Landlord/Tenant Issues

There’s no doubt that Hurricane Ivan stirred up plenty of trouble.

But that trouble wasn’t confined to homeowners alone: In the seven weeks since the storm ripped through the Cayman Islands, landlords and tenants have had their share of headaches.

Some tenants feel they shouldn’t be paying rent for accommodation damaged or destroyed by Hurricane Ivan. Others believe opportunistic landlords have taken advantage by overcharging for apartments still available. Still other tenants in good standing are outraged by landlords who are evicting them to “to help out homeless relatives”—in addition to concerns about landlords using relatives as excuses to evict them—only to find out that the apartments are back on the market to other expats, at grossly inflated rentals.

Meanwhile, some landlords are concerned about tenants who are out of work due to Ivan—tenants who claim they’re unable to pay any rent at all. And then there are those with little or no damage who feel they should receive the same rental breaks as their less fortunate neighbours.

If you have a complaint you would like to lodge, you have two options: first, go to the Chamber of Commerce (2nd floor, MacDonald Square) where you can fill out an official complaint form. The Better Business Council will investigate that complaint, and will work together with you and your tenant/landlord to resolve the problem. Your second option is to file a complaint online. Go to www.caymanchamber.ky and click on “Better Business Council”. You’ll find the “file a complaint” link at the bottom of the page.