Rent deposit: how you get your money back
Richard Eisler is the
CEO of comparis.ch
07 June 2012 - Living
As a general rule, the landlord has to unfreeze the rental deposit with the accrued interest immediately after the tenant has moved out. At the signing of the acceptance protocol, the landlord can also give his/her approval of the deposit repayment at the same time. This, however, only applies if the landlord does not make complaints about defects when the tenant moves out. If the tenant has to come up financially for damages, he/she has to give the landlord a period of two to three months. In this time, the landlord can order the workmen, wait for their invoice and then deliver the final account to the tenant. When the tenant has paid the bills, the bank has to pay back the deposit.
Of course, the tenant has the right to access the according bills. If he/she does not agree with the demands of the landlord, the tenant should argue this in writing and give the landlord a time period for the clearance of the deposit. If no consent can be achieved, the responsible arbitration board can be engaged.
One year after the ending of the tenancy, the bank has to pay out the deposit if the landlord has not taken any legal steps against the tenant within this time period.
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