Category: Tenants

The Common Clothes Moth (Tineola biselliella) or carpet moth as it is commonly known, has become a major pest in our area over the past few years. I have read many articles, both in print and on the internet and have been amazed at the amount of contradictory, conflicting and wrong information that is out there.

Through the carpet cleaning side of our business, we have encountered and successfully tackled carpet moths for many, many years and can offer some advice and reassurance.

What Are They?

The Common Clothes Moth (Carpet Moth) is small, typically with a wingspan of 14 to 18 mm and is usually a silvery bronze colour. It is a widespread moth found in most of Eurasia and has now been accidently spread by mankind to Australia. The moths themselves do not eat our fabrics, it is their larvae that cause the damage.

Unlike most moths they are not drawn to light. In fact, both adults and larvae shun bright light. The adult female seeks out dark, undisturbed places in which to lay her eggs, usually around the edge of carpets, behind curtains or under furniture e.g. sofas, sideboards and beds, or of course, suitable clothing. The eggs usually hatch in 2 to 3 weeks but in ideal conditions the whole life cycle from egg to adult can take as little as 8 weeks, enabling the carpet moth to produce several generations in a single year. The rate at which they reproduce is governed by temperature, humidity and availability of food. The larvae feed on keratin, a protein found in wool, silk and other natural fibres including cotton, linen and fur. They can tolerate mixed fibres and we have seen countless 80:20 wool/nylon carpets that have been seriously damaged. As for water, there is enough in the food they eat to sustain them without the need to drink.

Why Have Cases of Moth Infestation Become so Common?

No doubt these moths have caused problems as long as humans have used natural fibres, the problem has become noticeably worse in recent years. The reason appears to be a combination of factors, mostly due to our modern lifestyle. Heated houses allow the moth to breed more quickly, especially during winter months when previously they would have been killed off.

I personally have noticed that our company has been asked to deal with many more cases since 2007, the first of a run of poor summers when the atmospheric humidity would have increased significantly compared with the early 2000s when we enjoyed a run of good summer weather.

Such was the increase in the problem, I recall re-ordering stock of moth treatment in late 2006. For an unknown reason, 10 times the amount ordered was delivered! Given we were in the midst of a really busy period, rather than waste inordinate amounts of time, I swallowed a bitter pill and found storage for an estimated 10 years supply! Amazingly, we re-ordered just 18 months later!

How to Identify the Problem

Firstly, you need to identify the problem. Occasionally we see the adult moths flying around but they actually don’t like flying, preferring to scuttle away without taking to the air, somewhat like pheasants or partridges when you drive towards them in a car. More frequently, the more obvious indication that moths are there, is the presence of the pupal cases which look like grains of rice, found in the same dark undisturbed areas that the female chose to lay her eggs. Of course, in advanced infestations, you may become aware of bald patches where the larvae have chomped through the carpet fibres!

It is a problem that needs attending to, as matters will only get worse. The adult female can lay as many as 200 eggs during her life, therefore in good breeding conditions, the infestation can rapidly get out of hand.

Article written by Phil Hall of TLC Carpet Cleaning Specialists 01761 235600 info@rugandcarpetcleaningbath.co.uk

Part 2 of the article can be found here

Changing the rent day for a tenancy very often causes confusion for parties to the agreement so here is a quick guide to explain how it works.

The day rent falls due, commonly referred to as the rent day, is part of the tenancy agreement. For a typical Assured Shorthold Tenancy (AST) the agreement will be that rent is paid in advance and the rent day is the first day of the period which is a calendar month. For example for a tenancy starting on 23rd July, rent will be payable in advance on 23rd July and will cover the period 23rd July to 22nd August inclusive. For the next period, the rent day will be 23rd August and will cover 23rd August to 22nd September inclusive. The period of the tenancy (23rd-22nd) remains the same for the life of the tenancy regardless of the number of days in a period which will vary slightly as the number of days in calendar months vary.

