Eho visit/hhsrs

[Satterthwaite]

My son and his mate have been renting a flat since April last year.

 

Apparently they have various problems since they moved, dodgy sockets, boiler keeps breaking down, broken bed, leaky roof.damp & mould.

 

They have reported these problems (not in writing) somebody has been out several times to fix the boiler. Decorators came when they first got the flat but went away without doing anything.

 

This was all brought to a head just after Christmas when my son felt ill and went to hospital and diagnosed with pleurisy.

 

I have got involved and formally written to the landlord and his agents detailing all the faults.

 

A roofer came and fixed the leak, so the agents phoned to say that they will give the flat time to dry then re decorate.

 

The other lads girlfriends dad is a builder, he came and had a look on sunday and in his opinion it was that bad the walls needed taking back to the brick and re plastering.

 

I have been reading on here and other places about get the council EHO to do a Health & Safety Rating report. I think it would be good to get one done as I have no faith in the landlord sorting the problems and clearly there are dangers in the flat that need addressing as soon as possible.

 

I contacted the council just to see what we would need to do to get them round this was the reply

 

"Our officers can only get involved when the occupier has contacted the landlord with details of his complaints and given him 28 days to rectify the problems. If the landlord does not deal with the repairs he may then contact us and one of our officers would then liaise with the landlord to get the works that are needed done"

 

I was hoping they would attend ASAP because of the state of the flat. With regards to the 28 days I have not seen this quoted anywhere else, could that be this particular councils procedure? Is there anyway I can get them to come sooner.

 

I obviously will ask them this question but would like the views of people on here.

 

Thanks for reading.

[Steve__M]

Can't comment on the council (might be they are short of budget - but then again it is not an unreasonable requirement).

 

Why does the builder-dad think the walls need to be replastered? Plaster that gets wet can become hygroscopic (it absorbs water from the air) so may remain permanently damp. So he may be right, but only time will tell.

 

Alternatively, removing plaster to the brick and re-rendering is a hugely disruptive and filthy process.

 

One way that might reduce issues is to reduce moisture in the house: for your son to ensure the house is kept warm, to not dry washing in the house, to cover pans when cooking, to wipe down condensation off windows each morning, to use extractor fans (or open windows) in the bathroom etc.

 

Could you get the LL to provide a dehumidifier to help dry the house - it may be hard for it to dry in this terrible weather. I just bought one for about £130 to help with a damp issue, and they don't seem too expensive to run.

[Satterthwaite]

Steve, thanks for the advice, will suggest a dehumidifier to LL

[Lookingforjustice]

Tenants are able to apply for Energy savings grants on property which would include boilers and insulation. Take a look at Money Savings Experts page on Insulation and grants. A tenant would be eligible where the landlord would not. Some tenants feel are so anti the landlord they would rather put up with the inconvenience than as they see it get the landlord a free boiler! It doesn't make sense to me. In my opinion your son should talk to the landlord and maybe if they can get the grant the landlord can concentrate on getting the other things put right. Your son will be the beneficiary of any energy savings costs in the house and hopefully have a grateful landlord on side.

 

As Steve says damp is often caused by tenants through not airing a house properly in winter and wiping up condensation although it does seem there was a leak in this case.

 

If you can get the problems cleared up now, this being the lads first winter in the property then at least they can expect no boiler breakdowns next year and to be able to do their best not to contribute to any damp problems.

 

Even though the lads didn't report the problems in writing it does appear the landlord has attempted to resolve the problem. A family member of mine is desperately trying to resolve a damp issue which only became apparent this winter, the cause of which has so far alluded them in their own house. It is I'm afraid a case of doing the repair you believe has caused the problem but sometimes it does turn out to be more complicated and requires more than initially thought.

[Lookingforjustice]

Sorry that reads wrong, it appears the landlord has appeared to resolve the problem but only time will tell if the repair undertaken was the source of the damp problem.

[Satterthwaite]

L F J, thanks for input. I don't think they would qualify for a free boiler they earn 30k a year between them.

 

It does seem the LL is addressing the damp problem.

 

No sign of them looking at the electrics though, there is a socket with a red sticker over it that has been there since they moved in.