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Renting Woes
Sway33
Posts: 18 Forumite
In Oct 2013 I had a landlord's annual safety check done by British Gas at the property I was renting privately which stated the boiler needed attention. It was recommended that work should be carried out or the boiler replaced in order to bring it up to current standards. The boiler is 25 years old according to the report. In fact, it says '25+ years?' After the engineer wrote that, he laughed and said to me that he wouldn't be able to have work done because the parts for the boiler are so old they're not made anymore.
When I asked my LL about this, he said he didn't have the money to replace a boiler or to have any work carried out. He said it's not a legal requirement, just recommendation, so no action on his part was necessary.
Since then, we noticed a load of sludge has been building up in the radiators and half of the radiators were freezing cold. Having a baby in the house, this wasn't great. We were paying for a lot of gas but only using a fraction of it. Our bills rocketed and we asked the landlord to have it looked at. He sent a plumber 3 weeks after who recommended we have a full system flush as the system was not running efficiently. He sent the quote to the LL who again saw a recommendation as 'no action required' on his part and couldn't afford the system flush he had been quoted.
We struggled on, still paying our rent in full and not being awkward about it felt quite bad for him knowing he has never been a LL before and completely underestimated the costs involved in running and maintaining a property. We gave him the benefit of the doubt.
In January 2014 we were sitting in the lounge and a leak came through from the bathroom onto our sofa. My partner went to investigate and took the side panel off the bath. He noticed very old pipework and an old shower curtain placed under the bath on the floorboards. The pipes were slow-leaking. We contacted our landlord who eventually sent a plumber out to replace the pipework (hurray!) but it left a big damp hole in the ceiling where the water had come through. Mushrooms started growing under the bath which was disgusting and my partner spent hours disinfecting the whole bathroom and removing it all. They kept coming back as the area was so damp and humid.
The LL said once it dries out, he will arrange for someone to mend the ceiling. In May, we still hadn't heard anything about the hole in the ceiling. The leaking had started again but from a different area. A plumber came and established the shower was now leaking behind the tiles, running down the wall through to the lounge ceiling. Hole number 2 appears about a foot away from the first mess. The plumber removed all the tiles in the bathroom and the shower completely. We're left with a wall of mould, damp and holes where the shower was, so you can now see into my bedroom when you're in the bath! I scrubbed all the mould off the walls but it still has a lingering damp stench which never goes away. (Oust isn't as good as it claims!) You can smell it as soon as you enter the front door.
Tried to contact the LL who never replies. We leave texts and voicemails for him for days then we decide to pay for someone to come out and fix the ceiling. The water had dried up as all pipes had been replaced.
Found out our LL changed his mobile number after we drive over to his house having never had a reply from him. He said he told us and had a go at us for repairing the ceiling. He said we were not to make any repairs on the property without his permission. I said after 4 months of no contact we couldn't just leave gaping holes in the ceiling. We gave him ample opportunities to come and make repairs but he was happy charging us £700 a month to sit in a lounge with holes and brown dirt marks on the ceiling where the water had filtered through. The person we chose to carry out the work was a well established registered trader and it wasn't cheap!
We went home and wrote a list of all outstanding issues, sent them as a recorded letter to his home address awaiting a reply with when he expects them to be resolved.
Letter was never acknowledged but we have his signature on file showing he has received it by Royal Mail.
In Dec 2014 we secured a new tenancy at a new home and moved in almost immediately. The LL from the old house sent us a text asking us to make sure we're in on the day we were moving out as a British Gas engineer was due for the annual safety checks. The BG engineer came and condemned the boiler. He said it was a risk to life and was appalled that after last year's recommendation, nothing was done by the LL. He's put a big yellow sticker on the boiler and disconnected it to prevent it being used. We still have the keys for the old property until the middle of January as we left so soon, before our notice had been served. Due to this we're paying rent on 2 properties which isn't ideal but I needed to get out of there.
