Landlord Problem/Access

ispyita

I won't bore you with all the ins and outs but we have ongoing problems with our landlord, been to CAB now and are awaiting response for reimbursement of items that needed to be thrown away due to damp damage.

Today we have come home to a letter from her saying she is giving us a dehumidifier later in the week, she is asking someone to bring this for her so we're envisaging some enormous item. We're not at all happy about this as our flat is not exactly big, we need every inch of our space. We were wondering 2 things:

1. it is advised in the letter that she wants to come and "inspect" the property every Thursday to check the damp. Are we able to refuse these (in our opinion) way too frequent visits? Can we offer to monitor this ourselves, surely we don't have to have her noseying around our home all the time (She's let herself in on numerous occasions without permisson and we've basically had enough of her turning up).
2. any idea if dehumidifiers are expensive to run? we have no idea and its costing us loads already to live here without running up enormous electricity bills to pay off what is her problem not ours? She's left instructions that all the doors should be left wide open while this unit is in operation, we have 2 warm non-damp rooms and the bathroom and bedroom are freezing, if we leave these doors open all day the storage heaters will be so cold when we get home we'll have to put extra heating on

Thanks very much

Cissi

I'm not sure if she can force you to use a dehumidifier if you don't want to, and you are entitled to "quiet enjoyment" so can refuse her visits within reason - however she is entitled to access for the sake of maintenance, so you may need to be somewhat flexible here.

The damp isn't first and foremost "her problem" though. If it is caused by "lifestyle" rather than an external problem such as a leak then it's your responsibility as tenants. I think you can be expected to open windows frequently, to heat the place adequately and not to dry clothes indoors, for example. To be fair to your LL, it does sound as if she's trying to do something about the problem, by providing a dehumidifier, so it may be best to show a degree of cooperation.

clutton_2

i would have thought that a dehumidifier would be something that you would welcome, as it would take away much of the damp air in your property .... you may find up to a gallon a day has been sucked up by it.... they are not expensive to run

i think it is madness to operate one with windows and doors open... as it will then suck up the moisture in the air outside the property..... once it arrives i suggest you google the model and see what the manufacturer recomends ....

if she cannot monitor the problem how do you expect her to fix it ?

maybe you could keep a record of how much water it extracts each day and allow her in once every two weeks

if this was my property i would also want a weekly visit to see if this dehumidifer was the remedy or if i had to find another solution

a lot of damp is due to condensatgion,and nine times out of ten this is caused by life-style and lack of ventilation

what sort of property are you renting ?

do a search on here for condensation i am sure you will find a lot of interesting threads.....

ispyita

the property is leasehold, the dampcourse has gone at the back of the property resulting in the current damp problems. Its nothing to do with lifestyle - that is condensation - this is damp.

We appreciate the fact that she is helping now after originally ignoring our requests since October to sort this out. Both of us were seriously ill last year, due to misdiagnosis we both ended up in hospital with pneumonia as a result - we simply cannot afford to compromise our health ever again.

Do you not think its reasonable for us to monitor the current situation ourselves and contact her if/when any problems occur, it just seems excessive that she wants to come around weekly - doesn't seem necessary

Pitlanepiglet

Ispyita, I'm slightly confused....what do you want her to do? You've got a problem which you say is construction based that is making you ill. Your Landlady is trying to do something about it but you don't want her to?

What is it that you are trying to achieve? Do you want out of the tenancy?

ispyita

no you mistunderstood, the illness that occurred has no connection to our current home, but dampness can cause pneumonia - and due to the fact we both had pneumonia just over 6 months ago we could potentially have a weaker immune system that some so are trying our best not to get ill from the current living conditions.

we want to live in peace in our home until the tenancy ends in June, that's all - not much to ask.

G_M

As others have said, if you want to avoid getting ill, I'd've thought you'd welcome a dehumidifier.

The LL letting herself in without permission is unacceptable, so change the locks (or barrels - keep the old ones to replace when you leave), but it seems reasonable for her to review the damp weekly, at least initially, so agree a convenient time for her to visit.

clutton_2

what do you know about damp and the results of dehumidifier use ? probably next to nothing... She will know something, or will have a builder who does..

either you want it fixed - then cooperate with her

or you dont - and you then compromise your health for 6 months...

i know which one i would choose....