Updating post from Reddit.
I made the initial complaint to my letting agent , and they passed the information onto my landlord as they have their own private contractor. Since then it’s been a constant back and forth with them trying to find a resolution. The letting agent will say that they’ve tried contacting the landlord and that they will call me back but they never do. 2 weeks ago someone finally came out to look at the boiler and it turns out there was a bigger issue than originally anticipated, so they said that they would need to replace the whole boiler and that they’ve sent a quote to the landlord . Since then I’ve heard nothing and been left in the dark with the situation, I’m calling everyday to chase it up and get told the same response “ they will try to contact the landlord and get back to me “ . They never do. My question is what can I do in this situation, I have a little girl who lives with me and the conditions aren’t fair to be living in. What rights do I have or who can I speak to to get this sorted , and would I be due some compensation for the situation.
If you want to guarantee a solution, you can call the Environmental Health team at your Local Council ask for an Housing health and safety rating system (HHSRS) inspection.
This inspection will fail due to hygiene and sanitation, they will then demand the landlord fix it or receive financal pentalities, etc.
Given you have a child, the "risk" is higher and the local authority should jump on this, if they dont keep going higher and higher up, or file a complaint.
If they do send the letter to the landlord, you will fall under the Retaliatory Eviction Act of 2015 which will hinder them evicting you.
You want to keep a log/notes and evidence of what you reported and when.
** Its hard to get workmen in to complete a job quickly and at good value. What annoys me in your comment is the agent is "trying" to contact landlord and seemingly failing. This suggests its not an urgency for them, you need to make it one.
** You should continue to pay your contractual rent, to avoid eviction. This often does not work out well.
It's not that hard getting it done quickly if the landlord makes it a priority. We went from finding that the boiler was leaking and on its last legs during an inspection to having it assessed by a plumber and replaced within two weeks of first finding out.
That wasn't even without hot water, I'd have done my best to make it happen even faster if that had been the case, probably returning some rent for the inconvenience. Depending on how long the period was.
Someone's being shit at their job. Whether it's the landlord being an arse or the agent not contacting them as a priority (or giving a shit) is hard to say as both happen with alarming regularity.
I'd say go bananas at the estate agent over how unacceptable this is, and give them one last chance, saying you need a reply within the day. If you don't get a meaningful response, pull the trigger with the council.
I'd be curious to know if this constitutes a breach of one of the clauses in your contract - worth a look.
Perfect response. I fear for the agent and the landlord it’s very neglectful on their end. Hot water / Heating issues have to be treated as an emergency and they should have someone at the property within 24 hours. If the agent cannot get through to the landlord, they are allowed to act as an “Agent of Necessity” and call in a tradesmen to sort the issue out for you without the landlords authorisation.
I don’t understand the situation. so each day you are calling the agent and they tell you that they are going to contact the landlord. On each day, why aren’t you moving the conversation forward? did they contact the landlord or are they waiting for a response?
The landlord should be paying you some way to access hot showers eg gym membership whilst this is going on. And report to Council - putting in a new boiler might take some time but sounds like they are just dragging their feet.
Get on the phone to the council, tell them what's going on.
They'll get in touch with your landlord/letting agent and hopefully get them to pull their finger out.
The landlord has an obligation to carry out repairs in a timely manner, expecting you to live in a property without hot water for a whole month is unacceptable.
Call the agency tomorrow and say "I'd like to log a official complaint. Please also share your complaints procedure. Once it's logged, please share the reference and we can then discuss this further."
Only once it's logged then tell them write down the next 3 steps they are taking to resolve this in next 7 days.
Do not pay your rent till this shit show is sorted. I say this as a landlord.
You need to pop into the letting agent ask to speak to someone senior and request they call the LL in front of you. Or to give you LL details so you can contact them directly. If they mess you about say you’ll raise with Council
Also ask them to provide heaters and agree an allowance for heating water whilst boiler is unusable. Don’t withhold rent whatever you do unless agent agrees to it