Repairs not done, has cost me.

[Tony Mac]

Hi everyone,

I'm new here so I'm hoping I have the right section for this. My name is Tony and I live just outside Aberdeen.

To my problem, in 1999 I accepted a brand new house from Grampian Housing Association. Lovely house that was perfect for me and my young family. The problem was that we really struggled to get enough hot water for a shower, never mind a bath.

My daughter was 6 months old when we moved here and then my son was born in 2000, so you can imagine how often we needed hot water.

We spoke to GHA to get an engineer to check the system and were told nothing was wrong. We continued complaining at least 3 times a year but were told the same every time.

Two weeks ago an engineer was out to do the annual service and he agreed that something was wrong. He stated that the other houses in my street cost between £10 and £15 a week in gas, but I have been paying at least £20 per week, usually closer to £25 (pre-pay meter).

So last week I finally got a new heating system installed, which does away with the hot water storage unit. When this was removed by the fitter we found that the tank had imploded. This meant that it was only holding enough water to fill a basin before the boiler kicked in. The engineer said this obviously happened before we moved in, so when/before it was installed.

So for almost 9 years I have been paying at least £5 a week more than I should have because of a fault that was not found, but reported continually.

Where do I stand for claiming the money back from the housing?

Would I be right in thinking that anything I claim from them they are within their rights to claim back from the engineers?

Anything you need me to expand on please just ask.

Oh, and since the new system was installed I have been getting nice hot, long showers and used less than £8 gas in 8 days.

Hope someone can help.

Thanks,

Tony

[locutus]

I have no idea on the legalities, just wanted to post a congrats on you not smelling anymore gotta agree that paying a conservative £10.00 per week extra for 9 years is a large sum of money and would (pardon the pun) make your blood boil. hope someone has some answers for you (I'm sure they will... they're very good on this site!)

Best of luck!

[Tony Mac]

Anyone???? Please

[callumsgran]

Not sure on the legalities on this either but will watch with interest as i am in a similar position.
We live in private rented accommodation and have been feeding our meters (prepay admittedly) £25 each per week throughout the winter because we do not have adequate heating, and old draughty wooden windows.
Landlord has been advised of this and we have asked him to make improvements which he has refused to do
We cannot afford to pay £595 a month rent and £200 a month just on electric and gas.

[Coastfodder]

Hi..

Im afraid I don't have an answer but I will be keeping an eye on this post.

We lived in a 4 bed property with faulty heating and we paid.£110.00 pcm in electrics and £118.00 PCM in gas.Our rent was £900 pcm..

I hope somebody can help you

[gemspan]

Hi there

Not sure on this but I have recently been having an argument with my landlord relating to ineffective and faulty heating. I spoke to Letwise and they advised that if the property is let with central heating then the central heating MUST work properly. Due to the fact that my central heating has not been working properly over the winter months I have had to pay an additional £750 in oil, that is together with a whole tank of oil. The bill will be somewhere around £1750!!!! And that is just for 6 months. I have advised the landlords twice by letter that the heating is not working properly and I finally got it fixed (somewhat!) 2 weeks ago - when the weather started getting better!!!

Letwise advised me that I could claim compensation because I have been financially affected by the lack of heating and also the fact that I have been paying rent when not getting what I was paying for.

Regarding your problem. Did you send a letter to complain? Do you have the dates of the visits from workmen who stated that the heating system was working properly? Also, have a look at The Private Rented Housing Panel website. Landlords have to adhere to certain standards. If you werent able to obtain hot water then I would think you have a good cause for complaint.

Good luck.

Gemspan

[callumsgran]

Update is that we have had a s21 served on us today so maybe we wont have to bother

[waterbottle]

Have you got the imploded boiler? Or proof of it being buggered? What you ideally need is proof for a court that:
1) The boiler has been buggered for some time and that this tallies with your past complaints
2) Proof of your past complaints

With these two things you may have a very good chance of getting the money back. Without proof they won't do a thing.

Also, they should have given you Corgi certificates every year. This is for Gas safety. Did anyone do this?

Can you explain your housing situation? Were you placed by the council with a private landlord? Or are you a council tenant?

[Tony Mac]

Originally Posted by waterbottle

Have you got the imploded boiler? Or proof of it being buggered? What you ideally need is proof for a court that:
1) The boiler has been buggered for some time and that this tallies with your past complaints
2) Proof of your past complaints

With these two things you may have a very good chance of getting the money back. Without proof they won't do a thing.

Also, they should have given you Corgi certificates every year. This is for Gas safety. Did anyone do this?

Can you explain your housing situation? Were you placed by the council with a private landlord? Or are you a council tenant?

The boiler was taken away by the engineers and I don't have records of any of the complaints. I'm sure the Housing Association would have records but I'm also sure they would suddenly be lost.

The house is rented from a private housing association, prior to this we had lived in a caravan and the council had nothing for us. The housing is classed as low income housing, although judging by some of the cars in the rest of the street I'm about the only one on low income

Thanks,

Tony

[waterbottle]

It would be worth calling the CLS and making a claim for legal aid to get some compensation.

Keep us posted about what's going on.

[Ed999]

As the o/p lives in Scotland, the English tenancy laws do not apply to him.

Legal Aid may not be available under Scottish law for this type of claim; and the CLS (Community Legal Service) scheme - the "legal aid" scheme mentioned - only extends to England and Wales.


Advice & opinions on this forum are offered informally, without any assumption of liability. Use your own judgment. Seek advice of a qualified and insured professional if you have any doubts.

[waterbottle]

But there must be provision for some sort of representation in Scotland...

[gemspan]

You can take the Landlords to court in Scotland but you probably wont get legal aid. Unfortunately, I am in a similar position and will have to foot the bill myself. Its only the small claims though so outlay is only £44