property damage and responsibility question

[Esther Thomas]

Hi Everyone,

So this is a scenario that I encountered with my tenant a year ago, and in the end I ended up paying because I couldn't prove negligence on their part but moving forward i want to be more diligent about it. Besides the obvious, would love to know any other tricks or hints one can share on dealing with a similar situation.

My tenants were moving out and part of the deal is they had to get the windows washed (as they were washed upon their move in). They hired a window washer to wash the window. Upon inspection right before move out, I noticed the screens were messed up. All the window screens were damaged.

My husband, in disbelief that a window washer would cause that sort of damage, assumed that maybe someone tried to break in. In the end we have no idea how it happened, but besides the obvious of getting them to inspect it before hiring it out to someone, I'm assuming any damages that I can't prove were done by the tenants are my responsibility as the landlord. Any tips on mitigating such a scenario, either through something specifically written in the contract or through some proactive process?