Short Answer
Your landlord cannot legally withhold funds from your deposit to fix minor floor scratches or surface marks caused by normal daily living. Deductions are strictly reserved for structural damages that go beyond standard wear and tear.
What Most Expats Don't Realize
You handed over your keys and expected your security funds to return to your bank account within a few weeks. The landlord sent a letter months later stating the entire sum was being kept to replace the living room laminate due to furniture scuffs. You lost €2,500 because you moved countries without forcing the landlord to sign a final room-by-room condition report.
What To Do
- Compare your move-out photographs directly with the original move-in protocol document you signed.
- Call your personal liability insurance provider to report the landlord's claims so their legal team can contest the damage assessment.
- "Das sind normale Abnutzungsspuren, keine Sachbeschädigung." (Those are normal signs of wear and tear, not property damage.) — write this in your formal demand letter to the property management.
The Truth
The security deposit is often treated by landlords as a bonus or a slush fund for renovations. They count on foreigners being too intimidated or too far away to fight for it in court.