Updating post from Reddit.
Hello, not a landlord but a tenant seeking advice. Almost 2 weeks ago I reported to my letting agent/landlord that my toilet wasn't flushing, told them I had looked around and that nothing seemed broken, the toilet is most definitely not blocked and that my very handy but not a plumber dad had checked it out and couldn't get it sorted. I have not done anything to break it myself, nothing unsuitable flushed, no rough use (although I'm unsure how I could do that). They thanked me for trying to sort it myself and shortly after sent a copy of a work order instructing their contractor to sort it out. All good or so I thought. I have had no communication from anyone regarding coming to fix it. Emails asking for an update have just said "I'll chase this up now" with no further response. In this time I've been having to "flush" by throwing buckets of water down which is both gross and not entirely effective.
I noticed that under priority on the work order, it said none. Surely this is wrong as a toilet is pretty damned essential in a house?
Would i be within my rights to ask for a rent reduction in next month's rent? If so what would be a reasonable amount. They're usually pretty cool with repairs so this is odd, but given that it's the loo it's also entirely unacceptable.
Thanks in advance for any advice
Tell them you feel the property is uninhabitable due to the absence of appropriate sanitation facilities. That might speed them up
>Would i be within my rights to ask for a rent reduction in next month's rent?
You can certainly ask, but the entitlement is probably zero.
As a last resort a big bucket pretty full .. pour slowly .. reduces the grossness .. and mimics how the flush would work ..
But yes it should work .. they should be fixing it .. the manual bucket method flush .. is not an acceptable alternative ..
.. it seems likely that it is the actual flushing part which has failed ..
The handle is intact and lifting the mechanism up from inside does nothing. I have been using the bucket method
You can ask for anything you like but the owner is under no legal obligation to compensate.
If you feel the repair time is unreasonable and in this instance I feel it is then you can report to your local council environmental health team and ask for an assessment.
Personally before doing this I'd give your management company one final chance.
Id write that you require an update in the next 48 hours and failure to do so will leave you no choice but to speak with the council for next steps. Point out that sewage is considered a high risk health and safety issue so you expect a quick assessment and fix.
If they ignore you then ring council for an assessment and they will likely impose a time frame to have the issue fixed.
Good luck.
Tell them without a working toilet your house is uninhabitable and that if it's not resolved by X date you will be checking into a hotel and billing them.
Sorry if I've missed it but is this your only toilet. If so it should be very high priority and potentially grounds for requesting discounted rent if landlord and agency not doing everything possible to rectify asap.
Of you had multiple toilets then mess of a healthy and safety / welfare emergency but should still be actioned promptly.
Bucket full of clean water for flushing temporary measure to keep you going but not a medium term option!
This is my only toilet and I have been doing the bucket method
You can ask for anything you like, but unless you have suffered a monetary loss, you are unlikely to be entitled to monetary compensation.
It is perfectly safe to flush the toilet with the bucket method. Inconvenient, but safe, and there is no loss incurred.
The toilet won't be fixed any sooner if they give you monetary compensation.
Focus on what it is you actually wish to achieve, which presumably is a fixed toilet flush mechanism.
Reducing the rent you pay might be counterproductive as it could give them grounds if the dispute escalates ..
Keep records of your communications .. stating that the time passed is not acceptable ..
When can you expect the toilet to be fully functional ..
I wouldn't withhold any payment, I was just wondering if I could ask for a slight reduction. Obviously the main goal is just having a working toilet
Highly unlikely but that’s different to getting the issue sorted.
Is it the only toilet ? If so a firm but polite Email to them asap. This is a clear health safety issue and if they don’t respond in say 48hr then escalate to the council.
It’s a bit crap (no pun )
It is my only toilet. I have been told that if I don't hear from their contractor to email them again tomorrow and they'll chase things up, again. It is indeed crap
Comment to add info.
This is the only toilet in the house, I have been using the bucket to flush method which is a pain in the arse and even if safe, I feel its unhygienic. I wanna go for a pee without needing a bucket
You just need to pester until its done. Phone when you get up, phone at lunch, phone mid-afternoon. Be the squeaky wheel
Whatever you do don’t reduce your rent payments without express agreement, this can open you up to being served a section 8 notice. Instead, contact the council, they can come round and inspect and serve an environmental notice - that way you are protected from if your landlord tries to get rid of you under s21 no fault eviction (which is quite common once a tenant reports an issue with the property). Also in the interim take as much evidence as possible such as videos of the non flushing toilet.
I wouldn't just take it upon myself to not pay my rent, I just felt that it may be possible to ask for a reduction as in theory I'm paying rent for a house with fixtures in working order and right now, a major one isn't functioning as it should. I get that it could take a day or two to sort a plumber coming round but a couple of weeks is IMO unacceptable when it comes to something like a loo
Absolutely, but if landlord doesn’t agree you want a squeaky clean record in case it goes further. I agree it’s absolutely unacceptable, get on to the council if still not rectified, also have a look into a no win no fee disrepair claim. Amazing how quickly landlords fix these problem once they receive a letter from a solicitor!
