord by referring to their legal obligation to deposit the fianza with the local authorities within one month of signing the contract.
Also, I presume they have attached the legally required energy certificate to the contract, on signing. If not............
Also, the catastral reference or the finca number should be mentioned in the contract, if not............

etc.

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spanish_lad
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Re: Bedbugs in rented flat - who pays?

Postby spanish_lad » Mon Oct 14, 2019 4:33 pm

I totally agreey jhonie99 ... if its a legal rental. We pay cash, without a contract, and anything that needs to be fixed we moan at the landlady and she normally pays for it.

not everyone has everything "correct". dont forget theres a mountain of black money still in spain.
Alhaurin el Grande since 99, working at the airport since 2011.

buswell
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Re: Bedbugs in rented flat - who pays?

Postby buswell » Thu Oct 24, 2019 12:42 pm

Hey all,

Yes it's a legal rental, and yes, we did inform the landlords. The landlords were the ones who told us which fumigators to go with, and I have the receipt of course to prove that.

The flat was uninhabitable though. So were I to say "well, I'm not paying", I would then have had nowhere to live. Going into an Airbnb would not financially make sense

@Beachcomber - sorry I didn't reply to any of your message!
* yes informed straight away (see above comment)
* I'd already rented the property for ELEVEN months.

I think @costakid sounds about right to be honest with me having no chance of getting the money back


@jhonie99 - of course they haven't put the money properly in the correct place with the fianza 8-)
That's something else I'll finally have to investigate when I want to leave Spain (and this kind of thing is yet another one of the reasons why I think about leaving all the time)
Your other comments are great though. I'll get the landlady round for a visit and mention that

are there any legal precedents for this? When I spoke to the landlady, estate agent, and building manager, they all said they hadn't heard of bed bugs in decades

Were this Madrid (where they appear in the papers all the time) I would have said I'm not paying anything

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Re: Bedbugs in rented flat - who pays?

Postby Manchesteral » Fri Oct 25, 2019 12:31 pm

costakid wrote:Paying 700 euros in the centre is not a lot of money the way things have gone over the last 3 years. Air BNB have slaughtered the private long term rental market. I actually dont think you have much of a chance legally of getting any money from your landlord unless you have just moved in. Morally he may feel obliged to give you something.
My mate pays almost €900.00 for 32 sq m close to the bus station in Malaga ex elec and water !

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costakid
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Re: Bedbugs in rented flat - who pays?

Postby costakid » Fri Oct 25, 2019 1:16 pm

malaga is in the top 5 most expensive per sq foot for rental.


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