Furnished Property-Is a landlord obliged to provide a fridge and washing machine?

theluckiswithme

Hello,

Am asking this on behalf of my sister who moved into her "furnished" rented property on Saturday only to find that there was no fridge and no washing machine? Obviously she should have noticed this when she looked around the property originally, but I was wondering whether the landlord is obliged to provide a fridge and a washing machine as I would have thought in a furnished property these should be provided?

Thanks very much!

ruggedtoast

No. It just means whatever is in the house already wont be removed by the landlord.

Captain_Mainwaring_2

Was it there when you viewed? And was there any implication that it would be provided?

You obviously didn't sign any inventory when moving in.

pinkshoes

I would take furnished to mean everything, including washing machine and fridge! If it said "part furnished", then perhaps it didn't include these items, but then she should have been given an inventory to sign, saying what was in the house.

In the 10 years that I rented, I've never rented a furnished house that didn't have a washing machine or fridge. Most had a freezer too.

inmypocketnottheirs

The landlord is not obligated to provide anything. Items provided vary from tenancy to tenancy. What was agreed?

tbs624

Tenants should always seek clarification of what is included before signing up. There is no legal definition of what should be there if a property is described as furnished, fully furnished, part furnished, unfurnished etc - it just tends to be a case of what is common practice and as the others have said this will vary, depending on the LL.

Your sister could ask the LL whether he'd consider providing a washer & a fridge, but generally when a LL doesn't it's because apart from the initial purchase expense, he also doesn't want the obligation to maintain the items & have them checked for safety on a regular basis.

poppysarah

IMO fridge and cooker are essential to being furnished. Washer isn't.

She should ask the landlord - and check the inventory. Make sure one's not listed

prudryden

If nothing else, it is certainly misleading to state that a flat is furnished and not tell a potential tenant that they have to provide their own fridge. A fridge, although maybe not legally required, would still be considered a basic item, even in an unfurnished flat.

Keep asking the LL to provide a fridge or some explanation why he won't.. As a landlord myself, this doesn't really make a lot of sense for a LL not to provide a fridge.

Snooze

poppysarah wrote: »

IMO fridge and cooker are essential to being furnished. Washer isn't.

Yes I'd go with that too. When I used to rent furnished places, some would include washer and some wouldn't so always asked before signing anything. Fridge and cooker are essentials so those should come as standard imho.

Rob

theluckiswithme

Thanks for your replies everyone. I'm not sure whether they were on the inventory-will ask my sister! Will get her to try and persuade the landlord at least to supply a fridge.

olly300

Snooze wrote: »

Yes I'd go with that too. When I used to rent furnished places, some would include washer and some wouldn't so always asked before signing anything. Fridge and cooker are essentials so those should come as standard imho.

Rob

That is yours and other peoples opinion but unfortunately it's not law and there is no legal description of what furniture a furnished place should come with.

A friend of mine rented a furnished place and it just came with a cooker, carpets, curtains and a table. There as I have rented a furnish place in the past that had everything including cooking utensils, pans, plates, cups, glasses and a coffee maker.

However whatever furniture is in the property the landlord should always make it clear when people are viewing what comes with the property.

If you require items that are not there its always worth asking the landlord if they can provide them. Some landlords are willing and able to provide items if they think it's a reasonable request.