Repairs are prioritised into 3 levels:
Emergency - repairs required to avoid danger to health, a risk to the safety of residents or serious damage to buildings. These repairs will normally be attended to within 24 hours For example, water leaks that cannot be isolated or stopped/ accidental damage to structure that could cause further damage or injury such as damage caused by high winds
Urgent - These repairs will normally be attended to within seven days.
Non-urgent - All other repairs will normally be attended to within 30 working days.
Who is responsible for a repair?
We work hard to maintain your home in a good condition, however looking after your home is a joint responsibility with you.
Your responsibility:
As a tenant you are responsible for some minor repairs and maintenance that your home will need from time to time. This includes:
- Keeping your home in a reasonable and clean condition, which includes keeping the inside of your home in good decorative state.
- Blocked drains, waste pipes and sinks etc. We can attend to blockages but if it is the result of something that should not go down the drains (e.g. paper towels etc.), then the we will charge you for resolving. You are also responsible for the cleaning of the outlet of your shower on a regular basis to avoid blockage by hair or soap residue.
- Sheds or lean-to etc. Unless we have supplied and erected them, we are not responsible for their maintenance, including any associated drainage, electrics or other services to them. We are not responsible for the demolition and disposal of any shed or lean-to that you may have put up. Any repairs to your home as a result of the addition or removal of sheds will be your responsibility, or will be charged to you if someone needs to carry out the work.
- Light bulbs. We do not replace light bulbs, unless they are in communal areas.
- Boilers. If your boiler is ‘locked out’ because the oil tank is either empty or very low capacity, the cost of a us visiting will be charged to you. If a boiler is faulty because of being tampered with, or because it has not been serviced because it is not accessible, you will be charged for any repairs carried out by us.
- Locks, keys bolts, door and window handles etc. If any of these items are broken through misuse then the cost to provide replacements will be charged to you. Key replacement is also charged to tenants.
- Vegetation, trees and shrubs etc. Excessive growth must be controlled by tenants, especially where we need access to maintain boundaries, boilers and oil tanks and so on. If we have to carry out the clearance, the cost will be charged to you.
- Boundary fencing. If fencing is erected, damaged or removed by a tenant then any maintenance costs will be your responsibility
- Paths, paving slabs or decking. If these have been laid by you then they are your responsibility
- Internal doors. If you have replaced them then they are your responsibility.
- Pest control. This is your responsibility. But we will carry out remedial work to stop pests getting into your home. So for instance we will fill gaps or holes in your property, unless you caused them.
- Removal and disposal of rubbish items. This is your responsibility. If we do it we will recharge you.
Our responsibility:
We will only repair or replace items that have become faulty through fair wear and tear and not through the fault of, or misuse by, the tenant.
As a Registered Social Landlord we have a duty to carry out certain repairs and maintenance and to keep properties in a safe condition; this includes:
- Roof, guttering and external pipes
- Outside walls, doors, window frames and other external timbers (including external painting)
- Pathways, steps or other means of access
- Internal walls, floors and ceilings and doors and door frames
- Skirting and thresholds (but not internal painting and decoration)
- Garages and external stores
- Water pipes, gas pipes and electrical wiring
- Basins, sinks, baths, toilets, flushing systems and waste pipes
- Water heaters, boilers, fireplaces, warm air heaters and radiators
- Sockets and light fittings
Access to properties
It is your responsibility to tell us when repairs are needed and you must allow reasonable access to your home for the work to be done.
If your home is supplied with gas we have a legal responsibility to check the safety of the installation and our appliances at least once every 12 months. We can take legal action if you do not provide access when reasonably requested.
You must be in your home when maintenance visits are being carried out.
Recharges
We will bear the cost of repairs and maintenance that are part of our responsibility as a Registered Social Landlord, or those resulting from fair wear and tear. We will charge you the cost of the work involved in any repairs or maintenance that result from a lack of care, inappropriate use, intentional damage, accidental damage that could have been avoided, or neglect.
Smoking laws
Due to the smoking laws, we ask you not to smoke in your home for one hour before a booked maintenance visit.
Broken windows
We will repair broken glass and cracked windows where the damage is caused by fair wear and tear. But you will have to pay for damage caused by an accident, or deliberate action.
We strongly advise tenants to make sure that their home contents insurance policies cover replacement of damaged glass.
Where damage to glazing is the result of criminal damage we will request a crime reference number from you before arranging repair work. When you report the incident to the police please ensure that you record their reference number.
Annual servicing
We have a legal obligation to inspect and service any gas equipment in your home, such as your central heating boiler, once a year (Gas Safety Regulations 1998, as amended). We will always give you reasonable notice when access is required. But, if after making reasonable efforts to arrange access, we are still unable to do so, we may need to gain access in your absence.
We will tell you if this is going to happen, and you may be liable for costs if we have to take formal action to obtain access.
Condensation
Condensation is caused by steam or water vapour turning to water on cold surfaces. It is like an invisible ‘bubble’ of water that is moving around the building, trying to find a way out through a window or air vent. If it hits a cold surface the ‘bubble’ bursts causing condensation which can lead to mould. Mould can damage clothes, bedding, floor coverings, decorations, walls and ceilings.
To deal with condensation you should take the following steps:
- Leave windows and internal doors open whenever possible
- Leave the vents to your windows open
- Keep kitchen and bathroom doors closed when cooking or bathing and leave your extractor fans on
- Leave a space between large pieces of furniture and external walls
- Do not overfill your cupboards, as this stops air circulating
- Avoid drying clothes indoors
- Do not use loft/roof space for storage
- Cover pans when cooking and don’t leave kettles boiling
- If you install a tumble drier ensure that it is either a condenser type or is directly ventilated to the outside
- To minimise your plaster cracking keep your house at an even temperature and allow your house to heat up gradually.
