My Rights as a Tenant

Hi Guys,

Here's the suitation I've been living in my council flat for 2 years, and since day number one my flat has got serious damp coming in via the roof. I've reported it to the council so many times, and they just come back and say it condensation. But now I've literally got water dripping down off the ceiling in my Living Room - Kitchen and Bed room. The other night I was sleeping, and I was woke up half way through the night with water dripping onto my face.

I scrumped and saved a few months ago to decorate my flat to try and make it a better enviroment but everything is ruined. The damp has destroyed everything in my flat including my clothes and furniture, water has dripped down from my ceiling in the living room onto my tv and now it not working. The same thing has happened in my kitchen and my cook has blown from water damage. In a nut shell what are my rights guys, and how can I claim back some of my money.

I've given up on getting the council to sort the problem out because they just make excuses, I'm looking at moving into a private accommodation in the next few months because living in a damp flat for 2 years has also caused me health issues chest wise.

Here is a list of the things that's been damaged - Carpets - Plasma TV - Cooker - Clothes - Furniture inlcuding Sofa's

Any advice guys would be apprecaited Michelle

Comments

  • paddedjohn
    paddedjohn Posts: 7,512
    First Anniversary
    Forumite
    Don't move from your council flat, if you do and rent privately you could end up moving every 6 months, go back to the council and demand a fix. By the way, scrumping can get you in serious trouble.
    Be Alert..........Britain needs lerts.
  • Hi thanks for the response. Ill take your advice, but all my personal goods have been damaged due to the damp am I within my rights to claim back a loss for everything. And I meant to say scrimping and saving not scrumping which I think is another word for something illegal. Thanks michelle
  • ILW
    ILW Posts: 18,333 Forumite
    Claim on your contents insurance.
  • I dont have insurance :(
  • hcb42
    hcb42 Posts: 5,962 Forumite
    is it damp? Or a leak?
  • Fire_Fox
    Fire_Fox Posts: 26,026
    Name Dropper First Anniversary Combo Breaker First Post
    Forumite
    Water dripping from the ceiling sounds like extreme condensation! But a leaky roof would not normally come in several rooms so that doesn't make sense either. Back to basics:
    - Are you air drying laundry indoors?
    - Are you closing the door and opening the window during AND after showering?
    - Are you opening all the windows every day year round?
    - Have you tried using an electric dehumidifier? If the water has been building up for some time simple ventilation may not be enough.

    Have you been reporting this to your landlord in writing? Contact Environmental Health at the local council and emphasise your health issues, they should come and inspect and enforce repairing obligations on the landlord if there is a leaky roof or encourage them to improve ventilation if there is no sign of a fault with the roof. Contents insurance for damaged possessions - this really is not expensive and it is your responsibility.
    Declutterbug-in-progress.⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️
  • CAB_National_Representative
    CAB_National_Representative Posts: 220 Organisation Representative
    Hi Guys,

    Here's the suitation I've been living in my council flat for 2 years, and since day number one my flat has got serious damp coming in via the roof. I've reported it to the council so many times, and they just come back and say it condensation. But now I've literally got water dripping down off the ceiling in my Living Room - Kitchen and Bed room. The other night I was sleeping, and I was woke up half way through the night with water dripping onto my face.

    I scrumped and saved a few months ago to decorate my flat to try and make it a better enviroment but everything is ruined. The damp has destroyed everything in my flat including my clothes and furniture, water has dripped down from my ceiling in the living room onto my tv and now it not working. The same thing has happened in my kitchen and my cook has blown from water damage. In a nut shell what are my rights guys, and how can I claim back some of my money.

    I've given up on getting the council to sort the problem out because they just make excuses, I'm looking at moving into a private accommodation in the next few months because living in a damp flat for 2 years has also caused me health issues chest wise.

    Here is a list of the things that's been damaged - Carpets - Plasma TV - Cooker - Clothes - Furniture inlcuding Sofa's

    Any advice guys would be apprecaited Michelle

    Hi Michelle - we're sorry to hear about what's happened with the flat. We'd suggest that you get in touch with your local bureau and arrange to speak or meet with an adviser - and as soon as you can. Having your tenancy agreement to hand when you do will be really helpful. Bureaux often have direct contact links with the various council teams.

    If you're interested, we do have some information on the responsibilities of councils to their tenants on our Adviceguide website.
    Official CAB Representative
    I am an official representative of CAB. MSE has given permission for me to post in response to questions on the CAB Board. You can see my name on the companies with permission to post list. If you believe I’ve broken any rules please report my post to forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com as usual"
This discussion has been closed.
Meet your Ambassadors

Categories

  • All Categories
  • 342.5K Banking & Borrowing
  • 249.9K Reduce Debt & Boost Income
  • 449.4K Spending & Discounts
  • 234.6K Work, Benefits & Business
  • 607.1K Mortgages, Homes & Bills
  • 172.8K Life & Family
  • 247.4K Travel & Transport
  • 1.5M Hobbies & Leisure
  • 15.8K Discuss & Feedback
  • 15.1K Coronavirus Support Boards