Review of Linley & Simpson
I had a perfectly good experience with Linley & Simpson before and during my tenancy. I thought that they were a reputable agency and would behave with integrity. How wrong I was.At the end of my tenancy I spent an exhausting day cleaning the apartment until it was almost as close to perfection as it is possible to get. A couple of days after checkout I was informed that L&S were not satisfied with some of the chrome and glass and so would be ordering a deep clean of the entire apartment.I said that I would be glad to consider paying for any specific defects identified, but I would not pay for deep cleaning of the entire apartment, which I had already deep cleaned myself. I asked L&S to inform me before instructing cleaners how much they intended to attempt to recharge me with. They did not do this. When I later chased them they informed me that they were withholding a ?260 from my deposit, this being the cost of cleaning the entire apartment.I had to submit a claim via the deposit protection scheme and ended up being awarded a ?120 of the a ?260. I considered making a claim in the small claims court for the remaining a ?140, but decided it was not worth the hassle.L&S also failed to return a few days of rent owed to me at the end of the rental. I had to chase repeatedly, eventually receiving the refund about 2 months after I had handed the property back. I am sick of landlords and agents behaving as if it is normal to withhold a portion of tenants' deposits for routine cleaning. Hotels don't charge their customers for routine cleaning at the end of their stay. Holiday lets don't usually charge for routine cleaning either. So why do letting agents think that they are entitled to charge long-term tenants for routine cleaning?It is long past time that this cynical behaviour be brought to an end.I had expected better from Linley & Simpson, but it seems I was naive. From reading other Trustpilot reviews it appears that L&S are very popular with landlords - I wonder why?My advice about Linley & Simpson to other potential tenants: avoid them - or be ready to lose your deposit through no fault of your own.
