Belarusian Woman Rented Apartment in Poland for Two Years, Then Received an Eight Thousand Euro Bill

However, four months later, the woman received a bill from the owner for 37 thousand zlotys (8600 euros) for apartment repairs. The Belarusian woman refused to pay and sought legal advice. She shared her story with Most.

"I want to rent an apartment and live in it"

Hanna moved into the apartment in the center of Warsaw in May 2023 with her two children. There was an excavation pit next to the building. The woman asked the landlord if construction would begin there, as it was important for her that there be no constant source of dust nearby. The landlord assured her that there was no construction permit and no work would be carried out. However, construction soon began, and it was no longer possible to terminate the contract without financial losses.

— We lived amidst eternal, endless construction. All the dirt flew into the apartment, — Hanna recalls.

According to her, the apartment's repairs were cheap: door handles broke, the tap leaked, cabinet doors sagged and scratched the laminate. Later, a cabinet in the bathroom began to fall apart due to moisture.

Hanna informed the landlord about the breakages via WhatsApp. He promised to send a handyman or replace the furniture, but repairs were constantly delayed.

— I couldn't constantly maintain and repair the apartment myself. I want to rent an apartment and live in it, — says Hanna.

"Mommy, we don't have electricity"

Utility payments became another stumbling block. Hanna claims that she transferred around 4800 zlotys (approximately 1100 euros today) to the landlord monthly for rent and administrative fees, and paid separately for water, electricity, and gas after the owner informed her of the amounts.

One time, when she was away on a business trip and her children were home with a nanny, the electricity in the apartment was cut off.

— The children called me in a panic: 'Mommy, we don't know what to do, we don't have electricity.' I was in Frankfurt and urgently looked for a place where they could spend the night with the nanny, — Hanna recalls.

Later, a similar situation occurred with the gas. The supplier warned of a disconnection due to an unpaid bill.

Hanna immediately wrote to the apartment owner. He explained that the gas bills had been sent to an inactive email address.

Ultimately, due to the construction and household issues, the woman decided to find different, more spacious accommodation. She rented a house and, as stipulated in the contract, gave the landlord one month's notice of her departure. He agreed and promised to return the 5,000 zloty deposit after recalculating expenses.

The Agent Was Late

During the move, the landlord was in Spain, and an agent was supposed to come for the keys. However, he was late for the designated apartment handover time. So, Hanna moved out, and the agent picked up the keys from a different address afterward. As a result, there was no joint inspection of the apartment, and they did not draw up a handover report.

According to Hanna, the owner later claimed that she herself refused to sign the report, but the woman denies this.

Hanna did not order cleaning before moving out and admits that the apartment required cleaning after she left. To avoid a dispute over minor deficiencies, she was willing to leave the owner the 5,000 zloty deposit, assuming that this amount would cover the cleaning and necessary minor work.

The day after the keys were handed over, the landlord wrote to Hanna, stating that he had received photos of the apartment from the agent and that it was in a terrible state. Approximately two weeks later, he demanded about 15,000 zlotys.

Hanna offered to call a cleaning service at her own expense, and only then to assess what truly needed repairing. However, they did not reach a compromise, and communication ceased for almost four months.

The Amount Rose to 37,000

On June 21, the owner contacted Hanna again. By this time, the apartment repairs had already been completed. The man now demanded 37,351.81 zlotys (8700 euros) and presented an itemized list of expenses.

This amount included, in particular, 16,617.96 zlotys (3800 euros) for repair and installation work, 5,487.59 zlotys for materials, 2,376 zlotys for cleaning, 5,210.26 zlotys for electricity and gas, and 7,660 zlotys to cover operational expenses.

Hanna refused to pay this amount and sought legal advice. She had already spent about two thousand zlotys on consultations, document preparation, and correspondence with the owner. The lawyer requested documents from the apartment owner to substantiate the claimed expenses.

In response, the owner sent documents with calculations. Hanna's lawyer pointed out that these did not include an independent assessment of the apartment's condition. Furthermore, the shopping list for 5,487.59 zlotys (1270 euros) initially only contained the total amounts from Leroy Merlin and Allegro receipts, without specifying the purchased items. He also demanded a full breakdown of utility payments based on meter readings and supplier invoices.

Among the documents were photographs that, according to the woman, the owner presented as having been taken before she moved in. However, the kitchen radiator in those photos differs from the one visible in photographs taken during her tenancy. Despite this, the repair estimate included replacing the radiator, even though the woman claims it was not changed during her stay. The lawyer demanded the original photographs with metadata.

— I am ready to pay for natural wear and tear. But I am not going to pay for expensive repairs that were done without my consent and then billed to me, — she says.

The Owner Has Not Yet Filed a Lawsuit

At the time of the conversation with MOST, the apartment owner had not provided the documents requested by the lawyer and had not filed a lawsuit. Hanna does not know if he will continue to demand money or decide to drop the claims.

The lawyer warned her that if the case does go to court, the proceedings could take up to two years.

Hanna states that she does not refuse to be responsible for damages if they were indeed caused by her fault. However, she considers the demand to pay over 37,000 zlotys unjustified. According to her, it's too large an amount to agree to without convincing evidence.

— If the walls needed painting, he could have offered for me to do it myself. I would have found people and paid for the work. But there was no such conversation. He performed expensive renovations behind my back and now wants me to reimburse him for these funds, — says the woman.

How to Reduce the Risk of Similar Disputes

Following this story, Hanna advises against relying on verbal agreements and suggests documenting everything in writing.

Here's what she recommends to those renting accommodation in Poland:

• do not move into an apartment without a signed handover report listing all existing damages;
• take detailed photos and videos of the apartment on the day of moving in and before moving out;
• keep all correspondence with the owner and proof of all transfers;
• do not hand over keys without a joint inspection of the apartment and signing a move-out report.

Lawyers specializing in housing disputes offer similar recommendations. They advise documenting all agreements in writing, and if the owner withholds a deposit or demands compensation for damages, to request documents confirming the incurred expenses. In contentious situations, they also recommend seeking legal advice as early as possible, rather than attempting to resolve the conflict solely through correspondence.

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