AIBU - landlords contacting guarantor when they can't get hold of the tenant?

[WeAreEternal]

I am a guarantor for a family member.

I have recently been receiving a lot of calls from the landlords (it's a company) when they cant get hold of the tenant and its starting to get annoying.

A few weeks ago sa problem arose in the flat which needs repairing ASAP, the tenant (my family member) called the LLs and tried to arrange someone to come and do the repair, the LL have apparently been pretty useless and are only now arranging sorting it out, except they have struggled to get hold of the tenant, apparently she does not answer their calls or return messages and as the repair is an urgent one they are starting to get annoyed about it.
They initially called me to say that they haven't been able to get hold of her, and they need to access the flat to do the repair, I passed on the message and the tenant contacted them and left a message telling them when they could come, but the LLs wanted to arrange a different time, so called me to get the twnant to contact them, as it worked the first time.
It has gotten worse and now they are calling me virtually daily to pass messages to the tenant as she doesn't answer her phone. I understand that the repair is an urgent one, but I don't see how it has anything to do with me.

AIBU to think that they shouldn't be calling me?
I am a guarantor, my responsibility is to ensure that she pays the rent, not to be the LLs messenger.

[Mintyy]

Yanbu. But why is the tenant not answering their calls?

[primallass]

I think your gripe should be with the tennant.

[PrettyKitty1986]

Yanbu, but from the pov of the landlord...

If it truly was something urgent (like something that would cause damage to my property if left undone) then I would use any means possible to contact the tenant.

Saying that, after a few tries, if the tenant was truly i uncontactable then I'd be letting myself in and cracking on regardless. Then probably giving my tenant notice.

I think any anger should be directed at the tenant. They're an adult, why can't they answer the phone or pick up and respond to their voicemails?

[MidniteScribbler]

Then tell the tenant to answer their bloody phone.

[sleeplessbunny]

Try not being so helpful. They will soon stop calling if it isn't getting them the result they need.

The tenant should really answer her calls but that's hardly your problem.

[LineRunner]

Why will the tenant answer the phone to you but not to the LL, given that the tenant asked for the repair to be carried out in the first place?

[WeAreEternal]

I am a landlord myself, so I do sympathise with them, but it still annoys me.

I don't think she is ignoring them intentionally, or she says she isn't.
She works and has young children so is pretty busy, and when I call her she says she hasn't heard from them.
At first she suggested that they may have the wrong number, but I checked and they do have the right number for her.

[LineRunner]

If she will pick the phone up to you and not the LL then she is being silly.

[Fookinell]

Is the number they are calling a landline or mobile number?, if it`s a landline and she has a mobile then give them that number, but stop being so available.

[MalcolmTuckersMum]

Seriously - save your irritation for the tenant and the fact that she is choosing not to hear or answer her phone. Suggested they may have the wrong number? Oh please. She's playing silly buggers at your expense.

[wannabedomesticgoddess]

I have had this happen, only I was the tenant.

The LL didnt even try to get in contact with me, but they said they did to my guarantor.

[Optimist1]

The landlord is obviously doing his/her best to minimise the consequences of not attending to what is an urgent repair. It makes sense for him/her to try to contact the tenant through you when calls go unanswered, but I can understand it's annoying for you.

PrettyKitty's suggestion that the landlord just let him/herself in makes a lot of sense, but I'm not sure of the legalities of that.

As everyone else has said, the tenant is the one your annoyance should be directed at. Tell her in no uncertain terms that she must communicate direct.

[LineRunner]

Why can't the tenant call the LL directly herself, instead of waiting to be contacted by the LL, anyway? She's the one who wanted the repair.

Tell her to grow up call them herself and sort it out.

[LineRunner]

Oh and no you are not being unreasonable to be annoyed about the situation.

[DarkWinter]

She's playing silly buggers in that case. Is there a chance she's behind in the rent, and that's why she's avoiding calls?

[yamsareyammy]

My guess is that this is your DD you are talking about.
Why oh why cant you get her to sort it out.
I understand it is annoying for you, and I have no idea if he is allowed to do it, but you should be careful who you are a guarantee for.
because if she cant be bothered to sort it all out, you may have even bigger problems when or if she choose not to pay her rent..

[yamsareyammy]

You almost definitely have a copy of the piece of paper that you signed saying you would be a guarantor.
Have a look at that if you want and see what it says.

But quite frankly, that is not your real problem.
And dont you want the repair problem to be sorted?

[MildDrPepperAddiction]

Tell her to answer her phone or to call them herself. She also needs to tell them it is not appropriate to contact you. It sounds like its her fault but I can appreciate its annoying.

[WeAreEternal]

It's not my DD no (I only have one DC and he is only 6), it's just someone I know and trust.

She has a good job and is definitely not behind on her rent. The only reason she needed a guarantor is because she was 24 when she signed the tenancy agreement two years ago and the LLs policy is anyone under 25 must have a guarantor.
I know her well enough to know that she is comfortable financially.

The tenant has contacted the LLs directly, but she only calls and leaves voicemails, she never speaks to a person and isn't answering/receiving their calls, which appear entry means making arrangements for the repair impossible as they want to chat about it for some reason.

[LineRunner]

Perhaps her next voicemail message could be, 'This is my mobile number. Please always use this number and I will answer it. Please also text me a mobile number where I can contact you directly. Do not bother WeAreEternal again as that is not appropriate. Thank you.'

[yamsareyammy]

Well at least now that she is 26, you no longer need to be her guarantor.

[LisasCat]

We've had this exact situation, but we're the tenants. The one time the letting agent couldn't get hold of me (I think my phone was out of battery or something) they rang our neighbour, who also rents from them. She came and told me, I called them back, job done.

Next time they needed me they rang her first. And the next time. I never had a missed call or a message. It seemed they had just updated their contact details to make her number the primary contact.

Eventually we both told them that if they rang her again and it was something to be passed on to me, she would not pass the message. The fact that we see each other daily is irrelevant, she is not my secretary.

So no, you are not being unreasonable, yes, you should tell them to pack it in, and no, to all the people above immediately assuming the tenant is some dodgy/lazy so-and-so, letting agents have form for this ridiculous behaviour.

[ReindeerBollocks]

Actually if your friend is not behind on her rent then the LL shouldn't be contacting you. I thought a guarantor was only really for ensuring payment could be obtained from either the tenant or the guarantor, not for when the LL needs to contact the tenant about property matters.

Although it would be wise if your friend actually answered her phone when they called, otherwise how does she think the repair will be possible?

[WeAreEternal]

As the TA is stil valid I will continue to be the guarantor until the TA ends or a new one is set up. (I checked).

That is what I have always thought Raindeer, a guarantor is to guarantee the rent will be paid if the tenant fails to pay it, nothing else.

I don't really know why they can't contact her, I cant see any reason why she would ignore their calls, and I am sure that she does want the repair carried out, she did call them in the first place after all.
I communicate with her mostly via text message, but I do know that the village where she lives has bad signal, so it is possible that could have something to do with it, I'm pretty sure she has a landline though.

[allmycats]

The problem is with the person who will not answer their phone. If I was the Landlord I would have written to them by now saying 'please contact me on (phone/fax/email) to arrange a time to discuss/carry out the job which you have asked me/us to carry out - if no communication is received within the next 10 working days then we will assume that the job is no longer necessary'