LL failing/refusing to provide gas certificate - next steps please?

chappers

clutton wrote: »

"They are a legitimate local company, so if they don't contact me today, I will contact them direct tomorrow.""

i think this is sensible - i (as a LL) dont condone this LL in any way, but, solving problems by reasoned argument, rather than all guns blazing, may well retain the tenancy for OP's son

having said that - please do things in writing (for a future paper trail) - we all know how important these things are for the future if the muck hits the air-mover.....

I would always recommend doing things in writing except in this situation, the OP was being fobbed off over something where aquick phone call to the HSE would bring swift action and the threat of such action should galvanise the LL into sorting the problem quickly.

LotusFlower_3

How often is a gas safety check supposed to be carried out? I've been living at my house since July 2008 and haven't had a check since then.

poppysarah

It's supposed to be done every year.

tbs624

http://www.hse.gov.uk/PRESS/2009/coiyh38509.htm

http://www.hse.gov.uk/press/2009/coiwm51409.htm

http://www.vittaflor.com/news/lax-attitude-gas-safety-costs-landlord-%C2%A325000

http://www.housingexcellence.co.uk/news/landlord-jailed-failing-comply-gas-safety-regulations-447142

http://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/2009/01/09/north-wales-landlord-steven-dickens-guilty-of-fraud-55578-22655952/ (gas safety listed down towards the bottom)

http://www.safetymedia.co.uk/news/court_cases/gas_boilers_%27need_health_and_safety_awareness%27/416654

Don't collude with slack LLs and sloppy LAs - the gas safety regs are there to protect tenants. No gas safety cert, no annual check - report them.

tbs624

clutton wrote: »

"They are a legitimate local company, so if they don't contact me today, I will contact them direct tomorrow.""

i think this is sensible - i (as a LL) dont condone this LL in any way, but, solving problems by reasoned argument, rather than all guns blazing, may well retain the tenancy for OP's son.

Sorry Clutton, what you seem to be saying is that the OPs son shouldn't "upset the applecart" by marking a formal complaint about an LA/LL who is clearly breaking the law, and has already been given several opportunity to redress the situation?

Look back at what the OP said - no safety cert shown/given at the start of the tenancy Aug 08, T reminds LA Sept 09 that next check must be overdue - no action, tries again after October hospital stay - no action, OP contacts LA - follow up promised but does not materialise, OP phones LA again - given a further phone number of someone else who promises to call back but doesn't do so, OP tries again today and finally gets given the number of a HE who is supposed to be making contact.

"Reasoned argument" should not be required to get a LL to take his/her legal obligations on gas safety (or anything else) seriously: some may feel that the T and his mother have been more than reasonable.

clutton_2

i am thinking about the longer term security of the OP's son, who obviously has had difficulty finding a place to live in the past - this LL could just issue a S21 and the OP's son will then be in an even more difficult spot if this situation is not handled sensitively.

i am NOT condoning this landlords tardy approach in any way, believe me i am not , these types should not be LLs and they do give profesional landlords a bad name.

anotherginger

contact the council....it is a legal requirement to have an annual gas safety check and certificate.

franklee

clutton wrote: »

i am thinking about the longer term security of the OP's son, who obviously has had difficulty finding a place to live in the past - this LL could just issue a S21 and the OP's son will then be in an even more difficult spot if this situation is not handled sensitively.

Of course a tenant's reasonable complaint could well be viewed as too much hassle by a landlord. There are many tenants too wary of complaining for fear of retaliatory eviction which can and does happen and worse still for those where the S21 is already served as some landlords do as routine. The tenants who can't afford to move at present or those with non-standard requirements as the OP's son are naturally going to be more concerned at this risk than those who can easily move. I'd be making all the relevant complaints myself but fortunately I could easily move, however I can see why a tenant would tread carefully, even in issues of gas safety. I don't really see anything can be done about that as the law stands.

zzzLazyDaisy

The gas engineer phoned me earlier this morning and has made an appointment to do the safety check on Friday morning. So hopefully that should be okay now.

One final question - I understand that the LL has to provide a copy of the certificate within 28 days. I am presuming that means that the engineer won't give us the certificate there and then?

Thanks to everyone for their comments and input.

You are all correct and of course I won't take risks with gas safety, but at the same time Clutton and Frankilee are right that I don't want to antagonise the landlord unless it becomes absolutely necessary. My son is disabled and only just out of hospital - the last thing he needs is a S21 at the moment, especially given the difficulties we would face in finding him alternative accommodation.

Thanks again

Daisy

tbs624

zzzLazyDaisy wrote: »

One final question - I understand that the LL has to provide a copy of the certificate within 28 days. I am presuming that means that the engineer won't give us the certificate there and then?

Some do, some wait until they have been paid by the LL/LA. The HE should of course be able to confirm verbally to you/your son whether everything at the property is compliant.

zzzLazyDaisy wrote: »

I don't want to antagonise the landlord unless it becomes absolutely necessary. My son is disabled and only just out of hospital - the last thing he needs is a S21 at the moment, especially given the difficulties we would face in finding him alternative accommodation.

I can understand your concern and you have to handle things in the way that best suits you and your son. However, LLs need tenants in situ just as much as tenants need a roof over their head. If your son has been a reliable T in every other way, ie rent paid on time, no damage to property etc then a LL would be foolish to serve a retaliatory S21 because a T had insisted on having a current gas safety check and had asked for the TROs support.

The LL then has the hassle of finding a new T who will be an unknown capacity to him and may well create far worse problems for the LL further down the line. He will also have a void because a T served such a S21 would probably not oblige for replacement tenant viewings. Not only would the Private Sector Team have it on record that they had had to kick the LL's behind over missing gas safety certs but they would also have him noted as serving a retaliatory S21 on a disabled tenant who had sought the TRO's help as a last resort.

What generally happens in the absence of an actual carbon monoxide poisoning is that the TRO/EHO formally warns the LL to get the check done within a set time frame - they proceed to court when/if the LL still doesn't act.

The fact that you don't seem to have an address for the LA/LL is something else that your son may want to sort out - he has a legal right to be notified of an address. You may want to casually ask the Heating Engineer what address he has down. Has your son paid a tenancy deposit and, if, yes, has it been scheme-registered?

I personally would start looking for somewhere else asap, giving up smoking, if necessary to widen potential choice of properties - LLs who show such disregard for their Ts as this one appears to do should be driven out of lettings.