Yeah I don't want to wind them up, as said in the years I've been here they've been really good and easy to deal with so I don't get what the hold up with this issue is. I'm just getting fed up with this now
Fix it buddy. Ask your handy dad to have a look in the cistern and work out what is wrong; Is it filling? Is it stopping filling when full? If you manually lift the float, and it isn’t draining down in toilet bowl, why isn’t it? There’s not many things that can be wrong. Worst scenario you buy a new float assembly for your toilet.
My handy dad did have a look, a couple times. It seems that the issue (from blind googling) lies with the flapper, which can just go on its own due to normal wear and tear, the problem is that this bit is encased in some kind of housing within the cistern that can't be taken apart and neither myself nor my dad want to start dismantling and potentially breaking things. I do prefer to handle repairs myself when I can and often do as 1) I like doing DIY and fixing things, learning how to and 2) I really hate having strangers in my house but this is outside the scope of capabilities of both myself and my dad
SOMEONE HAS JUST APPEARED TO FIX IT!!
Property was inhabited, so, no.
The law is pretty clear, the property has to be uninhabitable, the fact you were living in it and managing totally undermines that.
Now, theoretically, yes a non flushing toilet could make the property uninhabitable, for example, like you couldn't use buckets for whatever reason and then were forced to move out because you have no place to go poop! 100% you'd be owed money.
In this particular circumstance, my view is it's a shitty landlord who didn't pull their finger out fast enough, and there's plenty of them out there... But that's not grounds for renumeration, merely good grounds to start seeking accommodation from a different landlord who's competent and has their head screwed on.
Thanks for a clear explanation on things, I appreciate it. I don't wanna say my landlord/agent is rubbish because they're usually really good with things, I genuinely don't know the cause for this hold up but it isn't like them
Just fill a bucket from the top. Hey Presto. It flushes...
Yes! Your landlord should fix it. But c'mon, it's just a loo. If it isn't clear what's wrong, make sure the water supply is OK, then just replace the entire mechanism. It's simple and inexpensive to do, then send a bill for the part and your time to the letting agent or landlord.
You have the right to ask, they have the right to laugh at you.
Sorry but flushing toilet is inconvenient not essential a blocked toilet however is different. So is it blocked or not flushing. If it’s not flushing then use a bucket of water to flush till it’s rectified. I’ve had tenants do this before it got fixed.
It isn't blocked, the flush mechanism is broken, googling around it seems that it's the flapper? But that part is housed in something that cannot be dismantled
I think you might have the old style flush, not button type. Theres a thin plastic diaphragm that pushes the water over to start the syphon, it flexes up when it returns. Eventually this wears out. You have dismantle quite a lot to replace.
The plumber is probably dealing with higher priorities. (No hot water example). We have had our plumber having to cancel as there were more urgent job. He did return and get stuff sorted. Just took a little longer.
Also, I really hope you didn't leave your tenants in this situation for as long. Yes it's inconvenient but would you be happy to deal with it for weeks? If you're penalised for not reporting issues promptly, they should be sorted promptly and necessary features should work properly
It absolutely should have been sorted within a few days. I don't think you can get a rent reduction.. but suggesting one might get them to pull their finger out.
Thankfully within the last hour it has been sorted. A guy just showed up out of the blue which was massively appreciated. The issue was as myself and handy dad suspected, the flapper thingy inside the casing within the cistern. The whole lot needed to be dismantled for it to be replaced
Crazy that you would say this. A home without a flushing toilet is not fit for habitation.
You can use a bucket of water to flush so you won’t be living with floaters. It’s not essential in that respect. Inconvenient for sure. Two weeks is a stretch too far I would say though.
A properly flushing toilet is absolutely an essential…
It's called a "repair and deduct".
I'd suggest you start your subject line with the word "complaint re:...."
Then state that if this is not fixed by the end of this week, which is a reasonable time considering how long it has already been, you will be obligated to start a repair and deduct process and reduce the next rent by the cost, of which you'll be happy to provide them with a receipt for the works.
This way worked with us a few weeks ago as we were without the shower for three weeks due to it leaking into the kitchen.
They quickly fixed it after that email, when I told the estate agent to remind the LL of their legal obligations and responsibilities.
Best of luck
Thanks, that sucks that your shower was buggered for so long and I'm glad it finally got sorted. I don't want to antagonise them as they're usually pretty good and I've been here for years, I just feel being left with a non working toilet for so long after reporting is unacceptable
Our AE has been pretty good too, but we've been here 1 year and we've had a gas engineer 3 times (2 to fix, 1 for certificate), three different plumbers on 6 different occasions and 2 inspections, so I was getting fed up with it all.
We're moving out soon so fingers crossed I won't have to deal with anything else again.
You are in your right to demand this fix. And sometimes you have to push a bit harder.
Edit: a repair and deduct is a legal process and allowed as long as they're in agreement. You are only using the term to instigate the repair, as this will kick them up the backside. You can check online.