Renting - Boiler nightmare :-(

Regina.filangie

Hi, I'd be really grateful for some advice on this....

We started renting a house in July last year. In November, the boiler broke and we had no heating or hot water for approx 3 weeks while it was snowing outside and I was 8 and a half months pregnant. We had to borrow my in-law's electric fire to put in the living room and we ended up sleeping in there as it was too cold in the rest of the house. We rang the agent and reported the problem immediately and they sent one of their contractors out to have a look at it. He didn't have a clue what he was doing, he kept saying it was fixed only for it to break again when he'd left! This happened several times, he ordered a part for it, this didn't solve the problem and eventually a manufacturer's engineer came out and got it working again. We complained to the agent at the time for the sheer inconvenience we encountered whilst living in a freezing cold house while we had 10 inches of snow outside, I had to stay in day after day and for hours on end waiting for plumbers to call all the time, slept on a sofa whilst ready to pop and experiencing terrible back ache. One on occasion I even cried on the phone to the agent as I was so fed up with the situation.

Last week the boiler broke again, displaying the same fault codes so I rang the agent. They sent a plumber out who condemned the boiler. They then wanted a second opinion so we had to wait in for another one to come round, who spent another hour here trying to fix it and eventually coming to the conclusion that it's knackered. They said they'd inform the agent and try to fit a new one asap. They left a voicemail on my phone the following day saying that before they ordered a new one they wanted to come back again to check a couple of things. I rang him back and said I was going out at 4.30pm but he could come before then, but he said he was in the middle of something and he would call me back. He didn't. I rang the agent again today and explained this, said how angry I was at being left with no heating or hot water and having to take my baby to my inlaws 5 miles away every night for a bath! I'm also wasting a lot of my time waiting around for these people and they haven't even got the decency to ring me back when they say they will. Not even a sorry from them. I've had enough. Is there anything I can do? This isn't my house - I'm paying these people for the priviledge of living here whilst having no heating or hot water for weeks and people wasting my time and causing us real hassle. Am I entitled to ask for a refund of some rent or compensation for this hassle? Any advice appreciated - it might help to ease this headache....

poppysarah

Move.

(extra characters cos post is too short)

Tiddlywinks

Boilers do break down occasionally - I can testify to that. It is natural that the agent / LL wanted to try a repair first.

The fact that you were pregnant at the time of the first breakdown was coincidental - not their fault that you had a back ache is it?

Now, they are trying to arrange a replacement - get a grip - workmen on jobs do get held up.

As to having to drive 5 miles to bathe the baby?????????

How about boiling a kettle - babies aren't that large are they? How much water does one littl'un need for a bath? I think you are over reacting and need to get in the real world. Agents / LL or homeowners can't just "magic up" new boilers or spare parts you know. When I was organising mine it took two weeks to get the parts and the labour sorted - that's life...

real1314

Regina.filangie wrote: »

Hi, I'd be really grateful for some advice on this....

We started renting a house in July last year. In November, the boiler broke and we had no heating or hot water for approx 3 weeks while it was snowing outside and I was 8 and a half months pregnant. We had to borrow my in-law's electric fire to put in the living room and we ended up sleeping in there as it was too cold in the rest of the house. We rang the agent and reported the problem immediately and they sent one of their contractors out to have a look at it. He didn't have a clue what he was doing, he kept saying it was fixed only for it to break again when he'd left! This happened several times, he ordered a part for it, this didn't solve the problem and eventually a manufacturer's engineer came out and got it working again. We complained to the agent at the time for the sheer inconvenience we encountered whilst living in a freezing cold house while we had 10 inches of snow outside, I had to stay in day after day and for hours on end waiting for plumbers to call all the time, slept on a sofa whilst ready to pop and experiencing terrible back ache. One on occasion I even cried on the phone to the agent as I was so fed up with the situation.

Last week the boiler broke again, displaying the same fault codes so I rang the agent. They sent a plumber out who condemned the boiler. They then wanted a second opinion so we had to wait in for another one to come round, who spent another hour here trying to fix it and eventually coming to the conclusion that it's knackered. They said they'd inform the agent and try to fit a new one asap. They left a voicemail on my phone the following day saying that before they ordered a new one they wanted to come back again to check a couple of things. I rang him back and said I was going out at 4.30pm but he could come before then, but he said he was in the middle of something and he would call me back. He didn't. I rang the agent again today and explained this, said how angry I was at being left with no heating or hot water and having to take my baby to my inlaws 5 miles away every night for a bath! I'm also wasting a lot of my time waiting around for these people and they haven't even got the decency to ring me back when they say they will. Not even a sorry from them. I've had enough. Is there anything I can do? This isn't my house - I'm paying these people for the priviledge of living here whilst having no heating or hot water for weeks and people wasting my time and causing us real hassle. Am I entitled to ask for a refund of some rent or compensation for this hassle? Any advice appreciated - it might help to ease this headache....

