Holiday Cottage Deduction from Deposit

£15

£15

£15

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We were away last week in a very nice cottage on the Scotland/England border, in a village called Newcastleton. We damaged one of their plastic chopping boards. It was the large one, from a set of, iirc, 3. It was briefly used whilst on top of the electric hob (which hadn't been used, i.e. it was cold). On leaving the kitchen table, my son accidentally brushed against the knobs on the front of the cooker and turned one of the rings on. He didn't notice. A few minutes later I noticed smoke coming from the area and it was the plastic chopping board melting. We caught it in time to avoid damage to the hob, but the board was slightly warped and melted a patch about 9cm2. We reported it to the owner (who lives on site) and asked her to replace and let us know the cost. She said not to worry and she'll deduct it from our deposit.

We've just received an email to say she's deducting nearly £15 from our deposit, to cover the cost of a replacement set of chopping boards. Now, this is unreasonable in my mind. She should only be charging us for the item, not the set. I actually think she's being a bit over the top to be honest and that a minor incident like this should be written off as 'one of those things that happens when you let' and in the spirit of goodwill, not charge us, but whatever...

I'm also slightly annoyed that the cooker hob was so easily turned on. Every hob I've ever had (that didn't have touch controls) had knobs that either required pushing inwards in order to be turned, or had a 'bump-stop' to prevent them being accidentally turned on by nothing more than lightly brushing past them. This one didn't. They were all totally loose and free-turning.

My wife thinks we should be asking her to send us the old set, or telling her to keep the new replacement, larger board, and send us the rest of the set. Otherwise, we've just paid for her to have a nice set of replacement boards as spares.

The cost is minor, but that's not the point. We dislike being taken advantage of.
 
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Agree with above comments, it's 15 quid, not worth any more hassle, and seems pretty fair if the whole set has to be replaced. I'd be grateful the hob survived undamaged, would have been significantly more.
 
As said, its only £15. If she lets you off, then should she have to let off every other person that accidently damages small things in her cottage? I remember in one place we rented a holiday let, we broke a wine glass and bought a new box of 4 to replace it and told the owner what happened and it all ended amicably. Who cares if they gained out of it and why ruin the end of a holiday getting annoyed over something so petty
 
£15 sounds reasonable. I would also not find it unreasonable to also include an "admin" amount to cover their time and effort to replace it. But they haven't done that. So £15 is an extremely reasonable amount.

Also... username seems appropriate for thread contents :)

EDIT: If you really want the old set then ask for them. But be prepared to drive back up there to collect it. What would you do if offered that option?
 
BadMojo said:
and that a minor incident like this should be written off as 'one of those things that happens when you let' and in the spirit of goodwill, not charge us, but whatever...
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Self entitlement much? :rolleyes:

BadMojo said:
I'm also slightly annoyed that the cooker hob was so easily turned on. Every hob I've ever had (that didn't have touch controls) had knobs that either required pushing inwards in order to be turned, or had a 'bump-stop' to prevent them being accidentally turned on by nothing more than lightly brushing past them. This one didn't. They were all totally loose and free-turning.
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Now it's the hob's fault, even though your son accidentally turned it on. BAD HOB! :cry:

Teach your son to be more careful and own the issue you caused.

She can't order a new one as it's from a set, she has to spend her time ordering it, being in for the delivery, then taking it to the let herself, or have someone else do it. £15 is incredibly reasonable.
 
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200sols said:
You damaged the set, she's replacing the set. Seems fair. Trying to now blame the hob won't get you anywhere.
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I didn't damage the set. I damaged one part of it. As comparison, many standard household insurance policies don't replace matching sets if one part of it is damaged.
 
-Ad- said:
Self entitlement much? :rolleyes:



Now it's the hob's fault, even though your son accidentally turned it on. BAD HOB! :cry:

Teach your son to be more careful and own the issue you caused.

She can't order a new one as it's from a set, she has to spend her time ordering it, being in for the delivery, then taking it to the let herself, or have someone else do it. £15 is incredibly reasonable.
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Self-entitlement? :cry: I actually got that statement and mindset from reading several holiday let websites on the subject of damage (it's often the case that I drawn into prolonged internet sessions on matters when I'm only having a 'quick look'). So nothing to do with me, but recommended best practice for minor incidents. :rolleyes:

I mentioned the controls as I consider if a safety feature, to avoid such incidents and thought it unusual that this particular cooker didn't.

She lives next door.

It takes 30 seconds to order from Amazon and they'll leave it on the doorstep. No need to be home. (She revealed where she order it from.)

It's a plastic chopping board set, not a full dining table/chair set, or a suite. No real need for it to be matching. Even so, in my mind the old set now belongs to me - isn't that how many insurance companies would regard it? Also, I'm sure they don't all cover 100% replacement cost of a matching sets. I'm going to read the contract of the holiday let...

:p
 
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