I'm worried that the boiler has been condemned for a long time but I have no proof. I'm guessing it didn't just become a risk to like that morning BG came round. As the checks are done annually, who knows?!
I'm not sure if anything can be done but I feel he's been negligent in a lot of areas as a LL. We have paid our rent in full, every month for the duration of our tenancy despite any dispute. We have looked after the property beyond any requirements set out in our agreement. I'm wondering if any LL's have acted upon recommendation or do they usually wait for the thing to be condemned?! If I had a family renting a house I owned I'd be horrified to think it wasn't up to scratch. I'm finding it hard to see how my LL thinks it's fine to leave it is knowing the age of the boiler, it isn't going to get better.
It'll be interesting to see if we get any of our deposit back :sad:
First problem in my new home was water (again!) coming in through the external wall due to the heavy rain into my Son's bedroom - there was a large crack in the rendering apparently - informed the Landlady who was there within 2 hours and had a builder out on New Year's Day (less than 24 hours after I reported it) sorting it all out. It's a refreshing change and I just hope that I have no more problems!
Good luck to everyone else renting, it really is hit and miss in my experience of going through this for 15 years. One day I'll be able to get on the property ladder with any luck and not have to worry about all this anymore! x
When I asked my LL about this, he said he didn't have the money to replace a boiler or to have any work carried out. He said it's not a legal requirement, just recommendation, so no action on his part was necessary.
Since then, we noticed a load of sludge has been building up in the radiators and half of the radiators were freezing cold. Having a baby in the house, this wasn't great. We were paying for a lot of gas but only using a fraction of it. Our bills rocketed and we asked the landlord to have it looked at. He sent a plumber 3 weeks after who recommended we have a full system flush as the system was not running efficiently. He sent the quote to the LL who again saw a recommendation as 'no action required' on his part and couldn't afford the system flush he had been quoted.
We struggled on, still paying our rent in full and not being awkward about it felt quite bad for him knowing he has never been a LL before and completely underestimated the costs involved in running and maintaining a property. We gave him the benefit of the doubt.
In January 2014 we were sitting in the lounge and a leak came through from the bathroom onto our sofa. My partner went to investigate and took the side panel off the bath. He noticed very old pipework and an old shower curtain placed under the bath on the floorboards. The pipes were slow-leaking. We contacted our landlord who eventually sent a plumber out to replace the pipework (hurray!) but it left a big damp hole in the ceiling where the water had come through. Mushrooms started growing under the bath which was disgusting and my partner spent hours disinfecting the whole bathroom and removing it all. They kept coming back as the area was so damp and humid.
The LL said once it dries out, he will arrange for someone to mend the ceiling. In May, we still hadn't heard anything about the hole in the ceiling. The leaking had started again but from a different area. A plumber came and established the shower was now leaking behind the tiles, running down the wall through to the lounge ceiling. Hole number 2 appears about a foot away from the first mess. The plumber removed all the tiles in the bathroom and the shower completely. We're left with a wall of mould, damp and holes where the shower was, so you can now see into my bedroom when you're in the bath! I scrubbed all the mould off the walls but it still has a lingering damp stench which never goes away. (Oust isn't as good as it claims!) You can smell it as soon as you enter the front door.
Tried to contact the LL who never replies. We leave texts and voicemails for him for days then we decide to pay for someone to come out and fix the ceiling. The water had dried up as all pipes had been replaced.
Found out our LL changed his mobile number after we drive over to his house having never had a reply from him. He said he told us and had a go at us for repairing the ceiling. He said we were not to make any repairs on the property without his permission. I said after 4 months of no contact we couldn't just leave gaping holes in the ceiling. We gave him ample opportunities to come and make repairs but he was happy charging us £700 a month to sit in a lounge with holes and brown dirt marks on the ceiling where the water had filtered through. The person we chose to carry out the work was a well established registered trader and it wasn't cheap!
