Drainage Problem in rented house

Dannidoo31

Hello- new to all this..!!
We (my husband, I and my 2 children) have been renting for a few months since we sold our house. The house we are renting seems to have a drainage problem! The toilet is forever blocked and the foul tank has started leaking into the kitchen. We spoke to the Letting Agents and they informed us that that a problem with the drains is nothing to do with them. If it is blocked it is our problem and if its the drains it the council. We successfully unblocked the toilet with the help of a bendy curtain rail a few weeks ago only for it to block and leak into the the kitchen again on New Years Day (nice!!). We have since again successfully unblocked it with the use of an electric cable, a pipe and by drilling a hole in one of the pipes (which obviously we will fill again). My question is, if this happens again obviously we are going to have to get a professional drainage company in which is going to cost a fortune. It looks to me like this is a problem which has afflicted the property for some time (the bathroom is fairly newly fitted and it looks like the toilet has been moved, the toilet pipes have lots of bends in it which seems to contribute to blockage problem- also the previous tenants moved out after 6 months even after practically re decorating the entire house)... Is the agent right? Is the expense/time/problem with the drains down to us to deal with?? Any help would be appreciated!!

BitterAndTwisted

Your letting-agents are talking out of their bums, which is no surprise really. If it was a kitchen-sink which had been blocked by you shoving inappropriate muck down there I would agree that it's your issue to resolve but not the lavvy unless inappropriate items have been flushed down there as well.

In the first instance I would talk to the neighbours to confirm whether they are having the same issue and if not WRITE to the landlord and the agent, pointing out the problem and asking them for a reasonable time-scale for it to be investigated and resolved. Of course if it transpires that nappies, wipes or other items which you have flushed have caused the blockage they would be justified in passing that cost onto you.

tbs624

Danidoo - it's as B&T says.

If you need to quote statute to your LA here it is: LL& T Act 1985, S11 ( my bolding)

(1)In a lease to which this section applies (as to which, see sections 13 and 14) there is implied a covenant by the lessor—

(a)to keep in repair the structure and exterior of the dwelling-house (including drains, gutters and external pipes),
(b)to keep in repair and proper working order the installations in the dwelling-house for the supply of water, gas and electricity and for sanitation (including basins, sinks, baths and sanitary conveniences, but not other fixtures, fittings and appliances for making use of the supply of water, gas or electricity), .............

So LL responsible for drains, excluding where it can be shown to be down to the Ts actions or omissions, as per this bit:

(2)The covenant implied by subsection (1) (“the lessor’s repairing covenant”) shall not be construed as requiring the lessor—

(a)to carry out works or repairs for which the lessee is liable by virtue of his duty to use the premises in a tenant-like manner, or would be so liable but for an express covenant on his part,

"Tenant-like manne" is essentially about the T taking the usual care of the property that could be expected of any normal householder, so as B&T says, no nappies etc down the lav etc.

If the LA/LL still won't sort it talk to the local Council private sector tenancy relations officer or Env Health Officer. If necessary they can inspect the property under HHSRS ( housing health and safety rating system) - there is a specific section on hygiene/ drains etc

Dannidoo31

Thanks for the advice I will be writing to the letting agent tomorrow. Along with the drainage there are other issue's i.e an incorrectly fitted gas oven (which they acknowledge is not fitted correctly but apparently isn't dangerous) and a leaking shower! I heard from the previous tenant today that one of the reasons they moved out was because of the toilet/drains and the fact that problems were not corrected by the letting agent.

Dannidoo31

Not sure if I write on here again now to get some more advice or if I start a new thread? But here goes...
So I wrote to the letting agent (by e-mail and then in the post) and haven't heard anything from them (it will be 7 days tomorrow), they haven't even done me the courtesy of sending me a read receipt on the e-mail!! I e-mailed again yesterday as the shower has started leaking again and nothing... How do I get them to actually do something? Contact the landlord direct? Stop paying rent?

