Delay in being reimbursed by my landlord

Whoosher

The burglar alarm in my rented house was set off at 4am on a Sunday morning at the beginning of this month when we had a power cut and I couldn't get it to stop. I called out an engineer who discovered that the backup battery was defunct. He replaced it and I had to pay £160. I logged the problem immediately on the property managers system and was contacted the next day by the property manager asking for a copy of the invoice which I sent straightaway. Since then I've heard nothing unless I've emailed them, and then all I get is that they're still waiting for my landlord to reply and that they have chased him. It's now been almost a month and I'm still £160 out of pocket.

I've checked the lease and can't see that it says anywhere that maintaining the burglar alarm is my responsibility and at no point have the property managers said that to me. How long does it take for this to become an unreasonable delay and what can I do about getting my money reimbursed?

Thanks in advance

Cakeguts

My burglar alarm only goes off it has been set it doesn't go off in a power cut if it isn't set. So if you were using it by setting it what makes you think that the landlord is responsible for changing the battery? You have been using a battery provided by someone else.



If you didn't want to pay for a new battery for a burglar alarm you could have not used the alarm or you could have rented a house without one.

princeofpounds

Actually this one is surprisingly tricky. Courts have held that some 'consumable' items in houses are responsibility of tenants. Things like light bulbs and, most relevant to you, smoke alarm batteries.

My guess would be that an integral back-up battery for an alarm system is the LL's responsibility, but I'm not sure I could state that with 100% confidence. Perhaps other posters are aware.

Anyway, in certain circumstances you are allowed to deduct repair costs from future rental payments, but it's supposed to be a last resort option. Details at the link below (although it doesn't take into account the urgent nature of the issue)

https://england.shelter.org.uk/legal/housing_conditions/taking_action_on_disrepair/withholding_rent

Personally, I'd send another reminder. If they still don't reimburse you after another 2 weeks, I'd send a final reminder with a warning that you will deduct the amount from your next rental payment (if the timing lines up ok).

newbie1980

Whoosher wrote: »

The burglar alarm in my rented house was set off at 4am on a Sunday morning at the beginning of this month when we had a power cut and I couldn't get it to stop. I called out an engineer who discovered that the backup battery was defunct. He replaced it and I had to pay £160. I logged the problem immediately on the property managers system and was contacted the next day by the property manager asking for a copy of the invoice which I sent straightaway. Since then I've heard nothing unless I've emailed them, and then all I get is that they're still waiting for my landlord to reply and that they have chased him. It's now been almost a month and I'm still £160 out of pocket.

I've checked the lease and can't see that it says anywhere that maintaining the burglar alarm is my responsibility and at no point have the property managers said that to me. How long does it take for this to become an unreasonable delay and what can I do about getting my money reimbursed?

Thanks in advance

i am afraid you may find the landlord not paying up unless you have it in writing he will

you should have contacted the out of hours number for the agency not ring an engineer yourself

Cakeguts

princeofpounds wrote: »

Actually this one is surprisingly tricky. Courts have held that some 'consumable' items in houses are responsibility of tenants. Things like light bulbs and, most relevant to you, smoke alarm batteries.

My guess would be that an integral back-up battery for an alarm system is the LL's responsibility, but I'm not sure I could state that with 100% confidence. Perhaps other posters are aware.

Anyway, in certain circumstances you are allowed to deduct repair costs from future rental payments, but it's supposed to be a last resort option. Details at the link below (although it doesn't take into account the urgent nature of the issue)

https://england.shelter.org.uk/legal/housing_conditions/taking_action_on_disrepair/withholding_rent

Personally, I'd send another reminder. If they still don't reimburse you after another 2 weeks, I'd send a final reminder with a warning that you will deduct the amount from your next rental payment (if the timing lines up ok).

I don't think it is the landlord's responsibility if the tenant has used the alarm. Just because the alarm is there doesn't mean that they have to use it. It doesn't come under any of the items that a landlord has to lawfully keep in good repair simply because it doesn't render the house uninhabitable if it isn't set.



A new battery for a burglar alarm isn't going be classed as coming under disrepair. All the tenant has to do is to not set it. The battery is only there so that the alarm can still be active if the electricity supply gets turned off. It must have been set to go off at 4.00am in the power cut. It wouldn't have gone off at all if it hadn't been set. The simple answer is not to use it.



