mould growth - who is liable?

|ZeN|

just a little problem that needs clarification. I live in a student house and about 2 months ago, a radiator pipe started leaking from the floor above into my room. I informed the estate agents with whome i am renting immediatly and asked them to rectify the problem asap. Unfortunatly there is no written evidence of this. A few weeks later and there is still no sign of anything being done. I actually fall ill a few times due to what i suspect is fungi and mould growth along the wall where the damp is. Thereafter it becomes so bad that i actually have to move out for a month temporarily. The problem is this, the estate agents claim that they had not been informed regarding this, and i feel it is unfair that i have to pay rent for a period of time where i couldnt actually physically live in the room. At the moment i am witholding my rent but i want to know what rights do i have as a student tenant regarding this.

Also as to this date the radiator has been repaired but my wall is still needs repainting and demoulding, although it has dried up due to the summer heat.

Thank you

BWZN93

Unfortunately, students do get a rough end of the deal with landlords, although, there are many students who do not deserve to be let out freely to wander the streets with normal souls, much less be allowed to share a rented property.

In relation to the mould - what actually happened when you called to report the original problem? Did they confirm they would send someone round? Can you remember who you spoke to? Did you go to the doctors with your illness? If you had, the doctor should be able to write a letter outlining your illness, and potential cause, and this could be used as proof that the room was unfit for human habitation, and you should not be expected to pay for this.

Following my move from my last student house, my flatmate took over my room and a few weeks later, the washing machine of the flat above us leaked and collapsed the roof in the bedroom that she had taken over. She had to move out for a month because of the damage and state of the place, and was not expected to pay the rent. It is worth noting that in future, call the landlord/agency (whoever has the responsibility of maintaining the flat in instances like these) to report the problem, and immediately also send a recorded delivery letter stating the details, who you spoke to on the phone, etc etc, and keep a copy for your records. Give them a reasonable amount of time to fix the problem (in relation to the seriousness of the problem, e.g broken kettle, it'll take a while; but if the ceiling collapses - they need to act immediately), and allow access to builders/workmen/landlord (whoever) in the property as and when they need it to fix the problem. In the letter, request a letter stating an expected date when this should be fixed by, and if they take longer than 1 month - you then have problems. Most of this should be in the contract (i.e - reasonable amount of time to fix etc).

For now, you might have to prove that you called the agency - difficult - but phone records might be helpful. How long ago did the damage occur? How long were you out of your room for?? To be fair, you will have a difficult one, but it seems that the letting agency has been incompetant - they often forget/lose/simply dont do things all the time - ive had plenty of experience with these a$$holes, and they simply dont get my money unless they can prove to me that THEY are worth it, not the other way around! As far as I am concerned now, if they want my business, they work for it, and if they let me down, there is hell to pay.

If you are forced to pay the rent - maybe small claims court??

Jo xx