Repair it or else
Question
My fiancee and I are renting a house through a lettings agency and have some maintenance issues that we have been trying to resolve for a while. Before we moved in, the landlord said that any repairs that needed doing would have to be submitted in writing. After we moved in, we duly did this, but the landlord ignored us, so I asked the agency to take care of the repairs. They said that all repairs were to be dealt with by the landlord.
In addition, there are problems with our damage deposit and our gas safety record. We paid the damage deposit last year, although I have no receipt for this. According to their records we didn't give them the full amount, but I am going to show them my bank statement in an attempt to get them to waive the increased payment.
I have also just found out that the gas safety record expired a year and a half ago. By law the agency should get this sorted and probably will, however I am wondering whether it would be worth my while trying to threaten them with the fact that the house's gas record is illegal in order to persuade them to fix the other things with the house. However, there is nothing actually in our contract to say that the landlord has to keep the house in good condition.
Answer
You mention that you rent privately and your landlord lives elsewhere. Most people in this situation are assured shorthold tenants. The following advice is based upon this.
Your landlord has a legal responsibility for keeping certain things in your property in good repair. This would include repairs to the structure and exterior of the property such as the walls, roof, external doors and windows. There may be ways of getting your landlord to do the repairs. These include action you can take yourself or getting other bodies involved such as the environmental heath officer or taking your landlord to county court.
If you pay rent through an agency, you are entitled to know the name and address of your landlord. If you request these details in writing, your letting agency has a legal duty to supply this information within 21 days. If they don't provide these details, they are committing a criminal offence. If the agency doesn't supply this information, your local council may be able to help. They may have a tenancy relations or harassment officer that can mediate in disputes between landlords and private tenants. They may also be able to help if you can't resolve the problem with your deposit.
If you manage to find out your landlord's details, you may want to contact him or her directly to report the disrepair. Your landlord may be unaware of the problems that you are having.
Your landlord is also responsible for the gas appliances in your property. They must ensure that the gas appliances, flues and pipes in your property are kept in a safe condition. Your landlord must also have the gas supply, gas appliances, flues and ventilation checked each year for safety. A Gas Safe registered gas engineer must do this.
Your landlord should keep written records of gas safety checks for at least two years. If you move into a privately rented property, then your landlord must provide you with a copy of the latest safety check record before you move in. If you are already a tenant, then your landlord must give you a copy of the safety check within 28 days of it being carried out. If your landlord doesn't do this, then they are breaking the law and could be prosecuted. The Health and Safety Executive can prosecute your landlord - you can find out more about this from their website or call their gas safety advice line on 0800 300 363.
If you think you can smell gas, then turn off your gas supply as soon as you can, and contact Transco's gas emergency line on 0800 111999.
If you decide to take steps to report your landlord for not repairing the property or for not having it checked regularly, then you need to consider what kind of tenancy you have. If you have an assured shorthold tenancy, then your landlord can usually evict you easily. Some landlords may choose to evict tenants rather than carry out repairs. However, as gas appliances in poor repair can damage your heath or even kill, it's important to consider whether you want to stay in the property if the appliances are not repaired. If you decide to leave, you could report your landlord after you have left, to protect any future tenants.
If you need further help with this, you might want to seek local advice.
Updated: 31/03/2009
Question answered by Shelter
