Opinions on a couple of things please

Giraffe76

Hi all,
hope you are all well.
We have just this past Thursday started to rent out a bungalow through a nationwide agent.
As you might know there are certain checks and certificates that need to be completed before anyone moves in. One of the certificates needed is a gas safety certificate which we got completed through the nationwide agent but when I did the handover i found that the boiler pressure was very low&nothing I did could fix the problem.
We contacted the nationwide agent who contacted the plumber who did the gas safety check but he's refusing to take the responsibility so we contacted a local specialised plumber for our boiler who said there was a problem with the prv and a leak on the return outlet assembly which he fixed but I was wondering if there was any recompense we could try and get from the plumber who did the gas safety check as surely he should of noticed the problems with the boiler.
Also the tenant has said to us that we should provide him with a fridge freezer washing machine and other appliances even though when he viewed the property it was empty as we initially wanted to sell it and sold every item we could except a 3 piece sofa. We have been trying to help him get a few of these things but because we are an hour's drive away down the m6 it's difficult.
The question I want answering is because the property was empty when he viewed it do we by law have to provide white goods etc

I have already told him of a few places he can look for these online to try to do as much as we can to help as he's only been living in this country a year or so but don't want to set a precedent that he thinks he contacts us all the time anytime he needs something.

Hope this all makes sense and thanks in advance for any help or advice

Regards Mark 

Boat_to_Bolivia

If you let the property unfurnished then you do not need to supply white goods ie. fridge, washing machine etc.

cymruchris

You could offer to get the appliances installed - but tell them you'd need to renegotiate the rent, as the price agreed was for 'unfurnished' as seen. 

As for your gas problem, I can't see any way you could prove that the issue at hand was related to the first tradesman, so I'd swallow that up and get on with life. He wasn't there to service it, he was there to run some basic safety checks to ensure that it wasn't leaking or dangerous, and it's likely that the system was neither. If he had spotted the issue even though that's not what he was there for, you'd have still had to have paid to get it repaired.

housebuyer143

Do not install white goods if it's unfinished, you will become liable for them and the repair. If he viewed it and they were not there, then they are not provided. 

Ruth regards to the boiler, I don't think you have any come back on the broker boiler from the guy who did the gas safety. He didn't break it, he would have literally just switched it on and off to do the check. Just one of those things and timing probably coincidental. 

Your tenant sounds like hard work already, so don't let him push you around and make it clear to your agent the things they should be filtering rather than coming to you with everything. National agents in my opinion are not good, and you are better off with a small local one. I say this having worked in the large chain for 10+ years - I would never ever let my property through them knowing how they function back office.

plumb1_2

Yes never supply white goods, as you responsible for them. 3 months down the line and the washer brakes down, you have a tenant compliant. The have to waste time/money sorting it out.
When I bought my first BTL they left the newish washer there, I sold it to my tenant for £1 and gave him a written receipt. Onus on him then , not if but when it brakes down.

You had a safety check, not a service.
Ya after your contract is up with the nationwide agent, go local.And negotiate fees.

ProDave

The gas safe test is all about gas, making sure there are no leaks, flame failure devices etc work.  It is NOT a general plumbing check.  

You say you wanted to sell the property but now have let it, making you what many cal a reluctant landlord.  Why did you not sell it?

propertyrental

Just to correct a misconception above:

If you supply white goods, the LL is only responsible for maintaining them under contract law. See the LL and T Act below for statutory responsibility.

So if your contract explicitly excludes maintenance of eg the fridge, then the LL need not maintain the fridge.

Landlord & Tenant Act 1985 S11

11   Repairing obligations in short leases.
(1) In a lease to which this section applies (as to which, see sections 13 and 14) there is implied a covenant by the lessor—
(a) to keep in repair the structure and exterior of the dwelling-house (including drains, gutters and external pipes),
(b) to keep in repair and proper working order the installations in the dwelling-house for the supply of water, gas and electricity and for sanitation (including basins, sinks, baths and sanitary conveniences, but not other fixtures, fittings and appliances for making use of the supply of water, gas or electricity), and
(c) to keep in repair and proper working order the installations in the dwelling-house for space heating and heating water.

Giraffe76

housebuyer143 said:

Do not install white goods if it's unfinished, you will become liable for them and the repair. If he viewed it and they were not there, then they are not provided. 

Ruth regards to the boiler, I don't think you have any come back on the broker boiler from the guy who did the gas safety. He didn't break it, he would have literally just switched it on and off to do the check. Just one of those things and timing probably coincidental. 

Your tenant sounds like hard work already, so don't let him push you around and make it clear to your agent the things they should be filtering rather than coming to you with everything. National agents in my opinion are not good, and you are better off with a small local one. I say this having worked in the large chain for 10+ years - I would never ever let my property through them knowing how they function back office.

In reply to your reply. A few years ago before we wanted to sell the house we had a local agent rent out the property to someone else,they were ok for a few months but then the problems started. She stopped paying rent and said it was because of an external light which wasn't working but it was working when we left.She was an absolute nightmare but we eventually got her out but she currently owes around £4,000 in rent arrears&are chasing her but it's difficult.
The national agent hasn't also taken the property off the selling side of their website yet even if though it's now rented&we have requested they do so but I don't want people turning up at the house expecting to view it and having the renter to deal with them.Thats just not fair to him.
Thanks also about the boiler issue. Wanted to check if there was anything that could be done but we will just have to swallow the cost and move on but at least the central heating is now working. We do have a wood burning stove there too but they seem to want to use the central heating instead.

Many thanks Mark 

Giraffe76

ProDave said:

The gas safe test is all about gas, making sure there are no leaks, flame failure devices etc work.  It is NOT a general plumbing check.  

You say you wanted to sell the property but now have let it, making you what many cal a reluctant landlord.  Why did you not sell it?

We didn't sell it as we were advised wrongly of too high a price,then dropped the price but the market had then started to fall away&we couldnt even get a break even price so then decided to  rent it

Giraffe76

Thank you to everyone who has replied.
I will stop trying to help the renter get white goods and leave him to it.
I will also not follow through with certain actions we had planned against the plumber as it appears he is not liable

It's also worth me pointing out that we only advised the agent of a basic service and not a managed service hence why the renter has contacted us about the white goods.
Many thanks and kind regards Mark 

LegallyLandlord

Good luck with the self-managing! It does get easier. I had a steep learning curve the first year or so, despite being a lawyer. But this is a good place to come for tips. 😊