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Thanks Howard. As it's all part of an extended friendship group that's what is currently happening. It's a one year lease going into another one year lease though, rather than partway through a fixed term, which is where the annoyance arises. I'm currently looking at just getting a separate (new) lease...
girondin-
If you go down the 'fresh start' route it's likely the landlord will charge you for a new contract and the admin that goes with it, i.e. they check the inventory, deal with anything that requires use of the existing deposits and whatnot.
I suspect what will happen is that the Friend who is the constant will be the 'lead' tenant, the deposits will be in his name, and to keep things easy for everyone, you and the new tenants will be a straight swap with those that are moving out. you are right in that it means you can be financially responsible for damage caused by the previous tenants.
So you have a choice - go down the 'fresh start' route that means you get charged up front, or be a swap, and just keep on top of stuff and make sure that everything is A+ (or raised) with the landlord when you swap in.
If you plan to be there for a long time, I would go with the later, if not, the former.
Howard
As a landlord I've made similar arrangements in the past when a tenant has moved out part way through a fixed term.
Because I offered the tenant an escape from their contract they had to offer me the management of their replacement and to ensure there were no problems as you describe.
If I were you I would lean heavily on the outgoing tenants to prove to you that the inventory is made good and that the property is suitably cleaned before you move in.