Landlord entering flat without permission

amboy

sultry33 wrote:

all private landlords now have to be registered i believe now

Factually incorrect !!

only LL who run licencable properties need to be registered.

clutton_2

why not try the obvious thing first - talk to the landlord ? or write him/her a letter, explaining that you do have a right of "quiet enjoyment" and that he is not actually allowed to enter the premises without your permission for any reason except for an emergency (maintinance does not constitute an emergency) - but that, with some notice you will be only too pleased to accommodate the work men (presumably they are making the property more habitable for you, so why would you not want the work done ?)

kenshaz

clutton wrote:

why not try the obvious thing first - talk to the landlord ? or write him/her a letter, explaining that you do have a right of "quiet enjoyment" and that he is not actually allowed to enter the premises without your permission for any reason except for an emergency (maintinance does not constitute an emergency) - but that, with some notice you will be only too pleased to accommodate the work men (presumably they are making the property more habitable for you, so why would you not want the work done ?)

Always better to talk rather than make it all official

hollydays

Thanks for all your advice.They are doing this with all the tenants.The experience with the Landlords ie The management company, is that they do as they want.This is not the first issue though.

clutton_2

I am a professional landlady, and the law is very clear - landlords may NOT enter the property for ANY reason without the tenants permission, except for emergecies (gas leak, running water). A landlord cannot write into a Tenancy Agreement (and there are many different ones) anything which takes away a "right" under another piece of legislation. So, even if it is in the Agreement that the tenant must allow the landlord in, s/he does NOT have to. Tenants have the right of "quiet enjoyment" at all times. It has even been tested in the courts, that a tenant does not have to allow a CORGI gas engineer in - even tho it is the landlords legal duty to do this annually. (I cannot remember the case name tho unfortunately). It was the judges view that a landlord would not be prosecuted under the Gas Safety laws under such circumstances, as s/he had clearly done everything in their power to gain access.

RHemmings asks

"This question gets asked quite often, and we often get the correct answer that this is illegal. But we rarely hear what people can do about it. What can people do? Is there anyone who has dealt with this problem and obtained a satisfactory conclusion?"

i think access for repairs is an interesting point - if a tenant needs repairs doing to make their life more comfortable, i would have thought it was in their best interests to cooperate with the landlord - individual negotiation seems to be the way forward.

""Thanks for all your advice.They are doing this with all the tenants."" - then i think you must go to the Local Authority as advised above. let us know how you get on.