Your Indianapolis landlord just texted that you owe for the washer repair, and you're not sure you did anything wrong. In Indiana, a landlord can usually charge you for a broken appliance only if you caused the damage. The law says tenants must use appliances in a fair way and must not damage them.
If you did break it, you can owe the cost of the fix. And if your landlord sues under the state's tenant law and wins, the court can make you pay their lawyer and court costs too.
Wear and tear is different. That's on the landlord.
Find the line that fits you:
- If it came with the rental and wore out from normal use: no. Keeping it working is your landlord's job, and wear and tear can't come out of your deposit.
- If you broke it: usually yes. While you still live there, your landlord has to send you a notice before suing under the tenant law. If they already fixed it, the notice lists the repairs and the cost.
- If the appliance is yours, not the landlord's: the state law doesn't make your landlord fix it. But in Marion County, your landlord has to supply a fridge and a stove, oven or microwave unless your lease says you bring your own. So if your own fridge or stove broke and your lease doesn't say you bring your own, ask your landlord to supply one. Do that before you pay for a fix. If you do bring your own, your landlord still owes you the space and hookups for it.
- If your lease says you fix the landlord's appliances: Indiana law says a lease can't waive the landlord's duty. The lease question below has the details.
Who pays for damaged appliances in a rental?
It depends on what caused the damage. If an appliance that came with the rental breaks from normal use, your landlord pays, but if you break it, you can be charged for it.
Your side of the deal is in Indiana Code 32-31-7-5, which lists what every tenant must do.
Use each appliance the way it's meant to be used. Don't break it.
Read the exact wording
(3) Use the following in a reasonable manner: … (F) Facilities and appliances of the rental premises. (4) Refrain from defacing, damaging, destroying, impairing, or removing any part of the rental premises.
Your landlord has a duty too. Under Indiana Code 32-31-8-5, they must keep the appliances that came with the rental in good and safe working condition. We walk through that rule in does my landlord have to fix my fridge.
What if a guest broke it?
The tenant rules speak of you, the tenant, and they don't mention guests. But the deposit law lets your landlord keep money for damage that comes from you not following the law or your lease. That's in Indiana Code 32-31-3-12. And Indiana Code 32-31-7-6 says you must hand the home back in proper shape. If a guest's damage is still there when you leave, you haven't done that. So, going by the law's words, it can come out of your deposit. We found no Indiana court case that settles it. It just has to be real damage, not normal wear and tear, under Indiana Code 32-31-3-13. Read what your lease says about guests, too.
Can a landlord charge a tenant for repairs?
Yes, if the tenant caused the damage and the landlord follows the steps. Indiana Code 32-31-7-7 lets a landlord take a tenant to court for it.
While you still live there
Before your landlord can sue you under this law while you still live there, they have to tell you about the problem and give you a fair time to fix it. But if they've already fixed the damage, the law swaps that step for a different one.
Your landlord has to tell you what was fixed and show what it cost. Ask for a copy of the repair bill. The law says the cost has to be documented, and a bill is the plainest way to show it.
Read the exact wording
If the noncompliance has caused physical damage that the landlord has repaired, the landlord shall give notice specifying the repairs that the landlord has made and documenting the landlord's cost to remedy the condition described in the notice.
After you move out
That notice rule is for tenants who still live there. Once you've moved out, the landlord can skip it and go straight to court, though the deposit rules further down still apply.
What's at stake
Don't shrug off a repair charge you think is wrong. If your landlord sues and wins, the court can make you pay for the damage. It can also make you pay the landlord's lawyer and court costs.
Can your lease make you pay for appliance repairs?
Not for the appliances your landlord must keep working, going by the law's words. Indiana Code 32-31-8-4 is one sentence long. It says that if a landlord or tenant tries to sign away this part of the law, in a contract or any other way, that's void.
A lease is a contract. A lease line that tries to undo your landlord's repair duty has no effect under this law, because "void" means it doesn't count.
Read the exact wording
A waiver of the application of this chapter by a landlord or tenant, by contract or otherwise, is void.
If your landlord points to a line like that, talk to a lawyer.
There are two limits. First, the state rule covers only appliances that came with the rental and were there when you signed. Second, none of this lets you off for damage you cause. The law already makes you answer for that.
If you rent in Marion County, which takes in Indianapolis, the county adds a rule of its own. Section 10-401 of the county housing code says the owner must supply a fridge and a stove, oven or microwave to cook with, and keep them working. The one exception is a lease that says you bring your own. Check yours.
Can your landlord take appliance repairs out of your deposit?
Only for real damage, not for normal wear and tear. Indiana Code 32-31-3-13 lists what a deposit can pay for, and the first item draws that line.
Read the exact wording
To reimburse the landlord for actual damages to the rental unit or any ancillary facility that are not the result of ordinary wear and tear.
Wear and tear is the wear that comes from normal living. Indiana Code 32-31-7-6 says you must hand the home back clean and in proper shape, apart from the wear "expected in the normal course of habitation."
The 45-day list
The law sets a deadline. Within 45 days after you move out, your landlord must mail you a list of the damage, and the list must give "the estimated cost of repair for each damaged item."
Your landlord must send the rest of your deposit with it. That rule is in Indiana Code 32-31-3-14.
No list in time? Then the law treats your landlord as agreeing that you owe nothing for damage. They must give back the full deposit, under Indiana Code 32-31-3-15. If your landlord breaks these deposit rules, you can sue for the deposit you're owed. The court can also make them pay a fair amount for your lawyer, under Indiana Code 32-31-3-12. If they skip the 45-day list and still keep any of your deposit, Indiana Code 32-31-3-16 adds your court costs too.
Your part: a mailing address
This step is easy to forget. Give your landlord your new mailing address in writing when you move out, because under Indiana Code 32-31-3-12 the landlord isn't liable under the deposit law until you do.
How to protect your deposit when you move out
Paper and photos. They cost you nothing, and they can head off a fight.
Do these on your last day:
- Run each appliance: start the washer, dryer and dishwasher, and check the fridge is cold. Note anything that doesn't work.
- Take photos: the inside and outside of each appliance, with the date on them.
- Send your new address: in writing, and keep a copy.
- Keep every message: any texts or emails about repairs while you lived there.
Then watch the calendar. If you gave your address in writing and 45 days pass with no list, the deposit rules above are on your side.
For landlords: what to keep after a repair
Keep the bill for every repair, with what was fixed and what it cost. You'll need it to charge a tenant who caused the damage. It also helps with the 45-day list, which must give the estimated cost of each repair.
If you need a tech, here's how a repair call through this site works.