We have just moved out of a truly horrible rental property (damp, disgusting, tatty). We had to pay for a professional clean and were given the names of two cleaning firms that the estate agency felt would do a reasonable job so we booked one of them to do it on Monday (we moved out over the weekend). We were told the inventory would take place immediately after the clean but today I spoke to the cleaning company as I had forgotten to give them details of where to send the bill and they said that they had only cleaned half the flat on the landlord's instructions. Apparently, the landlord wants to replace the bathroom fittings in the basement and has builders in there doing that work. He told the cleaners to come back to do the basement level on Friday when the inventory would take place.
I resent the fact that we appear to be paying to clean up after his builders but also I'm worried that any damage they cause in the rest of the flat (dirt, dust, marks on walls etc) will get picked up by the inventory clerk as our negligence - so does the LL have to order the inventory within a certain time-frame and before he starts a big building job in the property?