Ok, thank you very much for the additional information. More flexbile than I was with him wouldn't be possible... (as mentioned, he hasn't announced not once before he came into my flat, and I have never sent him away, I always let him to do why he came. I didn't even took further steps when he came into the flat when I was not there, although the handymen broke one of my chairs. I think I was a bit too flexible with this guy, and he lost completely respect. For this reason I was seeking here legal advice, because if I keep only politely reminding him, unfortunately he will continue not to take me serious. ) I guess no reasonable tenant would question to let in the landlord in your absence if there is really an emergency! Kind regards Karin ps. sorry for my English, it is not my mother tongue ;-)

Great - that's what I am going to do... Beside of the unnanounced regular visits around the clock, he is also extremely slow (I am talking here about months, and even up to more than one year) in doing outstanding, necessary repairs. I hope this all can now be sorted out in the near future. Btw, it might be interesting for other tenants who are in a similar situation - I found some information regarding the 'emergency legislation' to enter the flat without prior consent/in the absence of the tenant. "In the event of an emergency the landlord has the right to enter without notice, but the leaseholder’s consent is still required. It is important to remember that the power to enter without notice in an emergency does not allow the landlord to force entry to the premises if the leaseholder is not there or refuses to allow access. If the landlord were to force entry in these circumstances it would be in breach of its covenant in the lease to allow the leaseholder to “peaceably enjoy the premises”. This would leave the landlord open to potential legal action by the leaseholder on the basis that it had breached the terms of the lease and could result in liability for trespass or even, potentially, criminal liability. What happens in an emergency? Forcing entry represents a risk even where it is an emergency. Although most leases dispense with the requirement to give the leaseholder reasonable prior written notice in an emergency, the leaseholder must still authorise access otherwise the landlord will be in breach of its covenants to allow the leaseholder quiet enjoyment of his or her home. Following unauthorised entry, the leaseholder could take legal action, which could result in the landlord being found civilly and/or criminally liable as a result. A situation is likely to be considered an emergency where: • there is immediate threat from the disrepair to the health and safety of other residents, or other people such as residents and occupiers of other properties in the locality (for example a gas leak); •there is an immediate threat from the disrepair to the structure of the building in which the premises are located or a neighbouring building (for example a gas leak or burst water tank)." Source: wslaw.co.uk Kind regards Karin

Hi Nightmare4banks Thank you very much for your fast reply and friendly welcome. I have told him several times that I would like to receive 24 hours notice, but he just keeps ignoring this request. Further to him, UK law says emergency repairs can be done by the landlord without giving prior 24 hours notice to the tenant. For this reason he declared all those unannounced visits as 'emergency repairs' (which they definitely weren't). Is this correct, does a law like this really exist? If yes, is there somewhere outlined what is the definition of an emergency? I am thinking about sending him a formal, polite letter to remind him of the legal situation, but: A. I am worried he will end my tenancy. B. I don't know what I really should state in this letter to be effective – and I am also not sure if I have to copy in the letter the real landlord (owner of the property) or if it just should be sent to this 'senior handyman'. C. The owner of this property, as I was told, owns a law firm. (The properties are only some investments for him, for this reason he is not dealing with the tenants and delegates everything to the handymen.) I feel intimated to 'take on' the mentioned handyman, since I have no knowledge about the legal situation here in the UK and fear to be walked over by one of the lawyers of the owner. Many thanks in advance. Karin

Hi My landlord unfortunately also has the habit to show up without any notice - (preferably on weekends in the morning), or also had already entered the flat in my absence! (furniture was moved, footprints were on the floor and a housemate has witnessed this.) Since he seems to be aware of the 24 notice period, with exception of emergencies, he states everytime that the reason for the unannounced visit would be an emergency. This happens about 3-4 times a year - and it had definitely never been an emergency... Just as an example, once it was because I kept telling him for 1.5 years that if I take a shower the water keeps flooding from the bathroom to the other end of the studio flat - I had to dry up the floor every morning! (He kept telling me to fix it, but nothing happened - phonecalls and voicemails just kept being ignored...) After 1.5 years this was finally done, but declared as an emergency. The same procedure happened regarding some leaking water pipes I keep telling him to fix for ages. The real reason for his unnanounced visits are, that he is completely not organised and seems not to be able to plan anything in advance. He always states that he, and the other handymen he is sending over, have such a long way from outside of London. If I am not agreeing with this, he starts intimidating me telling me it would be really inappropriate for me to send him or the handymen away. (He is a pretty big Greek guy and the other handymen are tall Polish who seem aggressive as well.) The other issue is, that I don't have a rental contract - I signed one in May 2006 for 12 months. I really would like to have another contract, but he doesn't want to give me any, since his argument is that if he has to make a new one, then he has to go up with the rent. Obviously this is absolute nonsense, and I keep myself asking what could be the reason for not giving me, nor the other tenants in this house (6 parties, studio flats) a new contract. Maybe I should clarify, that the person I am dealing with is not the real landlord, he is the 'senior handyman', the real owner I don't know personally and don't even have his full name (I tried to find out, but wasn't successful). The reason why I am not moving out is that I like the flat and the area I live in a lot and would feel pretty sad to leave this place only because of this guy - but I really start to consider this, since I really feel uncomfortable due to this disturbance in my privacy. (The last time it happened was this evening, it was 8pm and I was already in the pijama lying in my bed, and half of the flat with my fresh washed clothes hung up! And somebody knocking at my door asking to get in. I refused, since I knew it was not an unforeseen emergency. Immediately this 'senior handymen' called me and told me in a very rude way off, that I should immediately let in this guy. I asked to have this arranged for tomorrow morning, but he absolutely insisted it has to be done right now... so I could negotiate 30 mins. with him, so at least I could get dressed and tidy up a bit the laundry that was hunging up to dry.) Since this is about the 10th times this has happened, and speaking to him in a nice way doesn't show any success, I would like to ask for help what I can do against this situation since I feel very uncomfortable. I really would greatly appreciate your help on this matter. Thank you for reading all this! Kind regards Karin P.S sorry for my English, but it is not my mother tongue