Sec.17b-802-7. Security Deposit Guarantee and Claim for Damages

(a) In order for a landlord to be reimbursed for damages pursuant to a security deposit guarantee agreement, the claimed damage shall have been caused by a tenant’s failure to comply with a tenant’s obligations, as such obligations are defined in section 47a-21 of the Connecticut General Statutes, and the landlord shall comply with all of the provisions of said section 47a-21 and subsection (b) of this section. If the landlord or the landlord’s agent sends a notice to the department regarding a request for reimbursement pursuant to a security deposit guarantee agreement then the landlord or the landlord’s agent shall also send such notice to the tenant on the same day.

(b) In order to receive reimbursement for a claim for damages, the landlord shall, not later than forty-five days after the date of the termination of the tenancy, submit to the department a written claim that includes receipts for repairs made. The department shall only pay reimbursements for claims that include receipts for repairs made. No reimbursement shall be paid for claimed damages to a dwelling unit that a tenant vacated because substandard conditions made the dwelling unit uninhabitable, as determined by a local, state or federal regulatory agency.

(c) The department reserves the right to refuse payment for a claim for damages to a dwelling unit if any local, state or federal regulatory agency has cited the landlord for any violations of any law, regulation or ordinance pertaining to such dwelling unit and such violations were not timely remediated.

(d) The department may inspect the dwelling unit to determine the extent of any damages.

(e) When the department receives a claim for damages, the department shall send written notice of such claim to the tenant not later than five days after the date the department receives the claim. Such notice shall include the opportunity for the tenant to request a departmental review to dispute the claim.

(f) A request for a departmental review shall be made by the tenant in writing and received by the department not later than fourteen days after the date on the department’s notice to the tenant regarding the landlord’s claim for damages. Upon receipt of a timely request for departmental review, the department shall withhold payment to the landlord pending such review.

(g) The department shall conduct a departmental review within a reasonable amount of time after receiving the tenant’s request and the landlord’s submission of the written claim with receipts. The reviewer shall issue a written decision and mail a copy of the decision to the tenant and the landlord.

(h) The decision made by the department reviewer shall be based on all the information presented to the reviewer prior to or at the time of the scheduled review. Such information may include, but is not limited to, documentation of any post-tenancy inspection done by the tenant and the landlord, and receipts for repairs made. The decision of the reviewer shall be final.

(Adopted effective May 24, 2004; Amended June 28, 2013)