WWYD-Dorm Damage Charges

[happily single]

Hello all, here is a situation that has me pretty upset. My daughter received an email from her college (she is now home for the summer) charging her student account due to damages to the common areas of the dorm (bathroom, hallway). All students in the dorm are being assessed these charges since they don't know which student(s) is responsible. Below are some of the charges:

1. someone swept dirt and trash into hallway
2. Blue hair dye in sink
3. Toilet paper under sink
4. Toilet paper all over floor
5. 2 33 gallon bags of trash removed (doesn't say from where)
6. Toilet clogged

I have a few issues with these charges. First of all I am certain my daughter was not responsible for any of these damages. Another issue, there is a janitor in the building, and yet we are getting charged for that janitor to sweep? (I'm not trying to degrade their job, but really). Getting charged for a clogged toilet? And lastly, couldn't you just find the student with blue hair and asses them the fine?

The email goes on to state that they only way an appeal will be heard is if the student (daughter) was not present, if she reported the damage or if she tells on the person who did the damage. It further states "students charged with damaging property may be subject to arrest with local law enforcement agencies"

What would you do? Would YOU personally write a letter (Many of the dates in question my daughter was home)?

EDITTED TO ADD: Any NH Lawyers out there that can tell me the legality of the college assessing these fines?

 

[piccolopat]

Unless the student handbook indicated that this "guilt by association" method would be used, I would dispute the charges. You indicate that your DD was not there for many of the dates. Are you saying that they waited until the end of the semester to address everything that happened over the course of several months? That really seems absurd especially with the blue hair dye violation. That should have been fairly easy to determine the culprit and frankly it is the only thing on your list that might have caused damage that would require money to fix. Were the students required to maintain the bathroom facilities? If not, I agree that the janitorial staff should be able to handle some toilet paper on the floor and the clogged toilet. When my daughter was in college, they were required to put all trash in the dumpster and so I can see leaving large amounts of trash in the dorm being a problem, but what "damage" does that cause other than someone else having to put it where it belongs. When you say everyone in the form is being charged, do you mean everyone in a single, shared dorm room/suite or multiple rooms? If only in the room or suite that your DD shared with others, she probably has a pretty good idea who was a slob. If that's the case, have her talk to them. She should also consider new roommates next semester. Oh, and I wouldn't write the letter. I would have my DD handle this herself (but I would help her with wording the letter if she needed it). At the very least, they should remove any charges incurred for violations when your daughter was home.

 

[lifesavacation]

Personally, I wouldn't write a letter. I'd just pay the fine. Some colleges won't allow grades to post or students to register if there's a fine on the account. If your daughter was not present (already moved home), then of course appeal it.

Does your daughter know who did it?

 

[QueenIsabella]

I wouldn't do anything. If your DD feels she has a legitimate grievance, she should write a letter or otherwise address the issue. She's an adult, you need to stay out of it.

 

[Praying Colonel]

I wouldn't do anything. If your DD feels she has a legitimate grievance, she should write a letter or otherwise address the issue. She's an adult, you need to stay out of it.

That's how we handled a similar situation.

 

[maxiesmom]

I would have your daughter take care of the issue.

I have to say, your attitude about janitors is probably shared by many. And probably why you can't go to Disney World, the mall, any ball game, and have nice bathrooms. Having a janitor or cleaning staff on hand is no excuse for making a mess. I'm glad the college is trying to teach young adults they can't act that way and not be accountable.

 

[hereyago]

Honestly, I don't think I would have my dd return there next year. If they had dates on these happening and did nothing until after they were out of school, nah, not flying. The clogged toilet, was it clogged with things that don't go in a toilet? If yes, I could see a charge , but they better be able to know who did it. Does the dorm not have RA's in it to oversee?



As for the janitor thing: There is a difference is regular cleaning and cleaning up a hot mess. If someone swept dirt and trash(instead of putting in a bag) yes, I could see that is extra work. You have to understand that when the students leave the environmental services crew has to deep clean and there could be a lot of dorms and not enough stuff.

I used to work in timeshare cleaning: yes, there is regular cleaning but I can tell you of some nasty people stories thinking just because they foolishly pay for these things they can leave the place a hot mess(think teen party). So they get charged extra.

 

[happily single]

I would have your daughter take care of the issue.

I have to say, your attitude about janitors is probably shared by many. And probably why you can't go to Disney World, the mall, any ball game, and have nice bathrooms. Having a janitor or cleaning staff on hand is no excuse for making a mess. I'm glad the college is trying to teach young adults they can't act that way and not be accountable.

I am in no way saying having a janitor on staff is an excuse to make a mess. My point was they are getting paid to clean, so assessing a student a fee for "sweeping" is absurd

 

[maxiesmom]

I am in no way saying having a janitor on staff is an excuse to make a mess. My point was they are getting paid to clean, so assessing a student a fee for "sweeping" is absurd

It didn't say they were being charged for a simple sweeping. Someone dumping dirt and trash into the hallway is not a simple sweeping.

