Dec 19, 2011 9:49 AM
First Time Keeping a Security Deposit
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I have been extremely fortunate when renting my cabin. There has never been any major damage or breach of contract....until yesterday! I rented my cabin to a couple for the weekend and the boyfriend signed the lease and made the payment. My cleaning lady called and said that all the beds were slept in and it looked like there were a lot of people who stayed by judging the amount of alcohol that was consumed in the 2 days. I e-mailed the boyfriend and asked how many people stayed at the cabin. His exact response was:
"Well, I am not exactly sure. I had orginally rented the cabin for my girlfriend and I. However, we broke up earlier in the week so, I am not exactly sure who she brought".
I have no idea who was in my cabin...I don't even have the name of the girlfiend or how old these people were! I kept the security deposit but my questions are:
What would happen if someone who was staying at my cabin was hurt on my property but was not on the lease?
What would happen if there was any major damage to my house while these people were there?
I am fully insured, have rental insurance and the contract is very detailed.
Thanks for any input.
Jean
Good questions, Jean. I'm sorry you've had to deal with this, especially at this time of year.
This is a new one to me.
I'm thinking the Signer of the lease is completely responsible, and since he did not notify you that he would not be there he'd be responsible for all damages, etc. Do you have a Hold Harmless clause in your rental agreement?
I learn something new all the time from these forums! I've tweaked my rental agreement several times because of them. Ours states clearly there are NO Proxy rentals at any time, and the Signer mst be present throughout the rental period.
I look forward to other's opinions!
Wow. Didn't have a Proxy rental statement or the statement that the signer will be present. Will now though! Thanks for good input.
I ended up sending my attorney a copy of the contract to make sure everything is covered. This really opened my eyes to the liability of renting my cabin. Most people are honest but you always get those few who ruin it for the rest of us! I also think the electronic signature causes people to not print and actually read the full contract. I am going to have them print it out, physically sign and mail it to me.
To save time, since both I and my rental are in France, I email the Rental Agreement to my guests. They in turn, physically sign it, scan and email the paperwork back to me. I never use electronic signatures. You might consider this, if time is an issue.
A hold harmless agreement (while it may not hold up well in court) is a necessary document so that the signer can see that they are responsible for any injuries that may occur, etc. Your insurance company will appreciate it too as they would be the one's to fight this battle for you if there was a claim.
I also have it on my pet agreement.
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