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Who is responsible?
jacqhale
Posts: 312 Forumite
Hi just looking for opinions before I take any further action.
I own a ground floor flat and recently had to replace the boiler at a cost of £1500 due to a leak from the boiler from the flat above. Water was running out of the boiler from the flat above into my flue and straight into the boiler which meant it had to be replaced completely.
The management company did in the end make a successful claim on insurance but the excess is £500, plus I had to have a new gas safety certificate at £50 and as a gesture of goodwill I gave my tenant £80 refund on rent as she had to move out while the work was going on.
The legal owners of the property are saying it is not their problem, they rent the flat out to a local agency (who provide 'housing and support services' ) so any problems must be due to the tenant and therefore the agency are responsible. The agency say they are not responsible, the owners are as it is their boiler.
So I'm £500 + down and I don't think it was my fault or my responsibility to pay either!
The owners say if I take it through the small claims court they will add the agency as defendants and are saying to take the agency straight to court.
I'm not sure where I stand here if anyone has advice I would appreciate it. Should I leave well alone or should somebody take responsibility and if so, who?! I will try and ring CAB again but can never get through. I tried a solicitor who never got back to me and another one said it wouldn't be worth the costs to go through them and to try the small claims court.
Thanks in advance.
I own a ground floor flat and recently had to replace the boiler at a cost of £1500 due to a leak from the boiler from the flat above. Water was running out of the boiler from the flat above into my flue and straight into the boiler which meant it had to be replaced completely.
The management company did in the end make a successful claim on insurance but the excess is £500, plus I had to have a new gas safety certificate at £50 and as a gesture of goodwill I gave my tenant £80 refund on rent as she had to move out while the work was going on.
The legal owners of the property are saying it is not their problem, they rent the flat out to a local agency (who provide 'housing and support services' ) so any problems must be due to the tenant and therefore the agency are responsible. The agency say they are not responsible, the owners are as it is their boiler.
So I'm £500 + down and I don't think it was my fault or my responsibility to pay either!
The owners say if I take it through the small claims court they will add the agency as defendants and are saying to take the agency straight to court.
I'm not sure where I stand here if anyone has advice I would appreciate it. Should I leave well alone or should somebody take responsibility and if so, who?! I will try and ring CAB again but can never get through. I tried a solicitor who never got back to me and another one said it wouldn't be worth the costs to go through them and to try the small claims court.
Thanks in advance.
0
Comments
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How old was the boiler in your flat that had to be replaced?Should've = Should HAVE (not 'of')
Would've = Would HAVE (not 'of')
No, I am not perfect, but yes I do judge people on their use of basic English language. If you didn't know the above, then learn it! (If English is your second language, then you are forgiven!)0 -
I have had the flat for 8 years and it was there when I moved in, not sure actually how old it was but I could try and find out if it makes a difference? The plumber said to replace like for like would be £3,000 but we went for a cheaper option in case I ended up with the whole bill.0
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The upstairs flat is only responsible if they were negligent, for example by not fixing the leak as soon as it came to their attention (which doesn't sound like the case here).
This is what you have insurance for.0 -
You have a brand new boiler for £500.
You didn't need a new LGSR, the installation certificate is sufficient for the first year of a new install.
Costs are tax-deductible.
I wouldn't really say you are "down" overall but as said above to you will need to prove negligence for a successful claim.0 -
OK thanks for the replies.0
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