 

[goofy4tink]

We got a bill for 'damages' after dd graduated last spring. She shared an apt with a friend. We took care of dd's belongings and mess when we moved her out. However...the bathroom had hair dye everywhere. The apt smelled awful...cat box issues (friend has a therapy cat). Leftover food everywhere. The sink was clogged...disposal didn't work (dd said). However, after I did the dishes, and cleared out the grease clog, it worked fine. I know these messes weren't my dd's. She doesn't eat the type if good that was left lying around!
But, we just paid the bill. She could have worked with her friend to clean it up.

 

[Hikergirl]

I am in no way saying having a janitor on staff is an excuse to make a mess. My point was they are getting paid to clean, so assessing a student a fee for "sweeping" is absurd

You said it was a charge for sweeping dirt and trash into the hallway. The student who did that should have swept that stuff into a dustpan and put in the trash bag. What they did is just sweep their mess into the hallway. I mean really there is a difference between a janitor doing regular cleaning and maintenance and a janitor "being paid" to follow irresponsible kids and clean their messes.

 

[Allison]

Charges assessed to everyone living in a certain area for damage to common areas probably happens at many colleges.

Here is an example from Converse:

Community Areas—Community areas in the residence halls and apartments (lobbies, study rooms, bathrooms, elevators, kitchens, hallways, laundry rooms, etc.) are the joint responsibility of all students living in that building. Residents should treat community areas as they would their own homes. Damages incurred in community areas will be divided and charged to each resident of a hall or building unless the specific students responsible are identified.

St. Olaf:

Students are responsible for public areas in all college-owned housing. A charge for damages in a given residence area (including furnishings, vending equipment, etc.) may be distributed among the residents in that area when it cannot be determined which individuals are responsible for the incident.

 

[sksjasams]

Just out of curiosity, how much is your DD's share of the fine? That would play a factor in whether or not I would push the issue...

 

[Christine]

We didn't have this issue in the dorm, but we did have the issue in my son's first apartment. Two of the guys that left (graduated) made a HUGE mess, threw a TV of the balcony, etc. We did escape the TV destruction charges because the roommate fessed up, but other stuff we had to pay for.

 

[gotomu212]

Your daughter should read her housing contract. When I was an RA common areas were jointly maintained and damages jointly assessed as outlined in the signed contract (signed by students if 18+, parents if under 18).

 

[SC Minnie]

This happened to DD her first year in the apartment style dorms. We/she paid the fine and went on our way. She learned from it to make sure everyone does their part to clean.

In her last apartment one of the four girls left early and left a mess. DD and the other 2 cleaned up the whole place and told the 4th girl she wasn't getting her share of the security deposit back.

 

[sam_gordon]

Hello all, here is a situation that has me pretty upset. My daughter received an email from her college (she is now home for the summer) charging her student account due to damages to the common areas of the dorm (bathroom, hallway). All students in the dorm are being assessed these charges since they don't know which student(s) is responsible. Below are some of the charges:

1. someone swept dirt and trash into hallway
2. Blue hair dye in sink
3. Toilet paper under sink
4. Toilet paper all over floor
5. 2 33 gallon bags of trash removed (doesn't say from where)
6. Toilet clogged

I have a few issues with these charges. First of all I am certain my daughter was not responsible for any of these damages. Another issue, there is a janitor in the building, and yet we are getting charged for that janitor to sweep? (I'm not trying to degrade their job, but really). Getting charged for a clogged toilet? And lastly, couldn't you just find the student with blue hair and asses them the fine?

The email goes on to state that they only way an appeal will be heard is if the student (daughter) was not present, if she reported the damage or if she tells on the person who did the damage. It further states "students charged with damaging property may be subject to arrest with local law enforcement agencies"

What would you do? Would YOU personally write a letter (Many of the dates in question my daughter was home)?

EDITTED TO ADD: Any NH Lawyers out there that can tell me the legality of the college assessing these fines?

What is the amount of the charge? I find it hard to believe this would be much more than $25/student.

As far as the legality, look through the housing contract (I'm sure there's one somewhere). Seems like a lot of hassle to fight.

 

[piglet too]

Charging all students living in the building is actually quite common. Stinks for those who aren't slobs, but happens at a lot of schools.

 

[pweyl36]

We got a bill for 'damages' after dd graduated last spring. She shared an apt with a friend. We took care of dd's belongings and mess when we moved her out. However...the bathroom had hair dye everywhere. The apt smelled awful...cat box issues (friend has a therapy cat). Leftover food everywhere. The sink was clogged...disposal didn't work (dd said). However, after I did the dishes, and cleared out the grease clog, it worked fine. I know these messes weren't my dd's. She doesn't eat the type if good that was left lying around!
But, we just paid the bill. She could have worked with her friend to clean it up.

Therapy cat,what is this world coming to?

 

[JaxDad]

They should be able to figure out who used the blue hair dye...