We went home and wrote a list of all outstanding issues, sent them as a recorded letter to his home address awaiting a reply with when he expects them to be resolved.
Letter was never acknowledged but we have his signature on file showing he has received it by Royal Mail.
In Dec 2014 we secured a new tenancy at a new home and moved in almost immediately. The LL from the old house sent us a text asking us to make sure we're in on the day we were moving out as a British Gas engineer was due for the annual safety checks. The BG engineer came and condemned the boiler. He said it was a risk to life and was appalled that after last year's recommendation, nothing was done by the LL. He's put a big yellow sticker on the boiler and disconnected it to prevent it being used. We still have the keys for the old property until the middle of January as we left so soon, before our notice had been served. Due to this we're paying rent on 2 properties which isn't ideal but I needed to get out of there.
I'm worried that the boiler has been condemned for a long time but I have no proof. I'm guessing it didn't just become a risk to like that morning BG came round. As the checks are done annually, who knows?!
I'm not sure if anything can be done but I feel he's been negligent in a lot of areas as a LL. We have paid our rent in full, every month for the duration of our tenancy despite any dispute. We have looked after the property beyond any requirements set out in our agreement. I'm wondering if any LL's have acted upon recommendation or do they usually wait for the thing to be condemned?! If I had a family renting a house I owned I'd be horrified to think it wasn't up to scratch. I'm finding it hard to see how my LL thinks it's fine to leave it is knowing the age of the boiler, it isn't going to get better.
It'll be interesting to see if we get any of our deposit back :sad:
First problem in my new home was water (again!) coming in through the external wall due to the heavy rain into my Son's bedroom - there was a large crack in the rendering apparently - informed the Landlady who was there within 2 hours and had a builder out on New Year's Day (less than 24 hours after I reported it) sorting it all out. It's a refreshing change and I just hope that I have no more problems!
Good luck to everyone else renting, it really is hit and miss in my experience of going through this for 15 years. One day I'll be able to get on the property ladder with any luck and not have to worry about all this anymore! x
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Comments
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No excuses for poor maintenance by the LL, however it does show the random way in which BG treat boilers.
To be clear a recommendation to bring to current standard is not a problem. Virtually nothing meets current standards a few years after it is installed and there is no obligation to do so.
Neither is there anything wrong with a 25year old boiler, in fact they made them to last a lot better in those days.
One or other of the BG engineers has screwed up. My money is on the second one exaggerating unless he has identified specifically what the life threatening fault actually is!0 -
I'm amazed you stayed there as long as you did.
The gas safety certificate just proves that the gas appliances were safe on the day of inspection. That's it. Did you have a CO alarm? Did it ever go off?
As for the flush that's BG's answer to just about every central heating problem.
Glad you've found somewhere better for your family to live.0 -
I don't think they would have been mushrooms under the bath, more like dry rot which was the cause of the smell too. I have seen dry rot from leaking pipes and the work involved to remove it a huge under taking. Think you got out just in time.0
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I am appalled by all this!0
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Just a quick update - I handed my keys back yesterday and the LL has been in today and apparently made a list of things to deduct from our deposit. An Estate Agent came to do the handover on his behalf as he was apparently unavailable. As usual. The Agent told us she was (in her exact own words) 'horrified' at the way he handled our tenancy and strongly recommended to him that he give us every penny back. She said the things on the list were 'silly' and showed he has no experience of renting a property out.
He asked the Agent after this conversation how soon she would be able to get the house back up to let through them this time. Her answer was he needs to get a serious amount of money together to rectify all the issues we encountered because they wouldn't happily recommend the place to anyone and would be foolish to do so. She said he seemed to think a quick lick of paint would sort it all out. Quite worrying, really.
It'll be interesting to see what this list is and if anything ever comes of it. I'll let you know what happens. Thanks for your replies x0 -
I don't think they would have been mushrooms under the bath, more like dry rot which was the cause of the smell too. I have seen dry rot from leaking pipes and the work involved to remove it a huge under taking. Think you got out just in time.
