Australian Property News

Accidental damage by tenants on the rise

Posted on Tuesday, December 13 2011 at 10:36 AM

Accidental damage claims are outweighing malicious damage claims, proving that bad tenants aren’t the only damage culprits, according to landlord insurer Terri Scheer.

Over the recent 12-month period, Terri Scheer figures report that malicious damage claims increased by 34 per cent, while accidental damage claims increased by 46 per cent over the same period.

The same figures also revealed that the average malicious damage claim increased by 3.6 per cent over the past year, while the average accidental damage claim rose by 16 per cent.

“These figures challenge the stereotypes that exist in relation to rental property
damage,” said Terri Scheer insurance manager Carolyn Majda.

“There is a widely held misconception that good tenants won’t cause damage. The figures show that this is far from true. Even the best tenant can cause accidental damage to a property,” she said.

Majda said that accidental damage could be sudden and unexpected including a broken window, red wine spillage, or damage by small children, but excludes gradual wear and tear.

Malicious damage occurs out of spite or ill will like punched-in walls, kicked-in doors, intentional floor damage, or arson, she said.

Majda said that despite the higher increasing rate of accidental damage, malicious damage remains a more common claim; the average value of individual malicious damage is 27 per cent higher than claims for accidental damage.

“Malicious damage is often more extensive than accidental damage and more
likely to be spread over a number of rooms,” said Majda.

“Terri Scheer has paid claims as high as $40,000 to repair malicious damage by
tenants.

“In addition, malicious damage claims are often accompanied by claims for loss
of rental income during the time it takes for the damage to be repaired