Here is the short answer because I know you are stressing out right now. Yes, you can fix that burn on the worktop or the chip in the bathtub before your landlord sees it. You absolutely should. If you hire a professional surface repair specialist to restore the damage to its original condition before your move-out inspection, you are generally in the clear. It stops the landlord from charging you for a full replacement and it keeps your deposit where it belongs which is in your bank account. You do not have to confess to the accident if the evidence is gone. You just need to handle it quickly and quietly.
I have been a renter for a long time. I know that specific feeling of dread when something breaks. It is not just about the broken item. It is the immediate mental calculator adding up how much of that heavy tenancy deposit is about to vanish.
Maybe you put a hot pan down on a laminate surface and now there is a ring. Maybe you dropped a bottle of cologne in the sink and a chunk of porcelain went missing. It happens.
The problem is that most tenants think they only have two options. One is to hide it and pray the landlord is blind. The other is to own up and pay whatever astronomical fee the landlord quotes for a brand new worktop.
But there is a third option. You can bring in a pro like Fixation Repairs to make the problem disappear like it never happened.
The panic when you realise the damage
It usually happens in slow motion. You watch the heavy object fall and you know before it hits the ground that it is going to leave a mark. Or you smell the burning plastic before you see the scorch mark.
That sinking feeling in your stomach is universal. It is the realisation that your deposit is technically someone else’s money until they decide to give it back.
I remember staring at a cigarette burn on a windowsill in my first flat. I didn’t even smoke. A friend did. I spent three weeks moving a plant pot back and forth to cover it whenever the landlord came by for a check. It was exhausting. And stupid. Because eventually I had to move out and the plant had to move with me.
The anxiety comes from the unknown cost. You look at a small chip in a bathtub and think how much could that possibly cost? But then you start Googling and you see horror stories of landlords charging £1,500 to replace an entire tub because of a cosmetic defect.
That is when the panic sets in for real. You start thinking about your deposit as a lost cause. But it doesn’t have to be.
Understanding what counts as wear and tear
Let’s get the legal stuff sorted out first because there is a lot of confusion here. Landlords cannot charge you for “fair wear and tear.” This is standard across the UK.
If the carpet is a bit flat where you walked on it for three years that is wear and tear. If the paint is slightly faded from the sun that is wear and tear.
However, a burn mark is not wear and tear. A chip in a granite worktop is not wear and tear. That is considered damage. Negligence. Accident. Whatever you want to call it.
The rules of deposit protection schemes state the landlord can deduct money to repair this damage. However, they cannot charge you “betterment”, meaning they can’t charge you for a brand new item if the damaged one was old. This is a crucial distinction.
If you leave a burn mark the landlord has the right to fix it. The issue is how they fix it. Most landlords are not going to hunt for a budget-friendly repair artist. They are going to call a contractor who says “can’t fix it mate, need a new one” and then they will bill you for the whole replacement. That is where you lose big money.
Why landlords prefer full replacements
You have to understand the landlord mindset. They want their property to look perfect for the next tenant and they want the path of least resistance. Fixing a chip requires finding a specialist. Replacing a sink just requires calling a plumber and buying a new sink. It is less hassle for them if they are spending your money.
There is also a weird incentive structure. If they replace the whole worktop they get a brand new worktop. If they repair it they have an old worktop that is just… fixed. So naturally they lean toward replacement.
But they can’t just charge you full price for a new item if the old one was aged. This is called apportionment.
If you damage an eight-year-old carpet and it has a ten-year life expectancy you should only pay for the two years of life you “stole” from it. You shouldn’t pay £800 for a new carpet. You should pay maybe £150.
But arguing about the age of a carpet or a worktop is a nightmare. You have to prove when it was installed. You have to fight. It is exhausting. It is much better to just make sure the damage isn’t there when they look.
The third option nobody talks about
This is where things get interesting. You don’t have to replace the worktop. You don’t even have to tell the landlord it happened if you fix it properly. This is where you need to look into professional worktop repairs. There are companies like Fixation Repairs that specialise in hard surface restoration. They are like magicians for houses.
These guys come in with specialised fillers, paints, and bonding agents. They can recreate the grain of wood or the speckle of granite. I watched a guy once fix a hole in a laminate floor and when he was done I literally couldn’t find where the hole had been. I was on my hands and knees looking for it.
