Renting Advice - Boilers

Baileyborough

Hi all,

So, yesterday my wife and I worked to our London flat to find the boiler had died a death of sorts.

(Vaillant Ecotec F.76 error for those that get turned on by that sort of thing... )

Some background: the previous boiler died of old age less than a year ago, resulting in this new install. That in itself was fraught with pain; it took over a month to complete, and when done still ended up with a gas leak!
My wife and I will be likely moving out in two months or so also, so my big worry is that she'll just stall till we're gone, once we give our notice.
And this house is COLD. And I'm currently trying to get over a really nasty chest infection. (Can someone say Tiny Tim?)

Now, my questions come in three parts.

1. I came across this link: http://www.thetenantsvoice.co.uk/advice_from_us/heating-and-hot-water/#The_Landlord_is_required_to_provide_you_with_reliable_heating_and_hot_water

How reliable is what they have to say, considering it isn't a legal advice website?

2. What can we do if LL decides to drag her heels about getting this repaired?

3. How would you recommend we begin this inevitably painful process?

Thanks in advance,

C

anselld

You say the boiler is less than a year old so all the L needs to do is call Vaillant and get a warranty repair. It would be madness for her to drag her heels, surely.

FBaby

anselld wrote: »

You say the boiler is less than a year old so all the L needs to do is call Vaillant and get a warranty repair. It would be madness for her to drag her heels, surely.

Indeed, don't understand why you are assuming that she will want to do nothing at this stage. Have you already contacted her and she indicated she was interested?

Pixie5740

1) That source isn't particularly reliable. Some of it is what a tenant would like not what a landlord must do. Yes you need heating but that doesn't have to be from central heating. It could be from electric heaters so have you asked your landlord for an alternative source of heating? Have you bought an electric heater yourself since your cough is so bad Tiny Tim?

As for the hot water, does the property have an electric shower? I assume you at least have a kettle and therefore access to hot water that way to tide you over.

2) Your landlady needs to get repairs done in a reasonable timescale. So what's reasonable? Yes the boiler should be under warranty so should just require a phone call from your landlady to the installer or whomever she bought the boiler from. However, it's Saturday and Hogmanay meaning it's probably going to tricky to get hold of someone to sort the boiler over the next few days.

A month from a boiler failing to installing a new one isn't particularly bad. I think I was 6 weeks from an old boiler failing to a new boiler up and running in my home and that was in mid-winter in Aberdeen not the tropical climate of London.

If you feel your landlady is dragging her heels though just follow Shelter's process, step 1 WRITE a letter to your landlady.

https://england.shelter.org.uk/housing_advice/repairs/how_to_report_repairs_to_a_private_landlord

3) By contacting your landlady if you haven't already and chilling out (pun intended) until there actually is a problem.

martindow

Many boilers have a reset button on them. If so have you tried pressing that?

It may get it going again to give you some heat even if it's only a temporary fix.

silvercar

So, yesterday my wife and I worked to our London flat to find the boiler had died a death of sorts.

I doubt it's dead.

AdrianC

silvercar wrote: »

I doubt it's dead.

Indeed. Quick google for the error code suggests it's either pretty terminal (unlikely on a year-old boiler unless it's been very badly installed) or very minor.

It's the thermal fuse on the heat exchanger. If the fuse really has gone, the heat exchanger is viewed by the manufacturer are irredeemably knackered. More likely is that it's a simple wiring problem, perhaps even a loose connector.

G_M

Not syre why you are not simply following the correct reporting procedure.

Ring, email, text etc if you have those etails and follow up immediately with a letter.

If no 'instant' contact details, then write.

Why expect the worst when you've apparantly done noting yet?

* Repairing Obligations: the law, common misconceptions, reporting/enforcing, retaliatory eviction & the new protection (2015)

and yes, in your letter request (politely) alternative heating eg electric till the boiler is fixd.

Baileyborough

Thanks everyone, really helpful advice.

I'm getting the feeling that it could be lose worrying myself, but have no way to prove that etc.

We called her and emailed yesterday, then mucked around with the reset and prayed vigorously till it eventually came back. It does again after maybe 30-60 mins, but you can get a shower in that time, so small victories.

For those of you talking about us giving her a chance etc, I appreciate that, but this tends to be her style. It's a long story, and I don't want to get into it without it sounding like a string of "and then one time, she didn't do x, and then..." etc

AdrianC

Baileyborough wrote: »

We ... mucked around with the reset and prayed vigorously till it eventually came back. It does again after maybe 30-60 mins, but you can get a shower in that time, so small victories.

So it's just a minor wiring problem. If the fuse had definitely gone, then it wouldn't have come back at all.

Remember what time of year it is. You had a problem on the day before New Year's Eve (Friday), and it's now New Year's Day (Sunday). If you were an owner-occupier, could the problem have been realistically sorted in that time...?