<p>We have a tenant in my parent’s old house who is a very solid tenant, former home owner, takes great care of the place, etc. The yard work is their responsibility as part of the lease.</p>
<p>About 2 years ago we paid to replace the glass in a slider which was shattered, probably by a lawnmower. Now I got a call that, once again, the glass is shattered and needs replacing. </p>
<p>In a standard tenant arrangement, in CA, should they have to pay for that? I feel like if I were renting a place and I broke the glass, I would repair it. The first time was in the middle of complicated circumstances and was not addressed as a separate issue, but now I am thinking, 'come on, man, be careful with that thing and repair your own breaks." On the other hand, it is a long distance rental and they are excellent tenants who have been in the place for several years.</p>
<p>The lease agreement that I signed five years ago stated that I was responsible for damage to the apartment. Son’s current place requires he have renters insurance and I think that his policy covers up to $100K damage.</p>
<p>What does your lease agreement say? If you have honerable tenants (and this seems to be the case), then they shouldn’t have any problems paying for damage that they know that they caused. And their insurance may cover it too - though their premiums will probably go up.</p>
<p>We’re in the process of moving out and I took pictures of the place when they moved in and will make sure that the place is spotless before we’re out of there and take pictures. I have to figure out the final inspection to get back our security deposit. The only damage that I’ve seen is a little scuffing by the front door - I’m thinking of touching it up myself but I will check with the landlord to see what he prefers. It might just wash off too.</p>
<p>We have a glass slider at our home too. I have parked my car, typically one to three feet from the slider for 23 years. Did you ask what the cause of the damage was? Perhaps you could do a small modification to avoid this in the future. Something like a small bump a few feet away that would alert a lawnmower operator?</p>
<p>Those glass sliders are pretty tough - it must have taken a pretty big whack to break it.</p>
<p>It could be that the door design or installation is defective, which is causing stress on the glass and causing it to shatter.</p>
<p>Or, maybe they slammed it too hard, or a lawnmower kicked up a rock. Although, how bad is your lawn if there are rocks lying around that can get kicked up by a lawnmower?</p>
<p>You never know though - I had a slider that got broken when a deer tried to jump through it.</p>
<p>
This should certainly fall under “normal wear and tear”.</p>
<p>Is this apartment in MA? If the landlord tries to ding you for it, the mere threat of a lawsuit should get your money back, because it’s about 98% certain he didn’t correctly follow the rules in collecting a security deposit, in which case it if gets to trial he is liable for triple damages. The only way to avoid triple damages is to immediately refund the security deposit when demanded, at which point he would have to take <em>you</em> to court.</p>
<p>Since they are such reliable and good tenants, and since you fixed the door the last time it broke, it seems wise to fix it this time as well. It’s tough to set a rule after the fact.</p>
<p>However, you might want to say that you’d like to share the cost of fixing it if it breaks again, say 50%/50% or something like that. That sort of cost sharing will put some skin in the game, and perhaps get him to be more careful.</p>
<p>The rental laws in Massachusetts and New York states that damages to rentals are tenant’s responsibility unless the cause of the damage was not directly caused by tenants such as broken glass doors/windows due to burglary or non-tenant vandalism. </p>
<p>In the latter cases…those are considered the landlord’s responsibility under those laws.</p>
<p>You could ask your homeowner’s insurance company their opinion on this - i.e. whether it’s something covered under your insurance or not.</p>
<p>Ethically, IMO, if the tenant was at fault (lawn mower, rock, etc.) then the tenant should pay to fix it or at least the deductible if your insurance covers it. If it was due to a defect, like slipping out of the track or something (this can happen), or vandalism or a break-in, then it’s on your end to cover it.</p>
<p>You definitely should ask the renter what caused it to break. I wouldn’t just ignore it because they’re a decent tenant otherwise.</p>
<p>I am in agreement with the people that state it depends on why the door was broken, and how much it costs to replace it. </p>
<p>If it was a regular use accident, or out of the renters control, I would replace it.
If it is cheap enough, I would replace it to maintain the tenant regardless of the cause. </p>
<p>If it was caused by neglect, I would have a discussion about sharing cost either this time or next. </p>
<p>I would also be looking at options to decrease the chance of the door breaking again (stronger glass, or a coated one that is more resistant to breakage).</p>
<p>I am pretty sure we have a high deductible so would not make a claim. They said it was ‘probably a rock from the lawnmower’ both times, though the patio is pretty deep, like 15-20 feet from the doors to the grass, so it would be a flying rock.</p>
<p>I can answer as a long-time LL, but never in Ca.
Unless this was vandals, or a break-in attempt(documented by police logs and reports)
then it is tenants’ responsibility.
However, others are correct that maybe the LL would pay it “as a courtesy” if the tenants are plenty valuable otherwise. Give a warning!</p>
<p>Let them know it is cheaper for them to arrange to fix it, than if LL has to arrange to fix it(hints that you aren’t so concerned about price because you’ll bill it to them).</p>
<p>Or see if the tenant will split the costs. Have the tenant replace the glass, maybe the tenant will be more careful and have him present the bill and deduct half the cost of the replacement glass from the rent. Frankly, it sounds like it should be replaced with plexi.</p>
<p>I don’t believe the rock from the lawnmower story. It is possible that simply having you ask questions about what happened and muse about whether the door should be replaced with something other than glass (which would either be comparatively unsightly or reduce their view) will be enough to make them stop doing whatever it is that they are doing.</p>
<p>Unless your lease is unusual, it should be their responsibility if it was a lawnmower “accident” while they were the ones mowing the lawn. I’m with those who doubt the story, but that’s neither here nor there.</p>
<p>You say they are a good tenant, and that certainly raises the possibility that you would pay it to keep them. Comes down to how much you want to keep them and whether you think they would leave if you don’t pay it.</p>
<p>If the latter, how difficult do you expect it would be to find a good tenant to replace them? If you fear not paying for it because they would be upset and stop acting like a good tenant, well… that says something, too, doesn’t it?</p>
<p>I’ve had great tenants and I’ve had tenants who were good (I thought great) but left the place at departure in such a condition that we kept all of their (very substantial) security deposit. But I don’t think you can pay for it now and then deduct from their security deposit at the end. Although perhaps you could get a written agreement to that effect.</p>