Check-outs
Your rights at check-out (and why you're usually not even there)
4 min read
Here is the quiet unfairness at the end of most tenancies: the check-out is arranged by the landlord or their agent, the clerk is paid by them, the tenant is rarely present, and the first the tenant hears of any problem is a list of deductions by email days later. You have more rights around this moment than the process usually makes obvious — and using them is how you keep the check-out an honest record rather than a one-sided one.
You can attend — and you should
You are entitled to be present at the check-out, or to send someone in your place. Being there is the single best thing you can do: you see each issue as it is noted, you can give your account on the spot, and disagreements get aired while everyone is standing in the room rather than surfacing weeks later from photographs. If the date offered does not work, ask to rearrange it. A check-out done without you is still valid, but you lose the chance to contest anything in the moment.
If you can't be there, the record matters more
When a tenant genuinely cannot attend, the report and its photographs become the neutral account of the day — which cuts both ways. It is why you want your own dated evidence of the state you left the property in: a set of end-of-tenancy photos, taken as you hand back the keys, gives you something to hold the check-out against. Leave the property clean, empty of your belongings, and in the condition your check-in recorded, and photograph it before you go.
The clerk is paid by the landlord, but the report is not supposed to take sides — it records condition, not blame. Your dated photos and your right to dispute are what keep it honest when you're not in the room.
You don't have to accept the deductions
A check-out report is evidence, not a verdict. When the deductions arrive, you can accept some, dispute others, and require the landlord to prove any you contest against the check-in record. Deductions cannot be taken from a protected deposit without your agreement, and if you cannot agree, the deposit scheme's free adjudication decides on the evidence. The report landing in your inbox is the start of a conversation you are allowed to have, not the end of one.
Watch the timing
Two timing points protect you. First, the report should be produced promptly after the tenancy ends — a check-out written up weeks later, especially one that adds items based on the incoming tenant's feedback, is weaker, because a resident who has moved in will always spot more than a clerk did on the day. Second, you usually have a limited window to raise a dispute once you are told the outcome, so respond in writing rather than letting it drift.
A fair check-out is one both sides can trust even when only one side was there. InventorySafe builds the check-out as a dated, photo-cited comparison to the check-in, so the report stands as a neutral record of the day — the thing you can rely on whether or not you attended.
Common questions
- Do I have the right to attend my check-out inspection?
- Yes. You can attend the check-out yourself or send someone in your place, and it is strongly advisable to do so. Being present lets you see and respond to each issue as it is recorded, rather than disputing deductions afterwards from photographs. If the proposed time does not suit you, you can ask to rearrange it.
- The clerk is paid by the landlord — is the check-out biased?
- A check-out is meant to record condition, not assign blame, and a good clerk stays neutral regardless of who pays. Your protection against a one-sided report is to attend where you can, keep your own dated end-of-tenancy photos, and dispute anything you disagree with — the deposit scheme's adjudicator weighs the evidence, not who commissioned it.
- Do I have to accept the deductions on the check-out report?
- No. The report is evidence, not a final decision. You can accept some deductions and dispute others, and a landlord cannot take money from a protected deposit without your agreement. If you cannot agree, the deposit scheme's free adjudication service decides the disputed amount on the evidence.
- What if the check-out report arrives weeks late?
- A delayed report is weaker, particularly if it adds problems based on what the incoming tenant noticed after moving in — a resident will always spot more over weeks than a clerk saw on the day. Note the delay, compare the report against your own move-out photos, and raise any late additions when you dispute the deductions.