There's no scheme or system by which you can be "entitled" to any refund or compensation directly.

The first thing to do is to ask, and if that works to your satisfaction, then fine. It might be worth seeing if your local council has a Private Lettings officer who might be able to exert a little extra pressure.
If it doesn't work, the only option is to take legal action - you'd be taking them to court for breach of contract. :cool:

SGE1

Tiddlywinks wrote: »

Boilers do break down occasionally - I can testify to that. It is natural that the agent / LL wanted to try a repair first.

The fact that you were pregnant at the time of the first breakdown was coincidental - not their fault that you had a back ache is it?

Now, they are trying to arrange a replacement - get a grip - workmen on jobs do get held up.

As to having to drive 5 miles to bathe the baby?????????

How about boiling a kettle - babies aren't that large are they? How much water does one littl'un need for a bath? I think you are over reacting and need to get in the real world. Agents / LL or homeowners can't just "magic up" new boilers or spare parts you know. When I was organising mine it took two weeks to get the parts and the labour sorted - that's life...

Oh my. On the other hand, it's the landlord's (or agent's) responsibility to provide a house that's fit to live in. 3 weeks without a functioning boiler is not acceptable. Hardly outrageous that the OP should be fed up the second time round.

Are you always this aggressive and patronising when you disagree with someone? Perhaps you ought to "get a grip".

G_M

I tend to agree with Tiddlywinks.

Yes, it's frustrating and inconvenient, but life is sometimes frustrating and inconvenient. Whether you own your home or rent one. As Tiddly says, contractors can be unreliable, parts can be hard to source, whatever.

The LL/agent seems to be doing what they can - it's when they refuse that you need to worry!

My only suggestion would be to put things in writing as well as phoning.

Tobyemery

3 Weeks is ages to wait without heating hot water in the winter! If it was an elderly person, they could of easily died if no one visited them. I. Sounds like the LL a tight !!!! that just wanted it fixed, was it fixed after 3 weeks?

But theh \i don't know how old the boiler is, so if it's new he obviously would want it fixed, but if its acient anyway.

terrierlady

same thoughts our boiler had a life of its own we had british gas out six times we knew all the lads ,the last guy fixed it ,that was a year ago we moved house and owner not had a problem since....

Turnbull2000

Tiddlywinks wrote: »

Boilers do break down occasionally - I can testify to that. It is natural that the agent / LL wanted to try a repair first.

The fact that you were pregnant at the time of the first breakdown was coincidental - not their fault that you had a back ache is it?

Now, they are trying to arrange a replacement - get a grip - workmen on jobs do get held up.

As to having to drive 5 miles to bathe the baby?????????

How about boiling a kettle - babies aren't that large are they? How much water does one littl'un need for a bath? I think you are over reacting and need to get in the real world. Agents / LL or homeowners can't just "magic up" new boilers or spare parts you know. When I was organising mine it took two weeks to get the parts and the labour sorted - that's life...

Are you for real? The OP has repeatedly experienced problems with the boiler, and three weeks without hot water the first time round is already unacceptable. Landlordism is supposed to be business, so the OP should expect either a swift resolution of the problem, confirmation of boiler replacement or a reduction in rent. Anything less is incompetent and amateurish behaviour from the landlord.

olly300

Turnbull2000 wrote: »

Are you for real? The OP has repeatedly experienced problems with the boiler, and three weeks without hot water the first time round is already unacceptable. Landlordism is supposed to be business, so the OP should expect either a swift resolution of the problem, confirmation of boiler replacement or a reduction in rent. Anything less is incompetent and amateurish behaviour from the landlord.

You are presuming the agent has told the landlord asap.

Some LAs delay telling the landlord because of sheer laziness.

Unfortunately unless the tenant has contact details for the landlord and tells them they won't know how sh*t their LA is.

Edited to say: OP you need to get contact details for the LL. Tell them what is going on, mention you have children and explain that the LA didn't leave you with replacement heating.

G_M

The first time round, during that 3 week period, the LL/agent sent round an engineer straight off.
They then sent engineer round again "several times".
The engineer then had to order a part.
The LL/agent then arranged for the manufacturer to snd an engineer.

And all at a time when we know heating engineers were rushed off their feet (remember the AA launching their central heating cover and being unable to cope?)

That does not sound to me like "incompetent and amateurish behaviour from the landlord. "

LLs are not magicians. Whether the engineer, as suggested, "didn't have a clue what he was doing" is impossible to say. He may have simply been unlucky that having fixed a fault, there was a 2nd fault. But even if he didn't have a clue what he was doing, that is hardly the LL's fault - indeed the LL called in the manufacturer.

What else could he be expected to do?