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Tenant says I am responsible

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  • Slinky
    Slinky Posts: 11,628 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Photogenic Name Dropper
    Does it specifically say not to let the tank run dry and the reason for that is because it mucks up the boiler? I've no idea about oil tanks and if it wasn't spelt out that there was a reason not to let it run dry, I may not be as diligent as apparently I would need to be.
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  • borkid
    borkid Posts: 2,478 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Car Insurance Carver!
    Odd isn't it how when we buy a house, we do not expect to be left full instructions but can 'muddle through' quite adequately, but apparently not when renting?
    Actually when I move house I leave instructions for my buyers I also leave a list of nearest shops/vets/doctors etc. In my last 2 moves I've had instructions left for me. To my mind it's just being helpful.
  • Not in the instructions to operate the tank, but it does state that in the instructions for the combi boiler.
  • getmore4less
    getmore4less Posts: 46,882 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper I've helped Parliament
    edited 18 June 2014 at 9:58PM
    How re you managing the cost of the oil between tenants?


    That's the place/time to explain the system
  • G_M
    G_M Posts: 51,977 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    Yes. All instructions to all appliances, ....
    She claims she wasn't 'shown' how to use the sight gauge, however even if she didn't understand the instructions surely common sense would prevail and you'd the agent.
    I also only have her word that she did not know how to use the sight gauge, how can I tell that she wasn't negligent and hadn't bothered to check it for a while, and now concocting a story?
    As said above, if the instructions you left explain the need to check the tank, and how to check the tank, then not being actually 'shown' is irrelevant. Tenant is liable.

    But only if the instructions were clear, full and correct.
  • Owain_Moneysaver
    Owain_Moneysaver Posts: 11,393 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper
    Yes. All instructions to all appliances, even down to how to change the smoke alarm batteries are provided.
    Odd isn't it how when we buy a house, we do not expect to be left full instructions but can 'muddle through' quite adequately, but apparently not when renting?
    She claims she wasn't 'shown' how to use the sight gauge, however even if she didn't understand the instructions surely common sense would prevail and you'd the agent.

    I do expect - well, hope - to be left full instructions with a house purchase.

    However owners take full responsibility for the house. Tenants don't, which is why landlords rent at a profit. Tenants expect landlords to sort out problems for them.

    If she didn't understand the instructions then perhaps she should have asked, or perhaps the instructions should have been clearer. However if letting the tank empty is going to cause damage to the system then this should be explicitly pointed out to the tenant - in writing, with the tenant signing against the relevant paragraph.

    It's not unreasonable as a tenant, if you're unaware of the implications, to prefer to run the heating oil down to zero and not top up until you have to, rather than give the oil company hundreds of pounds to have oil sitting in the tank before you need it.
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  • G_M
    G_M Posts: 51,977 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    How re you managing the cost of the oil between tenants?


    That's the place/time to explain the system
    Obviously the tank should be empty at start of tenancy and at end of tenancy. Up to the tenant to buy any oil they wish to use.
  • Owain_Moneysaver
    Owain_Moneysaver Posts: 11,393 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper
    Not in the instructions to operate the tank, but it does state that in the instructions for the combi boiler.

    Most people wouldn't read those unless the boiler stopped working or they wanted to change the settings for some reason.

    A lot of people really aren't very practically-minded and just assume that things like heating, water and electricity happen by magic.
    A kind word lasts a minute, a skelped erse is sair for a day.
  • Yes, I think I will in future have that clause written in to the contract. Good idea.
    She is on a rolling monthly contract, am I able to add it in now?
    The instruction seem clear enough to me, and seemed to clear for my other tenants as this has never been a problem.
  • getmore4less
    getmore4less Posts: 46,882 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper I've helped Parliament
    Not in the instructions to operate the tank, but it does state that in the instructions for the combi boiler.




    No one reads the instructions for a boiler, they just work.


    Might play with the timer for water heat but that's it.


    A few lines buried in the boiler manual "don't let the oil run out" is a big ask of a tenant.
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