If you are searching for “how to fix worktop burn” or “fix worktop repairs” you will see DIY kits. Do not buy them. Seriously. Put the credit card away.
DIY kits look like DIY repairs. A letting agent will spot a blob of mismatched epoxy from the doorway. You need a professional finish that blends seamlessly with the surrounding area. That is what you are paying for. The invisibility.
Timing your repairs is critical
You need to be smart about when you do this. Unlike some places in the US, UK tenants don’t always have a statutory right to a “pre-move-out inspection,” but many good letting agents offer a pre-checkout visit. You should request this a few weeks before your tenancy ends. The agent walks through and points out obvious issues.
If the damage is obvious they will list it. “Burn on counter – replacement needed.” Once you have that list you can try to fix it yourself before the final inventory check. However, this draws attention to the area. The agent will be looking closely at that specific spot during the final checkout.
I prefer a sneakier approach. Fix it before any inspections happen. If the repair is good enough the landlord won’t even notice it during the walk-through. If they don’t notice it they don’t list it. If they don’t list it they can’t deduct for it later (mostly). It saves you the awkward conversation of “I promise I will fix that burn.” Just get it done.
The cost benefit analysis is simple
Let’s look at the numbers because money talks. Replacing a kitchen worktop is expensive. You have the cost of the material which might be £150 for cheap laminate or £800 for stone.
Then you have labour. A contractor to rip out the old one. A plumber to disconnect the sink and taps. A Gas Safe engineer to disconnect the hob maybe. You are looking at £1,000 to £1,500 easily.
A professional surface repair usually costs between £150 and £250 depending on the severity. That is it. No plumbing. No demolition. Just a guy with a toolbox for an hour or two. You spend £150 to save £1,200. It is the best return on investment you will get all year.
Even if the landlord tries to apportion the replacement cost you are likely still saving money by just repairing it.
Plus you avoid the dispute. Disputes take time. If you use a service like the Tenancy Deposit Scheme (TDS) or the DPS, the adjudication process can take weeks or months while they hold your money. Fixing it upfront buys you speed.
Finding the right repair specialist
Not all handymen are created equal. You are not looking for a general builder. You are looking for a surface repair specialist. Search for terms like “fix worktop repairs” or “hard surface restoration.” Look for portfolios. You want to see before and after photos that look impossible.
Fixation Repairs is the type of company I am talking about. They focus specifically on this niche. They aren’t trying to build a deck. They are trying to make a burn mark on a laminate counter vanish. It requires an artistic eye. They have to mix colours by hand to match the existing surface which might have faded over time.
Be careful with scheduling. These specialised trades can get booked up especially at the end of the month when everyone is moving. Don’t wait until the day before you hand back the keys. That is a recipe for disaster. Call them as soon as the accident happens or as soon as you decide to move.
I once tried to book a guy two days before my tenancy ended. He laughed at me. I ended up paying the landlord’s deduction. It was a painful lesson. Also check their reviews. You want someone who shows up on time and doesn’t leave a mess. The last thing you need is a repair guy who leaves sawdust everywhere right after you paid for a professional end-of-tenancy clean.
Documenting everything for your protection
This is the part where you have to be a bit paranoid. When you move in you should always take photos. If you didn’t do that well it is too late now but remember it for next time.
But for the repair you need evidence. Take a photo of the damage before. Take a photo of the repair after.
Keep the invoice from the repair company. This is your insurance policy. If the landlord does notice the repair (which they shouldn’t if it’s good) and claims it’s not up to standard you have proof that you hired a professional. You can argue that you took “reasonable steps” to restore the property. It makes it much harder for them to claim negligence.
Sometimes landlords act in bad faith. They might see a repair and say “I don’t like it I want a new one anyway.” If you have an invoice from a legitimate company you have a strong case with the deposit protection service adjudication. You can show that the item is functional and aesthetically restored. The adjudication process generally supports restoration over replacement where reasonable.
Dealing with the inventory clerk
If you are in a place that uses third-party inventory clerks, which is standard for most managed lets in the UK, these people are thorough. They are paid to find problems. They will look at the worktops at an angle to see scratches. They will run their hands over the bath.
