Question about an electrical code report

VBell

Hi All,

I rent a property that, to say the least, has not had any maintenance other than emergency for 50 years. Not best choice but ill health has my income low. Plus I needed to live near my elderly Mum, sadly she died last year. 

In  July  2021 a code report was done on the electrics. After nearly 3 hours he came and said it was all so old that he couldn’t complete the report fully for it to even fail the report. 

I knew things weren’t brilliant.  But as I said my choices are very few. 

I should say that I am fully aware of rights of sight of the report but the agent plays a silly circular game-“ it’s private for the landlord”. Well it was arranged by you and I have a right to see the outcome so can I have her details? - ‘No we are her agents” okay so can I see copy please? “No it’s private to landlady.” Etc…

The reason I can’t pursue is they use the threat of a section 21. I am more ill than when I moved in, partly due to other factors living here, and so have even less income. 50 year old useless boiler has my bills high especially now, despite making major depravations to my lifestyle, limiting hot water etc. Never any heating.  

In November of that year  I called the electrician to try and get clarity on safety again. The person who answered looked it up and actually gave me a date for when the work was done to rectify issues ?! They had it down as remedied by them. 

Nobody has been near since he walked out 4 years ago. No work has been done.

Does anyone have any idea as to safety? It doesn’t and never has sounded good to me but I don’t have specialist knowledge so it could be okay?

They are piling on hefty rent but no report still.

On the plus side he gave me covid that day. 🙄 

Thanks
Violet

 

MysteryMe

I think it might be best to post in the Housing and renting forum Violet

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/categories/house-buying-renting-selling

There are several knowledgeable people there with regards tenants rights and landlord responsibilities. 

tacpot12

It's unlikely to be safe if the electrician walked off the job, however, they would not have left you in a situation where the electrics were dangerous. (There are degrees of safety) 

Your best course of action is to contact the agent and then local authority team that deals with Private Rented property as per the section on retaliatory evictions in this link from Mansfield Council: Advice for landlords – Mansfield District Council 

When you contact the local authority, you must tell them that the electrical contractors said that the installation had been fixed, but you know that no work was done because there was never any request to allow them access to the property. 

Now that you no longer need to live where you do, I would strongly recommend you move somewhere cheaper where the electrics and the rest of the property are maintained properly, but this issue needs raising for the next tenant if not yourself. 

VBell

@MysteryMe
Thank you for responding. Apologies for delayed thanks- I have been very ill. I put the question here as I wanted a response regarding the electrical outcome rather than rights and landlord responsibilities as I am pretty okay on those I”m just not an electrician. I hadn’t come across this experience before. 

I appreciate your response.

VBell

@tacpot12
Thank you for responding to my odd question. Apologies for late thanks I have been very unwell. I had thought it can’t be a worry or it wouldn’t have been left by the electrician without a warning or some such. But when I was told their records said it was remedied it didn’t feel so surely safe.  It’s now four years ago and some of the light fittings have deteriorated so much that you can’t change a bulb or light shade, others flash on and off even when the switch at the wall is off. 🤷🏻‍♀️ I only use some of them. I switch everything I can off before going to bed. 

I am aware of the rights and local authority depts. I have experienced a drop in income due to ill health and am stuck here for now- though working on it ( not least because she has put a massive rent rise on now yearly instead of every two years).  The state of the rental market often makes regulations and rights just a process that can’t actually help us get good homes/decent treatment or even one at all- especially as section 21s still exist and the threat to abolish makes it harder to get somewhere unless you have the kind of income where you would actually choose to buy. I stay because it is still a lower rent than alternatives, but there are other issues and some other non-electrical dangers here. It’s all fun and games!

Rest assured once I am not hostage to circumstances and limited choices when I leave, no matter where I am going, I will absolutely be on to the local council to inform them of everything for the next tenant before it is rented out again. I actually know more than I am able to say regarding some of the information.

Thanks again.