A Landlord's Guide to Biohazard Cleanup

Your first hours as the owner

Landlords usually hear about an incident secondhand: a call from a police officer, a neighbor, a relative of the tenant or a maintenance worker who was asked to open a door. Whatever the route, your role in the first hours is narrow. You are not the investigator and you are not the cleaner. You are the person who controls access to the building and who will later need a clear record of what happened to the property.

1. Confirm the scene status

   Ask the responding agency whether the unit is still an active scene. If police or the county medical examiner have not released it, nobody should enter, including you, maintenance staff or the tenant's relatives.

2. Secure the door

   Once the unit is released, make sure it is locked. If the lock was damaged during entry, arrange a lock change from the outside only, and keep a record of who holds keys.

3. Write down the basics

   Note the date, the agency, any report or case number you are given, the name of the officer or investigator you spoke with, and the names and phone numbers of family members who contact you.

4. Call your insurer or agent

   Tell them what happened in plain terms and ask what they need from you. Do this before you authorize any removal of carpet, furniture or fixtures.

5. Arrange a professional assessment

   A biohazard cleanup company looks at the unit, explains what is affected and gives you a written scope. You can reach Nashville 24/7 Biohazard Disposals by phone at any hour to start that conversation.

That is the whole list for day one. Rent questions, lease termination, the deposit and re-listing can wait until the unit is safe and the people involved have had a little time.

Who is allowed into the unit, and when

This question causes more friction for landlords than any other, because several people may feel they have a right to be inside: you, the tenant, a co-tenant, the tenant's family, an executor, an insurer's adjuster and the cleanup crew. The order generally runs like this.

Law enforcement and the medical examiner come first

Until the responding agency releases the unit, it controls the space. In Tennessee, sudden, unexpected, traumatic and suspicious deaths are investigated by the county medical examiner, according to the Office of the State Chief Medical Examiner. Release can take hours or longer. Cleanup cannot begin before it.

Then the person with the right to possession

A lease gives the tenant possession of the unit. If the tenant is alive, even if hospitalized, they or someone they authorize still has that right. If the tenant has died, the situation becomes an estate question, which is covered in the next sections. In either case, the safest course is to ask before you enter for anything beyond an emergency, and to keep a written record of permission.

Then the people you invite for a specific purpose

Adjusters, cleanup technicians and contractors enter because the owner or the person in possession has asked them to. Keep their visits on a simple log with dates and times. If the tenant's family wants items removed before cleanup, let the cleanup company advise which areas are safe to walk through; some rooms may need to wait until contaminated materials are out.

Which Tennessee landlord-tenant rules may apply

Tennessee has a Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act, found in Title 66, Chapter 28 of the Tennessee Code. It does not apply everywhere in the state. Under Tenn. Code Ann. § 66-28-102, the Act applies only in counties with a population of more than 75,000 according to the 2010 federal census.

Using 2010 census figures published by the University of Tennessee County Technical Assistance Service, the counties in our service area above that line are Davidson, Rutherford, Williamson, Montgomery, Sumner, Wilson and Maury. Robertson, Dickson, Cheatham, Macon, Hickman, Smith, Cannon and Trousdale counties were below it. In those smaller counties, the lease and other parts of Tennessee law govern instead, and the answers to questions about notice, entry and abandoned property can differ.

The Act also has exclusions. For example, it does not cover transient stays in hotels or motels, and federally regulated public housing follows federal rules where they conflict with state law. If your property is a short-term rental or subsidized housing, ask an attorney which rules control.

When the tenant has died: the lease and their belongings

A death does not hand the contents of a rental unit to the landlord. The tenant's belongings are generally part of their estate, and decisions about them belong to whoever has legal authority over that estate. Tennessee's own medical examiner materials list the legal next of kin in order: a spouse first, then an adult child, a parent, adult siblings, adult grandchildren and grandparents. Next of kin and estate authority are related but not always the same thing; an executor named in a will, or an administrator appointed by a court, may be the person who ultimately decides.

Practical steps that keep you on solid ground

• Ask the family who is handling the estate, and request a copy of whatever document shows that authority when it exists.
• Do not give away, sell or throw out belongings on the strength of a phone call.
• Put agreements about move-out dates, access and remaining items in writing, even a short email.
• If no one comes forward, talk to an attorney before treating property as abandoned. Tennessee's abandonment rules were written for living tenants who leave, and applying them to a death is a legal judgment.

Where small estates come in

Some estates are settled through a simplified small-estate process rather than full probate. Rutherford County's clerk describes the requirements for its small-estate filings under Tennessee's Small Estates Act, including a waiting period after the date of death and a value limit. The family may not have authority on paper for several weeks, which is one reason a written, temporary arrangement about access is helpful.

How cleanup fits around the estate

Cleanup only removes materials that are contaminated. Unaffected belongings stay in place or are set aside for the family. When something the family may want is in the affected area, such as photographs or papers, our technicians assess it and explain whether it can be cleaned or whether it has to be disposed of. Nothing personal is discarded without the responsible party knowing. Our guide on how professionals decide whether materials can be remediated explains that decision in more detail.

When the tenant survived the incident

Many rental cleanups follow an injury, an assault or a self-harm attempt where the tenant lived. The situation feels different, and it is. The tenant still has possession, may still want to live there, and may be dealing with a hospital stay or a police case.

Reach out with care and keep the conversation practical: the unit needs professional cleaning, here is who will do it, and here is when they will need access. Some tenants prefer that family members handle the details. Ask rather than assume.

