Does my LL have to do anything about heating problems?

guruchelles

Hello Wise House People,

I think I know the answer to this, but is there anything my LL has to do about the heating situation in our house?

We foolishly (pregnant and being kicked out of old house) took a tenancy on a house with four single-glazed bay windows, virtually no insulation, and a 30+ year old boiler. The boiler is, of course, massively inefficient and heat just pours out of the windows and roof. The attic has been turned into an illegal loft conversion (where one of my sons sleeps) and there is no lagging apart from a few inches in the eaves. Only two rooms (single bedroom and the bathroom) have double glazing.

We have asked the LL about updating the boiler but she says she has no money (annoying, since I very much doubt all of our £1000pm rent goes on mortgage payments). She nearly got additional insulation put in back in December, but the company messed her around and she hasn't so far pursued it.

We try our best to keep doors shut, curtains closed, and we've even put some special shrink-fit plastic film stuff on the inside of all the windows, but it's still freezing. We have to put an electric heater on a low setting in my baby's room at night because it's so cold.

Our fuel bills are immense. We've thought about moving, but there is very little around. Plus, the masterplan is to buy a house in a year or so, so we don't want any more house moves mucking up the credit file and disrupting the family.

Is there anything I can make my LL do? Or any schemes she can partake in? (Supplier - British Gas).

sharp910sh

guruchelles wrote: »

Hello Wise House People,

I think I know the answer to this, but is there anything my LL has to do about the heating situation in our house?

We foolishly (pregnant and being kicked out of old house) took a tenancy on a house with four single-glazed bay windows, virtually no insulation, and a 30+ year old boiler. The boiler is, of course, massively inefficient and heat just pours out of the windows and roof. The attic has been turned into an illegal loft conversion (where one of my sons sleeps) and there is no lagging apart from a few inches in the eaves. Only two rooms (single bedroom and the bathroom) have double glazing.

We have asked the LL about updating the boiler but she says she has no money (annoying, since I very much doubt all of our £1000pm rent goes on mortgage payments). She nearly got additional insulation put in back in December, but the company messed her around and she hasn't so far pursued it.

We try our best to keep doors shut, curtains closed, and we've even put some special shrink-fit plastic film stuff on the inside of all the windows, but it's still freezing. We have to put an electric heater on a low setting in my baby's room at night because it's so cold.

Our fuel bills are immense. We've thought about moving, but there is very little around. Plus, the masterplan is to buy a house in a year or so, so we don't want any more house moves mucking up the credit file and disrupting the family.

Is there anything I can make my LL do? Or any schemes she can partake in? (Supplier - British Gas).

She doesnt have to fix the boiler. If I were you, I would wait till the tenancy finishes and leave and find somewhere better. Not an old place.

HappyMJ

The landlord should have installed sufficient heating to get the living room to 21 and the bedrooms to 18 degrees....it might cost you a fortune to run the heating 24 hours a day to acheive that but that's not the landlord's concern.

guruchelles

sharp910sh wrote: »

She doesnt have to fix the boiler. If I were you, I would wait till the tenancy finishes and leave and find somewhere better. Not an old place.

I'd love a newer house, and we were scouring rightmove several times a day for rental properties in the area (although nothing was coming up). The trouble is, now we've decided to get our act together and buy a place - hopefully sometime in 2014 - so it seems a waste of time to move again in the meantime, especially as we have three children. Plus I am worried about the impact another address change would have on our credit file with regards to a mortgage application.

rpc

IMHO it wouldn't be a waste of time to make sure that you don't spend next winter in a house that is cold and costs a small fortune in heating bills.

poppysarah

Are there proper stairs to the loft?

And did you see an EPC before signing?

Next tenancy you take - make sure you look at it and check for things like DG, etc

poppysarah

Landlord’s Energy Saving Allowance (LESA), allows landlords to receive a deduction against profits for items that are capital in nature, as well as a measure of relief for what in many cases is improvement expenditure which otherwise would not attract capital allowances.


http://www.taxinsider.co.uk/389-Tax_Relief_for_a_Landlords_Energy_Saving_Items.html

guruchelles

poppysarah wrote: »

Are there proper stairs to the loft?

And did you see an EPC before signing?

Next tenancy you take - make sure you look at it and check for things like DG, etc

Not sure if they are 'proper' stairs. They are wooden space saving ones with gaps and alternate sides for the steps because they are so steep. http://www.alibaba.com/product-gs/622187632/Easy_Install_DIY_Space_Saving_Stairs.html a bit like this.

No, we didn't see an EPC. Lesson learned. In fact, I am not sure if they even got one. I know they are required to but, like I say, we were not shown one.

Definitely a lesson for the future, although I am hoping I won't have to take any more tenancies, but buy instead.

I'm so torn about whether to move. I hate hate hate this house for so many reasons, and it annoys the hell out of me that we pay so much for fuel. I really don't want to be here next winter, but then again, I have to weigh the cost of potential fuel savings against referencing and moving costs. I might not end up much better off in the short term, and yet end up with an awful lot of upheaval in a year in which my OH intends to work away a lot to raise the cash to pay off debts/save a deposit.

To be fair, I thought that the answer would be that she has no liability, but I just thought I would double check.

jamie11

You can check for an epc at https://www.epcregister.com

If it's not there then there isn't one.

poppysarah

Are those stairs compliant with building regs?


Having an open loft hatch into a poorly insulated roof space means heat will just run away!

dimbo61

If you pay the Gas and electric to British Gas give them a call and ask!
Explain that you are renting a very poorly insulated property and can you apply for any grants.
Local company round here called Phoenix gas offer new "A" rated boilers at special rates.
Many gas/electric companies offer free loft/cavity wall insulation as it helps offset emissions ( carbon tax )