I would join Asloca if i were you. Its the renters assosiation, and ive heard that its good to have somebody from there with you at the handover

Ben, Maria is correct, be careful and best to have Asloca behind you. 

Rental companies must accept normal wear and tear , 4 years would be in that time frame for a bit of wear. 

If gross damage, best to get 3 estimates in advance. And infact get the work done beforehand. Or dispute can go one for a year. also , regie or owner says the repairs are not like the state you got the appartment in. 

Did zou sign a 'check in list' to spot out damage or poorly maintained? If not, then zou can say zou never were given a check list and signed, and that the state of the appartment is same as when you arrived, and because an owener or regie cant prove that, they cant do shtz. 

Also whenever you have something to repair due to malfunction or natural damages, take photos and send registered letters, if not they will say they got not notice from you and you neglected the property by not notifying them. Sorry but this it the second problem of renting in Geneva. First if just finding something and trust me, its never reasonable rently prices, its outrageous. 

But I highly suggest for you and anyone, if in question, take photos when zou move in and when you move out, so you have proof. Dont get burned by Regies that have the owners interest at heart and look at you as a tenant as skum, and they do say that. They are aweful. Dont trust them, they will not help you one bit. 

I have heard quite a few "horror stories" where the regie made people who left pay huge amounts of money for small damages and wear and tear of the flat. 

I'm curious. how did they make them pay if they'd left the country?

They'll keep the 3 months security deposit, which is enough to cover most damages. Anything larger and it's probably an insurance issue. If it's more than the security deposit, it's difficult to get any money back from someone who has left the country, but they can escalate things in Switzerland in case the person would ever try and come back to live.

Contact your Insurance if you have one "assurance d'habitation" and inform them that you will be leaving and they will advise you on what to ask of the Régie so that the Insurance can cover all eventual repairs.

Hi Ben 

Its happened to me in Geneva therefore I have a couple of questions for you though did you pay a full deposit yourself or used a bank deposit of Smart caution In all the cases your money won’t be touched unless you agree with the amount to be taken  

Do you have a legal protection ( protection juridique ) contract that might be very useful to push back and finally as Maria suggested  Asloca is a great option to consider 

I would suggest to ask your reggie for their professional cleaning agency so they won’t challenge the cleaning and see how it goes for the rest take pictures and someone who speaks french

good luck 

s