If the incident was a crime, Tennessee's Criminal Injuries Compensation program can pay up to $3,000 toward cleaning and removal of materials when the crime occurred in the victim's or an eligible relative's home. The program is the payer of last resort, the crime generally has to be reported to law enforcement within 15 days, and claims are filed within two years. A tenant's apartment is their home, so the tenant or an eligible relative may want to ask the program about it. It is not a fund landlords apply to for their own losses. If the incident involved domestic violence, the National Domestic Violence Hotline is available at 1-800-799-7233.

For more on the cleanup side of these situations, see our pages on assault scene cleanup and blood cleanup in rental properties.

What the cleanup covers in a rental unit

Landlords often think in terms of turnover: paint, carpet, deep clean, re-list. Biohazard cleanup sits in front of that cycle and has a narrower goal. It removes biological contamination and the materials that cannot be safely cleaned, then disinfects and deodorizes what remains, so that a normal contractor can work in the space.

We tell you during the assessment if your unit will need a contractor afterward. Multi-unit buildings sometimes have shared elements, such as a common subfloor or a duct, that need a closer look. Our page for landlord biohazard cleanup services goes through how we handle rentals specifically, and the comparison of biohazard cleanup and standard restoration explains where one ends and the other begins.

Insurance, the deposit and who pays

There is no single answer to who pays, and anyone who tells you otherwise without reading your policy is guessing. These are the usual places landlords look:

• Your landlord or dwelling policy. Some property policies may cover some of this work. Coverage depends entirely on the policy language and the insurer's decision.
• The tenant's renters policy. It usually concerns the tenant's belongings and liability, not your building, but ask.
• The tenant's estate. Depending on the lease and the circumstances, an attorney may advise you on whether costs can be claimed against the estate.
• The security deposit. Applying a deposit after a death or a crime is a legal question that depends on your lease and which rules apply in your county. Talk to an attorney before you do it.
• Tennessee Criminal Injuries Compensation. Covered above. It is for victims and their eligible relatives.

Whatever route you take, the insurer will want records. We provide documentation people can give their insurer: photographs, a written scope and an itemized invoice. We do not promise that any insurer will pay. Our guide to insurance questions after a biohazard incident lists what to ask your agent, and how our pricing works explains how a scope turns into a price. If you are ready to book, the Order Online page takes a $2,000 initial deposit. That deposit is not the final price and does not mean work begins within any particular time.

Records to keep for your file

Months from now, an adjuster, an attorney or a future buyer's agent may ask what happened and what was done. A tidy folder answers those questions in minutes. Keep:

Our guide on documentation in biohazard remediation goes further into what a good record looks like.

Neighbors, shared walls and adjoining units

In duplexes, townhomes and apartment buildings, the incident rarely stays a private matter. Neighbors may have seen emergency vehicles, and in a case of an unattended death they may be the ones who called. A few points help:

• You do not owe neighbors details, and sharing them can hurt the family. A short note that an incident occurred, that the unit is closed and that professionals are handling it is usually enough.
• If a neighbor reports an odor or a stain on a shared ceiling or wall, tell the cleanup company before the assessment so the adjoining area is included.
• Ask that shared HVAC returns serving the affected unit be left alone until the assessment, rather than running the system harder to clear the air.

Larger properties with on-site staff face more of this. Our guide for apartment managers covers resident communication and common areas in depth.

Re-renting and the disclosure question

Once the unit is cleaned and repaired, many owners ask whether they must tell the next tenant or a buyer what happened. Tennessee has a statute on this point. Tenn. Code Ann. § 66-5-207 provides that no cause of action arises against an owner or a real estate licensee for failing to disclose that a property was the site of a homicide, a felony or a suicide.

That statute answers a narrow question. It does not address whether a physical condition must be disclosed, how other laws apply, or what you should say if someone asks you directly. Answering a direct question untruthfully is a different matter from staying silent. Ask an attorney how the statute applies to your situation before you write a listing or answer a prospect.

The cleanup itself supports whatever you decide. A unit that has been properly remediated, with records showing what was removed and how the area was treated, is easier to discuss honestly than one where a stain was painted over. Our guide for rental and investment property owners discusses the business side of getting a unit back on the market.

Mistakes landlords make under pressure

Most of these come from a reasonable wish to get the unit back to normal quickly.

• Sending in the regular turnover crew. General cleaners are not equipped for blood or bodily fluids. See how crime scene cleanup differs from general cleaning.
• Painting or re-carpeting over the problem. Material underneath can stay contaminated, and odors tend to come back.
• Clearing out belongings to save time. They belong to the tenant or the estate.
• Throwing away damaged items before the insurer sees them. Keep them, or keep clear photos and the cleanup company's records, until your adjuster says otherwise.
• Talking about the incident in a listing or to other tenants. It rarely helps anyone.
• Assuming the deposit covers it. Ask an attorney first.

A landlord's short list to keep

When a traumatic event happens in a rental, your job is to keep the unit closed until it is released, protect the tenant's or the estate's property rights, keep your insurer informed and get professional cleanup in place before turnover starts. Bring legal questions about the lease, belongings, deposit and disclosure to a Tennessee attorney, and remember the Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act applies only in certain counties.

Nashville 24/7 Biohazard Disposals is based in Nashville and travels to rentals throughout the Middle Tennessee counties we serve; scheduling for any address is confirmed by phone at (615) 513-5112. Our rental property biohazard cleanup page explains the service itself.

Questions people ask