Point of view, from the "lantern fixed loss" event to see the lease loss liability.
Published:
2024-04-08
The author combs the relevant provisions of the Civil Code for the responsibility for the loss of the leased property and the matters that should be paid attention to in the process of renting the house.
Recently, the incident of "fixing the damage of the lantern" in Shangrao, Jiangxi Province has aroused widespread public concern. When the tenant withdrew the rent, the landlord checked the house bit by bit with a searchlight and finally made a compensation list of nearly 10,000 yuan. According to the information disclosed online by the parties concerned, the rent of the house was only 1200 yuan. The landlord's "meticulous" behavior and the "huge" amount claimed shocked the public. The author combs the relevant provisions of the Civil Code for the responsibility for the loss of the leased property and the matters that should be paid attention to in the process of renting the house.
The 1. shall not be liable for losses arising from the reasonable use of the leased property.
Article 709 of the the People's Republic of China Civil Code stipulates that "the lessee shall use the leased property in accordance with the agreed method. If the method of use of the leased property is not agreed upon or the agreement is unclear, and cannot be determined in accordance with the provisions of Article 501 of this Law, it shall be used in accordance with the nature of the leased property." Article 703 stipulates that "if the lessee uses the leased property in accordance with the agreed method or according to the nature of the leased property, resulting in the loss of the leased property, it shall not be liable for compensation."
The loss here refers to the reduction of the functional utility of the leased property or the reduction of its useful life when the leased property is movable or immovable property, and the use of the leased property will inevitably lead to the loss of the leased property, which is an inevitable phenomenon. Reasonable wear and tear often refers to the normal wear and tear, volatilization, oxidation or other functional degradation or degradation of the leased property. Judging whether the loss is reasonable or unreasonable should be based on the following criteria, one is the agreement of the parties, if the parties in the lease contract to judge the loss of the lease, then according to the agreement. Second, by the nature of the lease itself, the nature of the lease can determine the use of the lessee, the nature of the lease also determines whether the loss of the lease is reasonable, generally speaking, according to the nature of the lease to use the loss of the lease should be reasonable.
Therefore, the lessee's use of the leased property conforms to the agreed use method or the nature of the leased property. The losses caused by the use of the leased property commonly include ground wear, aging of furniture and electrical appliances, stains from walls and kitchens, pilling on sofa surfaces, etc. These are all reasonable losses caused by normal use and are also the normal results of the use of the leased property. The lessee should not be liable for compensation.
If the 2. uses the leased property unreasonably and causes damage to the leased property, the lessee shall be liable for compensation.
Article 711 of the the People's Republic of China Civil Code provides that "if the lessee fails to use the leased property in accordance with the agreed method or in accordance with the nature of the leased property, resulting in loss to the leased property, the lessor may terminate the contract and claim compensation for the loss."
According to the above analysis, it is unreasonable to use the lease not in accordance with the agreed method or according to the nature of the lease, and the resulting loss is unreasonable. According to the rule of thumb of daily life, common damage to floor tiles, walls, etc. caused by unauthorized use of the rented house for residential use for production and operation, as well as broken toilet cover, large depression on the surface of kitchen gas stove, large area damage on the surface of tables and chairs, etc. The lessee shall be liable for damages to the leased property caused by the lessee's unreasonable use.
3. the lessee should pay attention to in the process of leasing the house
Matters needing attention when signing the contract and delivering the (I) leased property
1. When the lessee leases the house, it shall sign a complete house lease contract with the lessor, and make a clear agreement on the lease term, rent, purpose and use method, maintenance responsibility, etc.
2. At the time of delivery, make a delivery list, count the current situation of the house (such as doors and windows, walls, etc.) and the types and quantities of articles in the house, and record the conditions (such as air conditioners, refrigerators, water heaters, etc. should be tested in time, and the conditions of the articles should be recorded truthfully), and the lessor and lessee should sign for confirmation and properly keep them.
3. When delivering the house, the lessor or the lessee can make video recording or take photos (the video recording and pictures taken should reflect the room number, the overall layout of the house, the details of the items and other information, and can be taken with watermark camera and other software, indicating the shooting time and shooting place). Both parties jointly confirm to prevent the situation of the leased property at the time of delivery and the leased property at the time of withdrawal in case of dispute.
Matters needing attention in the use of (II) leased houses
Article 172 of the the People's Republic of China Civil Code stipulates that "the lessor shall perform the obligation of maintenance of the leased property, unless otherwise agreed by the parties." Article 713 stipulates that "the lessee may request the lessor to repair the leased property within a reasonable period of time when it needs to be repaired. If the lessor fails to perform the repair obligations, the lessee may repair the leased property by itself, and the repair expenses shall be borne by the lessor. If the use of the leased property is affected by the maintenance of the leased property, the rent shall be reduced accordingly or the lease term shall be extended. If the leased property needs to be repaired due to the lessee the fault of the lessee the lessee." Article 714 stipulates that "the lessee shall keep the leased property properly and shall be liable for compensation if the leased property is damaged or lost due to improper custody."
According to the above provisions, the lessee shall, in the process of renting the house, do its duty to use and properly keep the leased property, and do its duty of care to the general user to avoid damage to the leased property (such as not punching holes in the walls of the house without authorization, not pasting stickers that are difficult to clean, etc.). At the same time, according to the agreement on maintenance responsibility in the lease contract signed with the lessor, the articles that are worn out in normal use shall be repaired or the lessor shall be required to repair in time to avoid further expansion of the loss.
How should the lessee respond to the lessor's claim when the (III) withholds the lease?
1. The lessee and the lessor shall conduct reasonable negotiation, and compare the delivery status and current situation of the leased property through the delivery list or the video or pictures taken during the delivery of the leased property. (In daily life, the number of rental information released by the intermediary agency is relatively large, and the intermediary agency will shoot VR video and upload the pictures in the house. If both parties do not retain the pictures or videos during the delivery, it can be identified to some extent through videos or pictures taken by intermediaries). If the delivery list is not produced or the parties do not retain the video or pictures of the lease at the time of delivery, according to the rules of proof, the lessor shall bear the burden of proof that the lease is damaged compared to the condition at the time of delivery.
2. In case of loss, the lessee shall not be liable for compensation if the loss of the goods claimed by the lessor is caused by normal and reasonable use according to the way of use agreed in the contract or the nature of the leased property combined with the daily rule of thumb. If it is the loss of the goods caused by the unreasonable use of the lessee, the lessee shall be liable for compensation at this time.
3, for the maintenance responsibility, according to the degree of damage to the lease, the lease period of depreciation, compensation for the loss of the way three angles to further confirm the loss of the housing part of the responsibility sharing. It should be noted that the lessor should have a certain obligation to tolerate the natural wear and tear of the ancillary facilities and equipment in the house, and should not be too harsh, requiring the lessee to restore in accordance with the new state or in accordance with the replacement price compensation.
4. The amount of compensation claimed by the lessor shall be verified to be reasonable, and the lessor may be required to produce proof of purchase and invoice to verify the authenticity of the claimed price. If the lease does need to be repaired, the lessor may be required to inform the compensation price, and if the price is too high to exceed the market price or the necessary price for repair, the lessee may repair it himself.
5. If there is a compulsory claim and the amount is large, which is obviously inconsistent with the actual situation, it is recommended that the lessee keep the corresponding evidence and adopt legal methods to protect its legitimate rights and interests.
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