Moved into a new rental flat, a couple of niggly things...

nzseries1

LilacPixie wrote: »

OP is there already a lock on the door? Is it a UPVC door?? Do you have the key?

There is already a lock on the door, yes, and I do have the key. It's just that when the key is turned, nothing happens.

I'm not sure what a UPVC door is - it's one of those doors where you push the handle up to close it and push it down to open it (this works from both outside and inside).

bargainbunny

So as there is a lock on it already and key it should work.. you need to call them and tell them it does not work.
Ebay is good for curtains/poles I had to buy loads an it saved me ££ss

flutterbyuk25

nzseries1 wrote: »

There is already a lock on the door, yes, and I do have the key. It's just that when the key is turned, nothing happens.

I'm not sure what a UPVC door is - it's one of those doors where you push the handle up to close it and push it down to open it (this works from both outside and inside).

I have a similar issue with my UPVC balcony door, it has a tempramental lock. However my balcony does not attach to a neighbours and really only spiderman could get to it so I'm not overly worried. But I would report it to your landlord asap in your case.

bargainbunny wrote: »

Ebay is good for curtains/poles I had to buy loads an it saved me ££ss

I got some brilliant curtains poles from Ikea for just £9.98 each. They are extentable black metal poles (but you can barely see the extention bit). Easy to put up too.

Re curtains - if you have a freecycle in your area put a want ad on there maybe?

x

nzseries1

bargainbunny wrote: »

So as there is a lock on it already and key it should work.. you need to call them and tell them it does not work.

That is the rule isn't it - that anything provided with the flat needs to be working.

tyllwyd

In the short term, if you can't change the blinds/curtains, you could get some big A1 thick black card from a stationers and lean that up against the window behind the blind when it is closed to give you a bit more privacy. I did that in the kids bedroom as a homemade blackout solution.

bargainbunny

nzseries1 wrote: »

That is the rule isn't it - that anything provided with the flat needs to be working.

yeap.. id be worried that they would charge me for it being broken at end of tenancy .. I had few issues with my inventory as they do not actually check everything.. but I made note on it and I noticed more than they did.

Just call them as it may have been overlooked.

poppysarah

flutterbyuk25 wrote: »

really only spiderman could get to it

You'd be surprised how agile some people are even without a climbing harness and rope.

N79

Indeed I did misunderstand the OP. Repairing an existing lock is a different matter to installing a new lock and is easily arguable as a repairing obligation of the LL.

PasturesNew

Depending on the width of the patio door area, and the shape, I'd see if I could pick up one of those "expanding curtain poles" and get some lightweight net curtains up, possibly those voile types. You can put them up without fitting them (just twist and the poles expand). Voiles you can often get at a charity shop.

For the lock for now, if there's a handle, I'd be looking at getting some lump of wood under so the handle can't be pressed down. A broom might work - I used to shove a broom under my back door handle a few years back to give the back door an extra bit of oomph for security.

Quiick, temporary, cheap solutions, which require no fitting.

Poles for 47-72" (4-6') currently about £2 on ebay. Under £5 with P&P, make sure you get the ones that just twist to fit and don't need you to fit a hook first.

DawnW

Don't phone, write to the LL / LA re the lock issue, and keep a copy. I would be inclined to send it recorded delivery too, so that they have to sign for it - they can't 'deny all knowledge' then. If they refuse to fix it, at least it is recorded so that they cannot take it out of your deposit. In this case, you could probably have the barrel of the lock replaced (or do it yourself - it isn't difficult) making sure to put the old broken one back in when you leave!

Curtains are your responsibility, but do get permission if you make holes in the walls, again, in writing. Didn't you notice the blinds when you looked at the flat? I can understand you missing the door lock issue, but I would have thought the blinds were pretty obvious?