There will be occasions when the landlord or tenant wish to change the rent day, before the commencement of a tenancy or during a tenancy. For example the landlord may wish to change the rent day to align with the day mortgage payments are made. Likewise the tenant may wish to change the rent day to align with pay day.

Changing the rent day does not change the period of the tenancy

One of the confusing points for landlords and tenants is that changing the rent day does not change the period of the tenancy. In the example above, changing the rent day to say the 1st of each month does not change the period of the tenancy (23rd-22nd). In this example above the fixed term of the tenancy ends on the 22nd of a month and so it follows that the periods of the tenancy are the same as those for which rent was last paid I.e. from 23rd to 22nd of each month. Why is this significant? Any subsequent notice requiring possession or notice of termination should expire on the 22nd of a month and not the day before the rent was due in this example the 1st)

How rent is calculated

Where it is agreed the rent day is to be changed, this will change the number of days for which rent is due and therefore the amount of rent payable at the first (or next) rent day. The correct way to apportion rent is always on a yearly basis from the Apportionment Act 1870 Calculate a full year’s rent; then divide by 365 for the daily rate. £950 p.m. x 12 = £11400 PA or £31.24 per day.

To assess how many days rent are due, ignore the day of the month rent is paid; what counts is the day of the month rent is payable.

Using the example tenancy above consider the following scenarios:

From the start of the tenancy the tenant wants to pay rent on the 1st of each month – To align the rent day with the period of the tenancy after the fixed term expires, make the fixed term of the tenancy from 23rd July to 30th January. This way when the fixed term expires, the rent day will be at the start of each (monthly) period. The rent payable at the first rent day will be for the period 23rd July to 31st August inclusive I.e. 40 days at £31.24 per day which equates to £1249.60. Each subsequent rent will be £950 payable on the 1st of every calendar month.

From the start of the tenancy the landlord wants rent to be paid on the 15th of each month – To align the rent day with the period of the tenancy after the fixed term expires, make the fixed term of the tenancy from 23rd July to 14th February. That way when the fixed term expires, the rent day will be at the start of each (monthly) period. The rent payable at the first rent day will be for the period 23rd July to 14th August inclusive I.e. 23 days at £31.24 per day which equates to £718.52. Each subsequent rent will be £950 payable on the 15th of every calendar month.

During a periodic tenancy the tenant wants to change the rent day to the 1st of each month – In this scenario assume the example tenancy above was for a 6 month fixed term and the change of rent day is agreed on 10th March – The rent payable at the next rent day after this is agreed will be for the period 23rd March to 30th April Inclusive i.e. 39 days at £31.24 per day which equates to £1218.36. Each subsequent rent will be £950 payable on the 1st of every calendar month. Alternatively the landlord may agree to accept a smaller amount at the next rent day to cover the period 23rd March to 31st March I.e. 9 days at £31.24 per day which equates to £281.16 with the next rent payment of £950 due on 1st April.

The landlord has no statutory obligation to repair outbuildings such as garages and sheds unless they are an integral part of the dwelling house.

The key piece of legislation that covers landlord repairing obligations is Section 11 of The Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 which covers the dwelling house (the structure and installations).

If the outbuilding was offered as part of the demised property it is reasonable that the landlord maintains it. If it was made clear in any marketing particulars and tenancy agreement that the outbuilding was excluded from the tenancy or that the tenant was responsible for maintaining it, it is not reasonable to expect the landlord to maintain it. Further, excluding the outbuilding from any inventory would make this clear from the outset as to what the landlords intentions were.

If the outbuilding was offered as part of the demised property it is unreasonable to expect the landlord to make repairs to defects that existed prior to the start of any tenancy and it should never be expected that the landlord should make improvements to the outbuilding – these would be entirely discretionary.

In all cases anything the landlord supplies must not present any health or safety risk to the tenant and should be maintained as such.