Hi Pete9501,
They appeared very mushroom-like, with the rounded head and stalk in a pale brown colour. Every time we got rid of them, they came back. It was pretty digusting
I actually have photos of under the bath, as well as the whole house plus a video but not sure I can share here and I wouldn't want to put you all off your next meal! 0 -
No excuses for poor maintenance by the LL, however it does show the random way in which BG treat boilers.
To be clear a recommendation to bring to current standard is not a problem. Virtually nothing meets current standards a few years after it is installed and there is no obligation to do so.
Neither is there anything wrong with a 25year old boiler, in fact they made them to last a lot better in those days.
One or other of the BG engineers has screwed up. My money is on the second one exaggerating unless he has identified specifically what the life threatening fault actually is!
Hi,
The engineer who carried out the check in 2013 was a young lad and he was very good I thought but I'm no expert. This year, it was an older guy who did a really thorough check, more than the 2013 guy did but I think they know the main things they're looking out for. He was there for ages because I remember thinking I needed him to go so I could move out! The forms he completed have a lot of acronyms which mean nothing to me plus half of page he's written in his scrawl - must make sense to someone I hope! I was just hugely relieved to get out of the place but I was worried that the boiler had been unsafe for sometime during our stay.
One thing the BG 2014 man noticed was the LL had attempted to fix the cooker knobs using parcel tape under the plastic fitting and he said for him that was enough evidence that he isn't taking the whole LL thing seriously! I'd never taken the knobs off so can't say I'd ever noticed but I thought that was just typical of what our LL would do to save a few quid.
I just hope he either sells up and admits he isn't cut out for this role or sorts the place properly out to ensure it's safe for any future tenant who is mad enough to live there!
Thanks so much for your reply x0 -
Sounds like a typical slumlord to me. Never met a good landlord in my time on this planet.Changing the world, one sarcastic comment at a time.0
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I note that you did not say why the boiler was allegedly condemned. Certainly age is not a reason to condemn a boiler.0
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jjlandlord wrote: »I note that you did not say why the boiler was allegedly condemned. Certainly age is not a reason to condemn a boiler.
Hi,
I put in my last post that the engineer completed a form full of acronyms and half a page of scrawl which I couldn't make sense of outlining the reason for his decision. I don't think it was because of age but I know that according to the report back in 2013 it stated worn parts and concern over the flue. Due to this it was recommended that it was looked at but not a legal requirement at that stage. He also said that the gas pipe which leads outside to the gas meter was starting to show wear and tear to the point where if it wasn't properly addressed soon there could easily be a risk of gas leaking into the walls and slowly seeping into the house. Since then of course nothing has been done until the engineer disconnected the boiler completely in December 2014. We did purchase Carbon Monoxide monitors when we moved in so that gave me some peace of mind at least.
Since 2013 we had a lot of problems with the boiler and the heating in general so it's difficult for me to say what has actually caused for it to be condemned but I'm guessing it's probably a result of what was picked up in 2013 getting worse. I don't fully know all the names of the parts of a boiler but I know that the LL hasn't taken any of it seriously whether or not BG exaggerated it a little. For me the boiler and gas supply to a home is a big deal and a huge safety concern so I take any reports from BG just as seriously. For 2 different engineers to come and show concern 2 years in a row is enough for me to say it wasn't that safe and the LL should have done more to ensure it was up to standard.
Not only the safety aspect but the fact it was completely inefficient cost us a fortune during our tenancy, added to that the sludge filled radiators which he chose also not to address made our gas bills sky high. For a 2 bedroom property with double glazing we were charged on average £480 a month just for gas alone during the winter months.
My new home has a boiler which is 2 years old and the radiators get hot quickly and the home, albeit it being a lot larger, takes a lot less energy to heat it comfortably. It makes a huge difference! Makes me mad to know how much money I have thrown away living there both on rent and gas!0
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