N79

What deadline did you set in your letter for a response? What did you say you would do when the deadline expired?

Either way you are going to have to go down the Lee Parker vs Izzet route (ie pay for the repair yourself and then claim it back from future rent). It would be useful to know the above first to see where you are in the process.

Under no circumstances should you, at the moment, stop paying the rent as this will put you in breach of your tenancy and at risk of eviction.

Edit: While your at it can you confirm if the tenancy is subject to English law?

Dannidoo31

I put a 7 day deadline for a response... I didn't say what I would do when the dealine expired as I don't know what I can do! Obviously with the smaller concerns i.e. the shower, the oven, the kitchen units could be repaired quite easily and then claim it back as you suggest (no idea how to go about this by the way) but if/when the toilet starts leaking again should I call the environmental health? Surely having human waste dripping into your kitchen because of the design of the pipes is somekind of criminal offence if you don't attempt to rectify it?? I have had a few quotes from a drainage company about repair and the cost would be around £300!
Yes the tenancy is subject to English Law (I think)...

N79

There are two possible approaches.

The first is to get an environmental health inspection. If they agree that there is a problem then they will serve an improvement notice on the LL. Hopefully the LL will comply (if not the Council, not you are responsible for enforcement). Obviously this will require the problem to reappear and for you to not fix the problem until after the council have inspected it. The advantage of this process is that you have to do very little work yourselves. The disadvantage is that you are dependent on a third party - the council. Some environmental health departments move at sub glacial speeds, many are under resourced and so there may be long delays.

The second is to use the "self help" route provided by the Lee Parker vs Izzet case. In summary, this case outlined a procedure which, if followed, provides Ts with a practical route to enforcing LL's repairing obligations. The process is as follows.

1. Inform LL about repair problem and give them a reasonable period to fix (for leaking sewerage 7 days is more than sufficient).
2. At end of deadline get three written quotations to get the problem repaired, send all three to the LL and inform them that if they do not get the work completed within (say) another period of 7 days then you will get the cheapest contractor to carry out the repairs and forward the bill to the LL.
3. If still no response get cheapest contractor to do the work and pay them.
4. Write to the LL with a copy of the bill and give them, say, 14 days to reimburse you.
5. If still no response, write and state that you will withhold the amount from the next months rent.

The advantage of this route is that are in control and not dependent on the council to progress the case. The downside is that it takes a bit of effort and you have to front the costs up front yourself. If you go down this route then all communication should be in writing, sent by recorded delivery to the address for notices you have for your LL (normally on the tenancy agreement or your most recent S48 notice if you have one).

Its your call. Either route can result in a retaliatory eviction from the LL at the end of your fixed period.

dancingfairy

I am worried also about the gas oven you mentioned - if you go down the environmental health route then you should get them to check this out as well. Do you have gas safety certificates for the property as I was under the impression these were needed by the landlord/agent to get the property rented out?
I would also consider investing in a carbon monoxide detector - I think these are realtively cheap approx 5 pounds just to be on the safe side as well until you can get a professional in to look at the oven and any other gas works.
df

moromir

Dannidoo31 wrote: »

The toilet is forever blocked and the foul tank has started leaking into the kitchen.

I'm going to pick up on the phrase foul tank as noone else seems to have done so yet.

Its not clear from your post whether you are connected to mains sewerage or not? You refer to Council communal drains and also to this foul tank - do you mean you have a cess pit or septic tank?

If you arn't connected to mains sewerage and indeed have a cess pit or septic tank, have you had it emptied recently? The tenancy agreement should mention whose responsibility it is for sewerage charges.

I mention this because I live in a property with a septic tank and structually theres nothing wrong with it but we still have to get it emptied periodically - simply due to the fact the surrounding ground is waterlogged and it was built in the sixties (ie it was never expecting to have to deal with lots of showers, dishwashers etc).