A quarter (25%) of tenants admit they have damaged their landlord’s property accidentally, while a further quarter (25%) have caused blockages to sinks and toilets, according to Lloyds Bank Business Insurance Services.

Over one in 10 (12%) say they’ve failed to pay rent or bills, and a further 12% say they have smoked at their rented property, increasing the risk of fire and smoke damage.

Lloyds Bank said that the confessions highlight the need for landlords to take out a specialist insurance policy.

Tenants also confessed to causing noise disturbance (10%), damage caused by their pets (9%) and leaving the property unsecured and therefore at risk of burglary (6%).

Covering it up

The research also highlights the lengths tenants have gone to in order to hide their domestic mishaps and avoid losing their deposit money.

Almost a third (31%) have cleaned the carpets themselves, more than a quarter (29%) have repainted the walls, and one in 20 (5%) have hired a professional cleaner to blitz the property from top to bottom.

Damien McGarrigle, head of business insurance for Lloyds Banking Group, said: “The results highlight just how important it is for private landlords to have adequate landlord insurance which will protect them from a range of common problems, from break-ins and accidental damage to loss of rental income and plumbing issues.

“We know many small scale private landlords with just one or two properties rely on regular home insurance to protect them, but this often falls short of covering the specific problems they could face.”