Renting Without A Working Boiler - Advice Needed

lozza97

Hello,

I have been renting a property for just over a year now, and last Wednesday evening (23/02/22) our oil boiler stopped working (a lock on light is on, and cannot be overridden). 

I reported it straight away via the maintenance portal and via the phone the next morning - we are a fully managed one so everything has to go through our estate agent.

A plumber wasn’t sent out until the following Monday (28/02/22) and all they did was a service. They told us it needed some new parts, and then they left.

I contacted my estate agent on Tuesday (01/03/22) and told them what the plumber had done, and reiterated to them that we still had no hot water and no heating. They told me someone would get in touch, but nobody has contacted me since.

We cannot use any hot water nor any heating, and we haven’t been offered any form of temporary heating either. We have had to go out and buy 2 convection heaters which were costly, and our electric bill has gone from an average of £1.50 per day to £4-5 per day on top of this. If we want to get a hot shower, we have to drive to our family almost 1 hr each way just to do so. 

The convection heaters don’t heat the whole house, and so it isn’t really ideal given the additional cost it’s causing. My other half has become seriously unwell with flu, and I haven’t a clue if it’s because the house has been so cold even with the little heaters (it’s a pre-90’s house and the windows leak galore). 

I understand landlords have a ‘reasonable time’ of 24 hours to rectify boiler issues - but I don’t feel that it is ‘reasonable time’ any more with it being almost 1 week now. Does anyone know where we stand with this, or if we can ask for some contribution towards our increased costs caused by their delays in fixing the issue? With my partner being off work with no pay due to sickness, and the current economic climate, extra costs are not good! 

Thank you

MEM62

Inform the agent, and landlord directly, that they have 24 hours to deal with it.  If they do not, report it to your local council.  

Slithery

lozza97 said:

I understand landlords have a ‘reasonable time’ of 24 hours to rectify boiler issues - but I don’t feel that it is ‘reasonable time’ any more with it being almost 1 week now.

Not sure where you got that idea from, it simply isn't true. The LL has to fix it in a 'reasonable' timescale - that's all.
1 week is perfectly resaonable, especially if parts are needed. It could easily take that long if you were an owner-occupier. LL's don't have magic plumbers that can get parts quicker just because it's a rental property.

canaldumidi

Confirm your report in writing, addressed to the landlod, at the address provided 'for serving notices'.

'reasonablenes' is dependant on the circumstances in each case. In this case, a engineer has been sent out. Parts are being sourced (presumably), so the LL/agent is acting reasonably.

Simply keep on top of things by a) reporting formally (see above) and b) requesting updates regularly (daily?)

Post 2: Repairing Obligations:

Have you requested alternative heaters? Requested payment for the heaters you purchased? Always worth asking.

TBagpuss

As above, there's no strict 24 hour requirement -  I believe that the landlord "should" arrange for a plumber/heating engineer to attend within 24 hours if you have no hot water.
The landlord is limited by how quickly they can find a suitable heating engineer and how quickly the engineers can get any necessary parts.

However, they do need to act reasonably, and the more significant the issue, the less reasonable any lengthy delays are likely to be. 

I would suggest that you contact them (in writing) asking them for a specific update and in particular:

• ask them to  confirm when and how quickly the repairs will be carried out, and to keep you updated with any changes to that timescale
• You may also want to ask what steps they have taken to get the situation remedied more quickly - for instance, it may be reasonable for them to try different companies to avoid delay. 
• Raise concerns about the lack of heating and ask them to provide alternative heating 
• Ask them about reimbursing you for at least a proportion of the additional costs and perhaps ask if they will cover the costs of visiting your nearest gym / swimming pool to enable you to shower. 

It might be appropriate to as them to provide alternative temporary accommodation if they are not able to fix the issue within a reasonable time. I think that the lack of hot water would be seen as a bigger issue than the heating. 

canaldumidi

As an aside, a distinct advantage of 'conventional' boilers with a hot water cylinder, over combi boilers (providing hot water on demand), is that the hot water cylinder usually also has an immersion heater that can provide hot water when the boiler fails.

lozza97

canaldumidi said:

As an aside, a distinct advantage of 'conventional' boilers with a hot water cylinder, over combi boilers (providing hot water on demand), is that the hot water cylinder usually also has an immersion heater that can provide hot water when the boiler fails.

Unfortunately the boiler looks to be as old as the hills. It runs off an oil tank in the garden and doesn’t even have a digital display. It’s not been serviced in years either!

lozza97

Thank you for all of your replies.

I was reading this 

Section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 states that repairs should be carried out in a ‘reasonable time’. Emergency repairs should be fixed within 24 hours as having no hot water or heating constitutes a hazard under the law

It also states in our contract that emergency repairs should be done within 24 hours.

It took them 4 days to even get someone out to ‘look at it’. I contacted the estate agent an hour ago and was told quotes had been passed to our landlord on Monday but he’s not replying to anyone or giving authorisation. At one point, we didn’t have a working front door (the lock didn’t function at all posing a huge security issue) and they didn’t fix it for 4 entire months - so I’m not holding out any hope as the landlord seems to be very money orientated. 

I also told them about the increased costs and the fact my other half is ill and I’m getting ill now too and all they said is ‘they can ask for some form of compensation’ and apologised that nothing had even been offered in terms of temporary heating. 

Slithery

You do have hot water and heating though.

You have electric heaters and a kettle surely?

lincroft1710

Slithery said:

You do have hot water and heating though.

You have electric heaters and a kettle surely?

I remember living like that in my parents' first house; if you wanted hot water to wash or wash up, you boiled a kettle. Thank God the 1950s are long gone!!

lozza97

Slithery said:

You do have hot water and heating though.

You have electric heaters and a kettle surely?

We had to buy a convection heater which has put our bill up from £1.20 to £5.60 a day, and it is barely heating up 1 room. The windows in this place leak so the minimal heat radiating out of the heater is counteracted by that! 

Yes we have a kettle but there aren’t any baths in the property so unless I stand and pour boiling water over my head in the shower cubicle it’s kind of out the question

I don’t feel it is right that the landlord is dilly dallying about rejecting quotes rather than prioritising the tenant that just paid them £1250 in rent just 1 day ago and reinstating basic necessities for them. They haven’t offered to provide temporary heating, offer any reimbursement or even alternative accommodation. I wouldn’t normally complain, but I’m sure if I was a day late on my rent he would soon be chasing me…