Holiday Let Wear and Tear: What You Can and Cannot Charge For
Every holiday let accumulates wear. The question is whether what you find at check-out is the inevitable result of normal use, or something that crosses the line into chargeable damage. Getting this right matters for your relationship with guests, your standing on booking platforms, and your ability to recover genuine losses.
The difference between wear and damage
Wear and tear is the gradual deterioration that results from normal, careful use of a property and its contents over time. It is something every letting business accepts as a cost of operation. Damage is something different: it results from misuse, negligence, or an accident that a careful guest should have reported or avoided.
The distinction matters because you cannot deduct from a guest's damage deposit, or pursue a claim via a booking platform's host guarantee, for normal wear and tear. Trying to do so will typically result in the claim being rejected and may generate a dispute that harms your reviews.
Wear and tear vs damage: examples
Normal wear and tear (cannot charge)
- Minor scuffs and marks on walls from normal movement and furniture contact.
- Light carpet wear in hallways, stairs and high-traffic areas.
- Small fading of curtains or upholstery from light exposure over time.
- Gradual dulling or light scratching of wooden surfaces with regular use.
- Loose or slightly worn handles, hinges and cupboard fittings after extended use.
- Minor finish wear on worktops from normal food preparation.
Damage (can charge, with evidence)
- Burns on worktops, carpets, or upholstery.
- Large stains on mattresses, sofas, or carpets that cannot be cleaned out.
- Broken furniture, fixtures, or fittings: chairs, bed frames, blinds, handles snapped off.
- Significant wall damage: holes, deep gouges, or large scuff areas requiring repainting.
- Crockery, glassware or cookware broken beyond what could be attributed to normal washing-up.
- Damage to external property: garden furniture broken, gate posts damaged.
- Pet damage where pets were not agreed in the booking terms.
The grey areas
Some situations sit on the line. A sofa that is badly faded or sagging after five years of heavy guest use is wear, but the same sofa stained and permanently marked by a single stay is damage. The age and condition of the item at check-in matters enormously. A guest cannot be held fully responsible for damage to an item that was already in poor condition.
Mattresses
Surface marks and slight compression over time: wear. A large stain, a burn, or structural damage to springs or frame: damage. Photograph mattresses carefully at the start of each season.
Carpet
Gradual pile wear in walkways: expected. A specific stain, burn or tear in an otherwise good carpet: damage. The key is being able to date when the stain or damage appeared.
Kitchen equipment
Gradually worn non-stick coating, minor surface marks: wear. Missing items, cracked appliances, smashed equipment: damage. Do an inventory check after every stay.
Garden and outdoor furniture
Weathering and gradual fading of outdoor furniture: wear. Something broken, tipped, or removed: damage. Outdoor items are often overlooked in check-out inspections.
Why photo records change everything
Without a dated photographic record of condition at check-in, you have almost no basis for a damage claim. This is not a technicality; it is the practical reality of how disputes are resolved by booking platforms, mediators and, in extremis, courts.
The standard you should be working to is a full photographic record of every room, every soft furnishing, every appliance, and all surfaces before the first arrival of each new season, and ideally before and after every stay for high-turnover properties.
- Photograph every room from multiple angles, not just the corners.
- Close-up photos of any pre-existing marks, scratches or wear so they cannot later be attributed to a guest.
- Photograph appliances, kitchen equipment and soft furnishings specifically: these are the most frequent dispute items.
- Date-stamp your photos, either in the filename or using your phone's location and timestamp metadata.
- Store photos somewhere accessible to you and your agent. They are useless if you cannot find them when a dispute arises.
- Do the same process at check-out to create a comparison record.
Every Acacia Property Care maintenance visit includes a photo report as standard. These records provide an independent, dated, third-party condition record that carries more weight in a dispute than owner-only photos.
A practical approach to managing wear
The most effective strategy is to accept that normal wear is a cost of running a holiday let and build a maintenance budget around it, rather than trying to recover every minor deterioration from guests. This keeps your reviews positive, reduces disputes, and results in a better maintained property overall.
Where genuine damage occurs, pursue it through the proper channels with proper evidence. A clear photo record and a prompt, professional communication to the guest tends to resolve most situations without escalation.
Budget for replacement cycles
Mattresses, sofa covers, soft furnishings and kitchen equipment all have a lifespan in a high-turnover let. Budget for replacement every three to five years rather than trying to extend indefinitely.
Pre-season snagging
A walk-round at the start of the season identifies wear that needs addressing before it becomes a guest complaint or deteriorates further. Small fixes are cheaper than guest disputes.
Guest-ready inspections
A short inspection before each arrival catches anything missed in the previous checkout and provides another dated condition record.
Act quickly on damage reports
If a guest reports damage or a defect during their stay, responding quickly and professionally protects your reviews even when the issue is their fault.
Common questions
Can I charge guests for normal wear and tear?
No. Normal wear and tear is an accepted consequence of use and cannot be charged back to guests. This includes minor scuffs on walls, small marks on furniture from normal use, slightly worn carpet in high-traffic areas, and minor fading. You can only make a charge or deduction where you can demonstrate that damage goes beyond what you would reasonably expect from normal occupation.
What counts as damage rather than wear and tear?
Damage is typically characterised by something being broken, stained, burned, cut or significantly marked in a way that would not result from normal careful use. Examples include a broken chair leg, a large wine stain on a mattress, burn marks on a worktop, smashed crockery, or a door handle pulled from its mounting. The key question is whether a careful guest using the property as intended would be likely to cause this.
How important are photos for wear and tear disputes?
Essential. Without photographic evidence of the condition at check-in, you cannot demonstrate that damage occurred during a guest's stay rather than before it. A photo record of every room, every appliance, and every surface taken before and after each stay is your only practical evidence in a dispute. Brief notes alongside photos help, but photos are the foundation.
What role does a maintenance inspection play?
A maintenance inspection before or after a guest stay serves two purposes: it catches issues that need fixing before they become complaints or disputes, and it creates a documented record of condition at a specific point in time. When an inspector identifies and photographs a defect, the record is more credible than owner-only photos taken in a dispute context.
Do booking platforms help with wear and tear disputes?
Major platforms including Airbnb have damage deposit or host guarantee schemes, but they require documented evidence and tend to have strict claim windows. Without photographic check-in and check-out evidence, claims are very difficult to pursue regardless of the platform's policy. The practical protection is your own documentation, not the platform's scheme.
Important
The information provided on this page is for general guidance only. It does not constitute legal, regulatory, or professional advice.
Compliance requirements can vary depending on property type, location, and individual circumstances. You should always confirm obligations with the appropriate qualified professional or relevant authority.
Want an independent photo record for your property?
Acacia Property Care provides guest-ready checks and maintenance visits with a full photo report as standard. A dated, third-party condition record is the most practical protection you have in a wear and tear dispute.