Laminate flooring creaks when walked on

Hi guys,

I would be grateful for your help. I moved into an old building apartment 4 months ago. The previous tenant cleaned the laminate floor with a steam machine when moving out, according to the landlord, as a result, a 3-week liability period was set for the previous tenant during the apartment handover (in case the floor swells or other damages occur due to the heat treatment). More time has already passed (3 1/5 months), but now I notice that the floor throughout the entire apartment (!!!) has started to creak (since the landlord already warned me about how to clean the laminate floor, I don't think this was caused by my simple half-dry “cleaning activities"). What should I do in this case? Clearly, the landlord should be informed about the floor situation in the apartment... What about liability and shared responsibility? Thank you very much!

Hi, Homeworker,
Thank you for the quick reply.
I now know more about the nature of the "cracking." Could you please, off the top of your head, tell me if it depends on the quality/condition of the PVC layer (or the bare concrete floor) when it starts to crack?

In my case, the consequences (cracking throughout the entire apartment) only appeared after months, although the contract foresees about a month for their possible occurrence (naturally only regarding the assumption of costs by the actual cause, i.e., the previous tenant). How justified is this time frame? I ask because having to bear all the renovation costs on my own seems harsh to me.

hello

a friend of ours had the same problem recently. there were also creaks and bangs. so the baseboards were removed and behold the laminate must have expanded so much that it was pressing against the wall. so the boards were taken out, planed and put back in. let's see if it fits now

best regards.oobravo