Can I Sue My Landlord in Indiana?
Yes — in many situations. These are the main claims Indiana tenants bring, what the law lets you recover, and where to file. Each rule links to the statute or official source. Most claims under the small claims limit can be filed without a lawyer.
Before you sue
- Write down what happened, with dates, and keep photos, texts, emails and receipts.
- Send your landlord a written demand (templates below) and give a reasonable deadline.
- Check the deadline to sue and the court's dollar limit (below).
- If the amount is over the small claims limit, or you are facing eviction, talk to a lawyer or legal aid first.
Your security deposit wasn't returned
| Penalty for withholding | Tenant may recover the full deposit due (or the part wrongfully withheld) plus reasonable attorney's fees and court costs. No multiple-damages penalty. Deposit cases may be filed on the small claims docket (IC 32-31-3-11). Source: IC 32-31-3-12(b), 32-31-3-16 |
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| Deposit return deadline | Within 45 days after termination of the rental agreement and delivery of possession, the landlord must return the deposit minus itemized deductions. The landlord is not liable until the tenant provides a written forwarding mailing address. Source: IC 32-31-3-12, 32-31-3-14 |
Free Indiana security deposit demand letter
You were locked out or your utilities were cut off
| Lockouts & utility shutoffs | Except by court order, landlord may not change locks, remove doors/windows/fixtures/appliances, or interrupt or shut off electricity, gas, water or other essential services (emergencies, good-faith repairs and necessary construction excepted), and may not seize or withhold tenant property to enforce rent. Tenant may petition for an emergency possessory order; the court must hold a hearing within 3 business days and may order possession restored, plus damages at a later hearing. Emergency possessory order chapter: https://iga.in.gov/ic/2026/Title_32/Article_31/Chapter_6.pdf (sections amended by P.L.157-2025). |
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Your landlord retaliated after you complained
| Landlord retaliation | Landlord may not raise rent, decrease/interfere with services, or bring or threaten an eviction/possession action in response to a tenant complaining to a code-enforcement agency about health/safety violations, complaining in writing to the landlord about IC 32-31-5-6 or 32-31-8-5 violations, suing under IC 32-31-6 or 32-31-8, joining a tenant organization, or testifying against the landlord. No statutory presumption period. Exceptions include non-renewal at end of term, market-rate rent increases, and evictions for unpaid rent or health/safety lease violations. Chapter added by P.L.168-2020; waiver is void (P.L.215-2021). Local units may not regulate retaliatory acts (IC 32-31-8.5-6). |
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Your landlord won't make repairs
| Repair and deduct | Not authorized by statute. Tenant's remedy is a lawsuit after giving notice and a reasonable time to repair; tenant may recover actual and consequential damages, attorney's fees and costs, and injunctive relief. Landlord duties include delivering the unit safe, clean and habitable, complying with health/housing codes, and maintaining electrical, plumbing, sanitary, HVAC systems, elevators and supplied appliances. Source: IC 32-31-8-5, 32-31-8-6 |
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| Withholding rent | Not authorized by statute; the statutory remedy is a court action under IC 32-31-8-6. No statutory rent-withholding or escrow procedure was found in IC 32-31. Source: IC 32-31-8-6 |
| Mold | No statute — Indiana has no mold-specific landlord-tenant law. Mold is handled under the landlord's duties to deliver the premises in a safe, clean, and habitable condition and to comply with applicable health and housing codes. A tenant may sue to enforce these duties after giving notice and a reasonable time to repair. Chapter 8 applies to rental agreements entered into after June 30, 2002, and cannot be waived (IC 32-31-8-4). Tenants must keep their areas reasonably clean and use plumbing and ventilation reasonably (IC 32-31-7-5). |
| Pests & bed bugs | No statute — Indiana does not specifically assign pest or bed-bug treatment and has no bed-bug disclosure rule. Infestations fall under the landlord's safe, clean, and habitable delivery duty and health-code compliance, and the tenant's duties to keep the unit reasonably clean and comply with tenant obligations under health and housing codes. Local health codes may set extermination duties. |
