Within fourteen days after the termination of the rental agreement and
vacation of the premises ... the landlord shall give a full and specific
statement of the basis for retaining any of the deposit together with the
payment of any refund due the tenant under the terms and conditions of the
rental agreement. No portion of any deposit shall be withheld on account of
wear resulting from ordinary use of the premises.
. .. If the landlord fails to give such statement together with any
refund due the tenant within the time limits specified above he or she shall
be liable to the tenant for the full amount of the deposit. The landlord is
also barred in any action brought by the tenant to recover the deposit from
asserting any claim or raising any defense for retaining any of the deposit
unless the landlord shows that circumstances beyond the landlord's control
prevented the landlordfrom providing the statement within thefourteen
days. . . . The court may in its discretion award up to two times the amount
of the deposit for the intentional refusal of the landlord to give the statement
or refund due. In any action brought by the tenant to recover the deposit,
the prevailing party shall additionally be entitled to the cost of suit or
arbitration including a reasonable attorney's fee.
13
No. 32442-7-III
Goodeill v. Madison Real Estate
(Emphasis added.)
Washington's Residential Landlord-Tenant Act of 1973, chapter 59.18 RCW, does
not define "circumstances beyond the landlord's control." There are only four published
cases citing or interpreting RCW 59.18.280, none of which address the meaning of
"circumstances beyond the landlord's control." See generally Sardam v. Morford, 51