Tenant charge electrician call out charge

ruggedtoast

ilovepoppydog wrote: »

Ok so yesterday morning I re reported the heater as it was stone cold, I had an email from the letting agent saying that whilst the electrician confirms the heater to be safe & working the landlord has agreed to pay for a new part for the heater to put my mind at rest.
Think this is the thermostat as it was scorched on the 1st call out.
The Electrician text to say the part was on order and he would fit it at some point next week.
When I pointed out that meant no heat for a week (including weekend) and it's due to be freezing temperatures soon I got a very snotty text saying "how can you have smoke without heat? You told the agents it has been smoking since last visit?!!!"
I tried to point out that it smoked and now is stone cold but was just told again, some time next week.
So we are without heat for, in total, 5 days minimum but he could take much longer to fix it.
If there is no fault why is a new part on order? And if they had listened to me when it was reported 9 days ago it would be fixed.
I'm still not convinced it will work when he changes this part as I have no faith in this Electrician whatsoever.
Its so cold my hands, in gloves, hurt & it's really painful to breathe this cold air with pneumonia but I just don't know what to do.
Shelter said to put my complaint in writing to agent but we're freezing in the meantime

I'm sorry to be blunt but you need to go back to G_M's advice on page one and act on it.

Emailing the agent and texting some goon that your useless landlord's useless letting agent have appointed as an electrician doesnt seem to be helping.

Write a letter to the landlord stating the problems as you have done here. Advise him that use of the heater has caused the smoke alarms to activate and it is now non functional.

If he cannot fix the heater promptly then he has to supply an alternative method of heating.

You may or may not want to cc in the private housing office in the council. In all probability you'll get a S21 but whether you'd want to stay anyway is debatable.

BitterAndTwisted

The cheapest electric fan-heater at Argos is a tenner. Buy one!

http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/4152174.htm

ilovepoppydog

Yes I will get one but I live in a village 40 miles from the nearest Argos so by the time it arrives it should've been fixed.
I've written a letter to my letting agent as they still refuse to give me the landlords address, he has my number but never bothered to ring.
I'll be ringing the council back on Monday am.
it's all switched off at the trip switch so I feel safe now, just rather cold.

I will have to really bite my tongue when this plonker of an electrician finally gets his butt round here, he's an absolute idiot!

G_M

ilovepoppydog wrote: »

...
I've written a letter to my letting agent as they still refuse to give me the landlords address,

Write.

A letter.

To the landlord.

at the address on your tenancy agreement "for the serving of notices".

CC the agent.

G_M

Have you followed alibobsy's advice above & written to the agent?

Landlord & Tenant Act 1985

1 Disclosure of landlord’s identity.

(1)If the tenant of premises occupied as a dwelling makes a written request for the landlord’s name and address to—

(a)any person who demands, or the last person who received, rent payable under the tenancy, or

(b)any other person for the time being acting as agent for the landlord, in relation to the tenancy,

that person shall supply the tenant with a written statement of the landlord’s name and address within the period of 21 days beginning with the day on which he receives the request.

(2)A person who, without reasonable excuse, fails to comply with subsection (1) commits a summary offence and is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding level 4 on the standard scale.

Mokka

I agree with the posters above. CC the agent on all your correspondence but do not deal with them- your landlord is the one who's got to a duty of care and is obliged to make sure his agent is acting lawfully.

I recently had to write to my landlord threatening them with court action. They were unable to resolve my serious problem for a month and I've wasted a lot of time and energy chasing them daily.

After receiving my letter, quoting the the relevant Acts of Parliament, the problem was fixed immediately.

If you have a slum landlord who is breaking the law and harasses you with threats of unlawful charges you need to go the legal route I am afraid.

Otherwise you will just frustrate yourself, waste a lot of time and energy and achieve nothing.

houseimprover

ilovepoppydog wrote: »

Yes I will get one but I live in a village 40 miles from the nearest Argos so by the time it arrives it should've been fixed.
I've written a letter to my letting agent as they still refuse to give me the landlords address, he has my number but never bothered to ring.
I'll be ringing the council back on Monday am.
it's all switched off at the trip switch so I feel safe now, just rather cold.

I will have to really bite my tongue when this plonker of an electrician finally gets his butt round here, he's an absolute idiot!

There are no electrical shops within a quick journey at all?

I appreciate the issues you are having are very bad but I would have made sure heating was sorted whatever by now.

Mokka

I've checked Tenant and Landlord Act 1985 and heaters are definitely covered.

section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 ('LT').

Repairing obligations in short leases

(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), and
(c) to keep in repair and proper working order the installations in the dwelling-house for space heating and heating water. …'

You have a very strong case against your landlord.


There is a Protocol which needs to be followed when taking landlord to court:
http://www.justice.gov.uk/courts/procedure-rules/civil/contents/form_section_images/pre-action_protocol/housing_disrepair_pdf_eps/prot_house_anx_a.pdf

As you can see you need a solicitor to help you with sending it.

ilovepoppydog

I have written and requested the address. I pointed out that this was a legal requirement but was told that they couldn't give it out due to data protection and confidentiality, instead they would pass my number to the landlord.
I will remind them tomorrow that as it will have been a week since first requesting this they have 14 days left before they are committing a criminal offence.

I've written a letter to the landlord, in its own envelope then sent to the agent asking to forward immediately, I suspect it will go in the bin but worth a try.

The nearest town to us is about 30 miles, while I'm still poorly with pneumonia and the baby just getting over croup I just haven't had the strength to get there. This is why I was trying to get them to sort it urgently last week.
My dad, who is 78, is driving 50 miles here today to get a heater for us. He shouldn't have had to do this though, the landlord/agent should've supplied us with one but they are still adamant the heater is working. I don't know how many different ways I can say IT IS STONE, FREEZING COLD to try to get them to understand it isn't working as I just get, "the electrician says it is working perfectly & safe to use". I've no idea how to get it across to them that it's cold & non operational.
They must think I am a simpleton to think that I could confuse warm with stone cold!
Tomorrow is their very last chance to resolve this before I go down the legal route. It's just such a fight and I'm so exhausted having not been able to rest and recover from this illness at all.

kirkbyinfurnesslad_2

Why didn't you follow the advice you were given as soon as it was given?