| Heat | Yes, if a heating system is provided at the time the lease is signed: the landlord must maintain it in good and safe working condition, and it must be sufficient to adequately supply heat at all times. No specific minimum temperature or heating season is set by state statute. Plumbing must supply a reasonable amount of hot and cold running water at all times. A landlord may not shut off gas, electricity, water, or other essential services to force out a tenant except for emergencies, good-faith repairs, or necessary construction (IC 32-31-5-6(c)). Source: IC 32-31-8-5(4)(B), (D) |
Free Indiana repair request letter to landlord
Your landlord entered without notice or invaded your privacy
| Landlord entry notice | Landlord must give reasonable written or oral notice and enter only at reasonable times, and may not abuse entry to harass. No notice needed in an emergency threatening safety of occupants or property; entry without consent allowed under court order or if the unit is abandoned/surrendered. Tenant may not unreasonably refuse entry to inspect, repair, supply services, or show the unit. No specific number of hours is set. Source: IC 32-31-5-6(e)-(g) |
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| Cameras & privacy | No landlord-specific statute. Peeping into an occupied dwelling of another person, or into an area where people are expected to disrobe (restrooms, baths, showers, dressing rooms), without consent is voyeurism — a Class B misdemeanor, raised to a Level 6 felony when committed by camera. Using a concealed camera to capture an intimate image counts as 'peeping.' A landlord must give reasonable notice before entry, enter only at reasonable times, and may not use entry to harass. IC 35-45-4-5 was last amended in 2024 (P.L.79-2024). Cameras inside a tenant's dwelling without consent risk violating it; exterior and common-area cameras are not specifically regulated. |
You were refused or treated differently because of Section 8 or other income
| Statewide ban on refusing Section 8 / source of income | No. Indiana has no statewide source-of-income protection, and local units may not adopt or enforce an ordinance that requires (or has the effect of requiring) a landlord to participate in Section 8 or a similar housing program. Indiana's state civil rights law was not separately reviewed for an income category; none is known. Source: IC 36-1-3-8.5 |
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Other claims tenants bring in Indiana
| Injuries on the property | No Indiana statute sets a general rule on landlord liability for injuries. The landlord must deliver the home safe, clean and habitable, follow health and housing codes, make reasonable efforts to keep common areas clean, and keep supplied electrical, plumbing, sanitary, heating and cooling systems, elevators and appliances in good and safe working order. After notice and a reasonable time to repair, a tenant who wins a lawsuit may recover actual and consequential damages, attorney's fees and court costs. Any waiver of these rules in a lease is void. The landlord's liability for damages starts once the landlord has notice or actual knowledge and refuses or fails to fix the problem within a reasonable time. Chapter 8 applies to rental agreements entered into after June 30, 2002. Whether personal-injury damages fit these rules is decided by the courts. |
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Where and when to sue
| Small claims limit | $10,000 (claims filed on or after July 1, 2021). Landlord-tenant disputes qualify if the rent due at filing is $10,000 or less. A plaintiff who files in small claims gives up any amount over the limit. |
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| Small claims filing fee | A filing fee must be paid when the notice of claim is filed, unless the court enters an order waiving it. Fees paid for filing and service are not refunded if the claim is dismissed. The fee amount is set by statute and local charges; check with the county clerk. |
| Deadline to sue on a written lease | Indiana has several overlapping periods. 6 years for actions 'for use, rents, and profits of real property' and for contracts not in writing (IC 34-11-2-7). 6 years for written contracts for the payment of money executed after Aug. 31, 1982 (IC 34-11-2-9). 10 years for other written contracts (IC 34-11-2-11). An unpaid-rent claim generally falls in a 6-year category; a claim on other written lease terms (e.g., property damage under the lease) may fall under the 10-year rule. Read in the Indiana Code 2026 PDF on the General Assembly site. Keep page wording cautious: 'generally 6 years for unpaid rent; up to 10 years for some other written-lease claims.' |
How small claims court works in Indiana →
Tenant lawyers and free legal aid in Indiana · Indiana tenant rights · Suing a landlord in other states
General legal information, not legal advice. Laws change and local rules can differ; check the linked official source or talk to a lawyer about your situation.