Gas Safety and rent rebate

[jomac]

Hi, I wonder if anyone has any views on the following.

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My stepson was due to move into student accommodation in Sept 2011 but his father did not allow him as the landlord would not show them a current gas safety certificate. We later found out he did not have one until Feb 2012 (6 months after the tenancy agreement began). We are refusing to pay the rent as we had to find alternative accommodation.

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Do you know of any case law or statutory provisions showing that if there is an initial failure to provide a current gas safety certificate then the tenancy agreement is unenforceable and there is no remedy to allow the landlord to collect rent.

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Many thanks

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Jo Mac

[Mortitia]

Amazing how you did that!

You are wasting your time trying profiteer from a missing gas certificate. The HSE who govern these things will not be interested.

Desperate or what? I hope Landlord takes legal action to recover missing rent.

Mortitia

[caravanj]

Hi, I wonder if anyone has any views on the following.

My stepson was due to move into student accommodation in Sept 2011 but his father did not allow him as the landlord would not show them a current gas safety certificate. We later found out he did not have one until Feb 2012 (6 months after the tenancy agreement began). We are refusing to pay the rent as we had to find alternative accommodation.

Do you know of any case law or statutory provisions showing that if there is an initial failure to provide a current gas safety certificate then the tenancy agreement is unenforceable and there is no remedy to allow the landlord to collect rent.

Many thanks

Jo Mac

Has your stepson lived in the property at all? Was a tenancy agreement signed or agreed to by your stepson or his father?

If he hasn't lived there but has a tenancy agreement then I suppose you could counter any claim by the landlord on the basis that your stepson couldn't be reasonably expected to live in accomodation that breached HSE gas safety regulation.

However I do have to ask why, if a tenancy agreement was entered into, all the checks weren't done beforehand.