tenants claiming compensation

[landlord567]

Hi All,

I am a new landlord so would like some advice please.

I let out a 2 bedroomed flat via a fully managed service from a letting agency. Approx three montrhs ago the tenants noticed some damp in one corner of the second bedroom and reported it to my letting agency. The letting agency immediately had it checked out and we were told that the damp was caused by a leak from the flat above. Both myself and the agency then tried repeatedly to get in touch with the owner/tenant of the flat above and left several written and verbal messages. Initially the owner denied there was a problem and ignored any messages left. We finally managed to convince him there was a problem and he got the leak fixed. However the leak was only fixed ~10 weeks later during which time the damp was still present. The tenant is now asking for compensation for loss of the use of the room for the length of time it took to fix the leak. My letting agent seems to think that i should offer the tenant some compensation out of goodwill. This is despite the fact that we did everything we could to resolve the situation and the length of time it took to resolve was out of our control. Also the tenant was only using the room occasionally and the room was used mainly to store goods so no-one was using the room on a daily basis.

Has anyone come across anything like this before and should i give the tenants some compensation? if so how do i work out how much to give them? and finally can i claim the compensation from the owner of the flat above as the leak was from his flat and not mine?

any help much appreciated.

thanks in advance

[Simon Dewsberry]

1. ask T what he feels is a fair and acceptable figure

Then take a view on it

then apply to "neighbour" to cover this cost

cant see that anything is really due unless damp was exceptionally bad ?

I would take a nice bottle of wine round and call it quits !

The Rodent

[landlord567]

Hi

Thanks for the advice.

I beginning to think that they're not really entitled to anything as the damp wasn't that bad and we did do everything we could to try and get it sorted - i could understand if we'd been dragging our feet and hadn't been bothered!

perhaps the bottle of wine will do the trick!

Thanks again

newbie landlord

[GPEL]

I tend to think that no compensation is due because the problem and rectification were through circumstances beyond your control and there has been no real denial of use of the room. However. I would put this to them, advise them to speak to CAB and say that, without prejudice, as a matter of goodwill you'll keep an open mind to any reasonable claim from them.