Gazman Posted November 19, 2014 Report Share Posted November 19, 2014 Hello Long time lurker 1st time poster, I am not yet a landlord but am a property developer and window fitter that will one day hold on to some properties. I also do alot of work for other landlords so like to try to keep upto date on things. My first post is on behalf of a tennant, I would have posted in the tennats section but there is only one post there and its had no responces. My OH's parents rent a house and have a couple of problems: 1. Boiler has multiple problems, Its old, constantley cuts out, Only pumps out scolding hot water, Thermistat dosent work etc. and the last time a plumber repaired it he apparently said it should be condemed. (if the plumber thought it was that bad should he not have disconected it?). 2. Built in cooker has broken down. 3. Landlord doesnt reply to any form of comunication, Text, Email, Phone since at least May. Its a privet rental (no agents) and they have been renting it for about 4 years. What should they do? My personal thought is that they should get 3 quotes for both the cooker and boiler, Messge the landlord again with the prices and their intensions, Then if no reply after say 2 weeks go ahead, Get them repaired and deduct the cost from the rent. Does this sound reasonable/legal? Appologies for my spelling, I couldnt find the spell checker on this site. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richlist Posted November 19, 2014 Report Share Posted November 19, 2014 Is it a gas fired boiler ? Is there a valid gas safety certificate ? There should be a new gas safety cert every 12 months. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gazman Posted November 19, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 19, 2014 Yes its a gas boiler. I dont know if they have a gas safety cert yet, I was already planning to ask about that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melboy Posted November 20, 2014 Report Share Posted November 20, 2014 Landlord's such as this really p**s me off. Gives the good landlord's a very bad name. I would suggest you have a real bad landlord here who is prepared to not accept his responsibilities that are required of him. I would bet there is no gas safety certificate and this is a fine of up to £5,000 for him for non compliance of gas safety law for tenant's Letter to the Landlord's address again. No action from him? Then perhaps sterner measures are required which may include the witholding of rent which may sharpen him up to take action. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richlist Posted November 20, 2014 Report Share Posted November 20, 2014 The bit that concerns me most is the absence of a gas safety cert. * BOILER: Contact local council environmental health dept and report there is no cert, boiler broken down, landlord can't be contacted. * COOKER: If its gas same comments apply. You could get the cooker repaired as you have detailed in your post. Bare in mind that all this is likely to result in the tenants having to find somewhere else to live as landlord will probably issue S21. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gazman Posted November 20, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 20, 2014 It does sound as if the landlord dosent know or care about alot of their responsbilitys, They did at least protect the deposit by the sounds of it though. The house was pretty run down when they moved in and only has old single glazed windows but they did get a good price on the rental especially for the area and the size of the house. TBH they would most likely be happy to spend the rest of their days renting this place and they wont want to get the landlord in trouble but they are both in their 70's with some medical conditions and could really do with a reliable heating system at least. The cooker is electric and they have been cooking on a camping stove since around April. As Im a trade worker I know good people in every trade, I was going to get 3 of my gas safe plumbing friends to go look at it and write up a small report and quote to repair/replace (they can also price for a gas safety cert while they are there) but what then? Are they better off stopping rent untill the landlord gets in touch or can they just go ahead and get it fixed (after a small notice period to the landlord) and deduct the cost. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richlist Posted November 20, 2014 Report Share Posted November 20, 2014 As I said previously......any action you/ they take will likely result in notice being served. Irrespective of the rights or wrongs......any landlord having EH on their backs or being presented with a large bill for repairs isn't likely to be very happy.....even if they are in the wrong. I'd suggest they start looking for a better property with a better landlord. How can you / they have any confidence that when these problems are fixed there won't be others in the future that will result in the same hassle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gazman Posted November 20, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 20, 2014 Bummer, I expect when I tell them this they will probably just put up with it for now and end up paying for the repairs thereselfs when they can afford it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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