NotMyScuff

Your deposit, your evidence.

Free to install. Android 8.0 and up. UK only. About 8 MB.

QR code that opens NotMyScuff on Google Play

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Deposit disputes are won on evidence, and most tenants only realise that on the day they move out. NotMyScuff makes the record as you go, so a scuff that was already there stays the landlord's problem, not yours.

It's an Android app for renters in the UK, from students in halls or a first shared house to families renting for years. You use it when you get the keys, while you live there, when you hand them back, and if a landlord or agent proposes taking money off your deposit. Each time it adds to a dated record on your phone, and that record becomes an evidence pack. It works independently of your landlord or agent, and there's no account to create.

Already living there? Start anyway. A record that begins today is worth a great deal more than one that never begins.

Being straight about what that's worth: photos taken part-way through a tenancy can't prove a scuff was there on day one, and nothing can change that. What they do is date it to before today, which narrows what can fairly be put on you at the end. Everything after that works exactly as it would have — the repair log, the rent record, the move-out photos lined up against what you have, the reply to each proposed deduction, the evidence pack. Much of what makes a deposit defensible is recorded at the end of a tenancy, and all of that is still ahead of you.

NotMyScuff home screen on a fresh install, listing the four steps to follow after getting the keys, above an example property with a completed move-in record and the deposit dispute deadline — What to do the day you get the keys

Bedroom checklist with a Record a walkthrough video button and items marked Good or Existing damage, some with photos — Room by room, with a walkthrough video

Camera view with the move-in photo of a door faintly overlaid, a guide strength slider and the text Line up with the earlier photo, then shoot — Line up your move-out photo with the move-in one

Worktops entry with Take photo and Gallery buttons, Good, Existing damage and Needs attention options, a notes field and a recorded scorch mark with date and time — Photograph it, mark it, note it

Agent inventory check listing differences found in the bedroom carpet and kitchen worktops, with an Email the agent button — Check the agent's inventory

Rent payments list with paid dates, standing order reference and an attached bank statement answering an agent's claim of a missing payment — Rent paid, with proof attached

Proposed deductions screen showing the amount claimed, the amount agreed and each charge marked Challenged with a reply and attached evidence — Answer each proposed deduction

Evidence pack PDF page showing move-in and move-out photos of an oven and worktops side by side with dates and notes — The evidence pack, side by side

Free move-in photo checklist — the same room-by-room list on one printable page, with nothing to install.

How it works

Move in — or start where you are. Go room by room with the checklist, before you unpack if you have just got the keys and today if you have not. Photograph each item, mark it Good, Existing damage or Needs attention, and add a note. Record a 90-second walkthrough video of each room, narrated if you want. Add the meter readings and the keys you were given. A worked example tenancy is built into the app, so you can see how it fits together before you start your own.
Live there. Log leaks, breakages and damp as they happen, report repairs by email with photos, and track when each was reported, acknowledged and fixed.
Move out. Re-shoot each view with your move-in photo faintly overlaid on the camera, so the angles match. Add the final meter readings and who you handed the keys to.
If they propose deductions. Enter each amount. The app works out a fair share for anything already part-worn, prompts you to check your agreement has a clause allowing the charge, and writes the reply with your dated photos and receipts attached.
Build the evidence pack. One PDF of the whole tenancy, ready to send to the deposit scheme.

Move in

Room-by-room checklists for houses, flats, private halls and university halls.
Photos and notes on every item, so "existing damage" says what it is and where.
A walkthrough video of each room, 90 seconds, narrated if you want.
Meter readings and keys recorded on day one.
The agent's inventory. Note what's missing or wrong and email them in one tap, with your photos attached.

Deposit and rent

Your deposit, the scheme it's held in and your dispute window, with reminders to check it's protected.
Holding deposits, recorded with the date they should come back.
Zero Deposit, Reposit and flatfair, recorded for what they are, including the fee you don't get back.
Rent paid. Build the schedule in one tap, tick the months off and attach a bank statement. If an agent says a payment is missing, your record answers it.

During the tenancy

A repair log. Damage you reported months ago is a different conversation from damage they find at the end.
Damp and mould over time, photographed as it develops.
Visits, and whether you were given notice.
Pet requests and the landlord's reply.
Rent increases and the notice you were given.

When they propose deductions

Each amount entered, with a fair-share suggestion for anything already part-worn.
A clause check, prompting you to look for the wording in your agreement that allows the charge.
The household, noting how many people lived there, since a bigger household wears a property faster.
A written reply with your dated photos and receipts attached.
Witness statements laid out the way adjudicators expect them.

The evidence pack

One PDF. Move-in and move-out photos side by side, room by room, with the meter readings, keys, your inventory comments, repairs, rent, deductions and every email you sent.
Photos that can be checked. Every photo is fingerprinted when it's taken and re-checked when the pack is made, so you can show nothing was changed afterwards.
Your originals, free. Export every photo, video and document as a ZIP whenever you like.

Shared houses

Shared and personal rooms marked separately.
House pack. Send your shared-room records to housemates by WhatsApp, email or Drive, so everyone holds the same evidence. Only the sender needs the house pack. Housemates import for free.
Guarantors, and what they signed for.
Housemate changeovers, recorded as they happen.

The rules where you live

NotMyScuff knows the deposit rules for England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, and applies the ones for your property. It names the deposit schemes you're likely to deal with, such as DPS, mydeposits and TDS, and shows where to look up landlord registration and HMO licensing. The rules are built into the app and are updated with app releases, so check anything that matters against official guidance.

What it isn't

NotMyScuff is a record-keeping tool. It isn't legal advice, and it can't promise you'll get your deposit back or the outcome of a dispute. What it does is make sure that if you have to argue your case, you're doing it with dated evidence rather than memory.

What it costs

Free: recording, photographing, repairs, emails and the ZIP of your originals.
Evidence pack PDF: £6.99, one-off, covering every property you add.
House pack: £3.99, one-off, for sending shared rooms. Importing is free.
No subscriptions. No ads.

Your data

Everything stays on your phone. There is no account, no cloud copy and no analytics, and nothing is sent to us. Photos, videos, notes and documents live in the app's own storage, reminders are worked out on your phone from the dates you enter, and exports go wherever you choose to send them. Read our privacy policy.

Questions

Email [email protected].

Purpose over decoration, function over flair. For the masses not the one.