Water leak: who is liable?

DizzyEgg

I moved into a rented

anselld

Is this a pressurised hot water system? If so there is a requirement that the pressure discharge should be clearly visible for safety reasons.

Where did the water go and why did it take 10 weeks to spot?

Cissi

anselld wrote: »

Where did the water go and why did it take 10 weeks to spot?

Indeed - I wouldn't just be concerned about the water bill but more so about the potential damage that's been caused to the house. As a tenant you have a duty of care to the property, so if this is something that you could reasonably have been expected to spot then you could be liable for the cost of the damage. That's a pretty big IF but this could get messy...

anselld

DizzyEgg wrote: »

I *think* it is a pressurised hot water system. Now that it has been pointed out to me, there IS a small section of the pipe that is see-through, where you can see water trickling through. I hadn't noticed it before today, but even if I had I probably wouldn't have thought anything of it - I have NO IDEA how a boiler works.

That seethrough thing is called a "tundish". It is there so that you can know if the pressure is venting in a fault situation which could include steam/boiling water venting off (worst case). It is supposed to be mounted in a very visible location so that you know there is a fault which needs rectifying urgently.

I would say L is at fault for not explaining the importance of the tundish to system safety.

However in this case it sounds like a very small leak in the safety device itself, so L liable for repair and you will hopefully not even notice the water usage in comparison with day-to-day normal use.


PS. Building regs allow the discharge pipe to go down the normal drain if it is not practical to vent elsewhere as can be the case in the flat. But then it is vital that the tundish is visible.

dimbo61

Do you have a water meter?
You pay the water rates or water bill ?
You could try asking the Landlord to pay your water bill!!

anselld

DizzyEgg wrote: »

My readings show that I've used 6358 units of electricity in 75 days !! An average of 84 units a day!!!

Does this sound right if the immersion heater was constantly on, or is it a lot even when that is taken into account???!

Help!

3kW x 24 hours is 72 units a day so yes it sounds right.

Looks like are going to have a serious claim against the LL but you will need to prove that you have acted in a "tenant like manner" ie that there was no obvious way you should have spotted this earlier.

This would be supported by
(a) you were not given any instruction in the importance of the tundish
(b) you did not therefore become aware of the fault until the electrical failure
(c) you reported as soon as that failure occurred.

Questions remain ...
Are you sure there were no other warning signs you ignored?
Why were you operating on Immersion only? (or is this the main source for HW?) You probably cant "ignore the rights and wrongs", it should have rung alarm bells if it needed to be on continuosly!

bob2

The water company may be able to help.

According to Ofwat...

https://www.ofwat.gov.uk/consumerissues/chargesbills/householdcharges/unmetered/meters

What happens if there is a leak and I have a water meter?

Undetected leaks can lead to abnormally high water bills. The water company may agree to reduce the bill to its usual level (a ‘leakage allowance’), provided the householder repairs the leak within a reasonable time. The company will normally only do this once.

anselld

Still looks like fault both sides ...

LL faults
Failure of the immersion heater.
Failure to ensure the system was functioning correctly before you moved in.
Failure to provide instruction as to the function of switches, tun dish, system operation, etc.

Your faults
Switching things on randomly without finding out what they do.
Ignoring scalding water till it mysteriously went away.
Ignoring that your hot tanks must have sounded like a steaming kettle at first.
Not noticing running water through the tin dish.
Not noticing that you seemed to be running the immersion continuously for 10 weeks and yet water barely hot.

So the upshot is that a fairly simple fault has not been detected and caused two further faults (relief valve and electric failure) and massive energy/water bills.

Suggest you try to negotiate.

nomoneytoday

If you heard the hiss did you not query it for 3 months?