I don't suppose the landlord will mind if it isn't used because then that means that no one needs to replace the battery unless they want to use the alarm.

martindow

Is it really as clear cut as posters are suggesting?

The LL presumably gave the OP instructions and codes for the alarm system so this forms part of the house that it was implied the OP could use in the same way as the heating or electrical systems. It is different to smoke alarms in that they can be easily stopped by pulling batteries out and they normally make odd noises warning that the battery needs replacement. If the LL hasn't maintained the alarm system, when the faulty battery would be replaced, it seems a bit much expecting the OP to pay for faults.

If the burglar alarm didn't do anything to warn of the state of the battery and assuming the OP wasn't negligent in disregarding this, it seems quite reasonable that the OP called someone out straight away. You can't really let the alarm continue any longer than necessary in the early hours. If there had been a fault with the plumbing or the wiring in the house that needed emergency attention, we would expect the LL to cover the cost.

chris_wa

I would expect the alarm to fall under the landlords responsibility to repair or replace, surely its just like if a fridge breaks, however the landlord should have been given the option to repair it themselves.

As you have taken the decision to fix it without giving him the opportunity he is not obligated to reimburse you.

Landlord will then fall into 3 categories:

A very good one will reimburse you
a good one might contribute towards the cost - maybe half
an average one will not reimburse

In future always ring your LL/LA with any and all repairs before paying for repairs

need_an_answer

chris_wa wrote: »

I would expect the alarm to fall under the landlords responsibility to repair or replace, surely its just like if a fridge breaks, however the landlord should have been given the option to repair it themselves.

As you have taken the decision to fix it without giving him the opportunity he is not obligated to reimburse you.

Landlord will then fall into 3 categories:

A very good one will reimburse you
a good one might contribute towards the cost - maybe half
an average one will not reimburse

In future always ring your LL/LA with any and all repairs before paying for repairs

As a LL myself I would be of the opinion that it is my responsibility to pay for the battery and absolutely agree with this post.

OP when you read tenancy agreements then it usually states that the tenant is responsible for the likes of lightbulbs,batteries in smoke detectors etc...so it could be seen that you should replace this one,however theres no real way of checking the back up battery either prior to you moving in or even you knowing when you move in what state it is in....mine at home has a 10 year lifespan.
Hardly fair to let all the tenants before you get away without replacing it but gain the beneifit of it and the burden of the whole cost fall on you....

The LL possibly gains some benefit from having a working alarm in the same way you do by way of potentially lower insurance bills for building in the case of the LL and contents in your case.

I'm firmly of the opinion its the LL who should foot the bill.

Not quite the same scenario but I've just bought a replacement battery for a dyson that is in one of my rentals...it would never occur to me for the tenant to pay for something like that.Yes they have a lifespan of around 4 years so a replacement is needed but its a known lifespan and should be factored into the scheme of things as a LL cost not a tenant cost/responsibility to change simply because that particular tenant was renting the property when the battery pack expired.

davidmcn

Burglar alarm back-up battery is a long-term thing, and most of the cost is going to be the engineer call-out charge (and no doubt an extortionate mark-up for the part). I would view it as a LL cost, it's not a "consumable" in the same way as lightbulbs etc.

silvercar

Maybe OP can confirm whether this was a standard battery or a specialised one. I would expect that the tenant replace standard batteries and a tenant making the decision to call out an engineer ahead of checking batteries for themselves may be viewed as a decision that the tenant bears the cost of. In the same way that a light bulb blows and the circuit sometimes goes off, tenant replaces the light bulb and resets the circuit, unless they want to call an electrician at their own expense.

G_M

chris_wa wrote: »

I would expect the alarm to fall under the landlords responsibility to repair or replace, surely its just like if a fridge breaks,......

except that the Landlord & Tenant Act 1985 does not require a landlord to fix a fridge! Indeed, the Act specifically excludes "fixtures, fittings and appliances for making use of the supply of water, gas or electricity"

Burglar alarm back-up battery is a long-term thing, and most of the cost is going to be the engineer call-out charge (and no doubt an extortionate mark-up for the part). I would view it as a LL cost, it's not a "consumable" in the same way as lightbulbs etc.

Similarly, unless there is a contractual obligation on the landlord (either implied or explicit), the law would not require the alarm to be maintained or battery replaced.


In this case, the tenant would have to argue that there was an implied (or perhaps verbal) contractual obligation.