However they are also human. They are comparing the current state to the check-in report. If the check-in report says “worktop in good condition” and they see a worktop that looks in good condition they mark it as fine. They aren’t forensic scientists. They aren’t using UV lights to check for polymer fillers. A good repair will pass an inventory check 99% of the time.
If you do get caught which is rare just be honest at that point. “Yes there was a small accident and I had it professionally repaired by a specialist.” Most clerks will note “professionally repaired” which is often acceptable. It is much better than “large burn mark present.”
Inventory reports are actually your friend if you manage them right. They provide the benchmark. If the report says the carpet was “frayed” when you moved in they can’t blame you for it being frayed when you move out. Read that report carefully before you start fixing things. Don’t fix damage that was already there! I almost paid to fix a crack in a sink once until I checked the move-in photos and saw it was already there. Saved myself a hundred quid.
Common mistakes tenants make
The biggest mistake is ignoring the problem until the last day. Denial is powerful. You think maybe if you scrub it hard enough the burn will go away. It won’t. You think maybe if you put a chopping board over it they won’t look. They will move the chopping board.
Another mistake is using cheap materials. I have seen people try to fix white enamel sinks with Tipp-Ex or correction fluid. It looks terrible. It peels off in two days. It screams “I did this and I don’t respect your property.” That makes landlords angry. When landlords get angry they get expensive.
Also don’t try to negotiate the repair cost with the landlord unless you have to. If you ask “how much will you charge me for this burn?” you are admitting liability and giving them control. They might say £400. If you just arrange the repair for £150 yourself the conversation never happens. Retain control of the situation.
Sometimes tenants think they can just lose the deposit and walk away. But if the damage exceeds the deposit the landlord can take you to court for the extra. I had a buddy who trashed a hardwood floor. Deposit was £1,000. The floor cost £3,000 to refinish. He got a bill for £2,000 a month after moving out. Don’t assume the deposit is the maximum limit of your liability.
Some weird quirks of the system
Here is something that might annoy you. Landlords in the UK must provide evidence for deductions to the deposit schemes. This is good. It means they can’t just make up numbers. But they can estimate costs if the work isn’t done yet. This is where it gets murky. They can hold your money based on a quote rather than a paid invoice.
If you repair it beforehand there is no quote needed. The work is done. It closes the loop.
Also watch out for “administrative fees.” Under the Tenant Fees Act 2019, landlords generally cannot charge you admin fees for setting up a tenancy, but they can still charge reasonable costs if you request a change to the tenancy or if you surrender early. However, they shouldn’t be charging you for their time to organise a repair for damage you caused. They should only charge the cost of the repair itself.
It seems unfair sometimes. You pay rent on time for years and one accident feels like it ruins everything. But the system is designed to protect the asset. If you treat the house like an asset you are borrowing you will be fine. Just return it in the condition you found it minus normal ageing.
What if the repair fails?
Okay so what if you hire a guy and it looks bad? This is a risk. That is why you check portfolios. But if it looks bad you are arguably in the same position as before but you are out the cost of the repair. This is why you need a specialist like Fixation Repairs & not a general handyman.
If the repair is obvious the landlord will likely claim it needs replacement anyway. Then you pay twice. That is the nightmare scenario. To avoid this ask for a guarantee. Many reputable surface repair companies offer a satisfaction guarantee. If it is not right they come back and tweak it. Make sure you have time for this. If you do it on the last day there is no time for a do-over.
I once had a repair done on a vinyl floor that started peeling a week later. The guy came back and fixed it for free because I had an invoice and a warranty. If I had paid cash to some random guy from an online ad I would have been out of luck. Always get a paper trail. It is vital.
Final Thoughts
Moving out is stressful enough without worrying about a scorched worktop. You have boxes to pack and utilities to cancel and a new place to set up. You don’t need a dispute over a bathtub chip. Taking control of the repairs is the smartest thing you can do. It is proactive. It is cost-effective. It gives you peace of mind.
I think we are often too afraid of our landlords. We treat them like parents who are going to scold us. They are just business people. They want a clean unit to rent to the next person. If you hand them a clean unit with no visible damage they are happy. They don’t care that you hired a wizard to fix a burn mark as long as the mark is gone. They just want the result.
So look at that damage. Stop panicking. Call a professional. Get it fixed. Keep your receipt. Then hand over your keys with a smile and wait for that full deposit to hit your bank account. You earned it.
