Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Flexible and made to last.

Meet the Other Phone.
Flexible and made to last.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To Ask A Tenant To Wait Til Morning For An Electrician?

101 replies

MeantToStopAtTwo · 28/03/2011 21:58

It's nearly 10pm. Tenant (a youngish bachelor type who lives on his own) just rang to say he has lighting but the rest of the electrics are out. He'd like to have a power shower before he goes to bed and is worried about the stuff in his freezer. Can he call an emergency electrician out?

I told him no. He'll have to make do with a bath instead tonight and wait til morning. Unless of course he's prepared to pay the excess (over what an electrician's daytime rate would be) himself.

AIBU?

OP posts:
reddaisy · 28/03/2011 22:12

YANBU. We rent through an agent and we wouldn't even be able to get hold of them outside of office hours. And even then getting them to get the jobs done is a PITA. So YANBU, likes others have said check the fuse box before you call anyone out and then get the electrician out in the morning.

blackeyedsusan · 28/03/2011 22:13

I wouldn't call out n electrician in these circumstances if it was my house. keep the freezer closed and check the fuse box to see if it has tripped. Could you go over and see if you can sort the problem out? take a flask of hot water?

smokinaces · 28/03/2011 22:15

bilblio, surely a care home is slightly different though, with vunerable adults?

this guy would be perfectly fine with no electricity until the morning.

bilblio · 28/03/2011 22:15

For future issues it might be worth writing up a list of what you will call an emergency engineer out for (burst pipes, no water, gas leak etc) and what you'll wait till morning to sort out.

ballstoit · 28/03/2011 22:20

YANBU. I'm a tenant and I wouldnt call my landlord or agent for this. I have a friend who's an electrician who I would ring to check that I hadnt missed something stupid but otherwise would wait til the morning. But then I like my landlord and have a good deal on rent which I wouldnt want to lose.

I wonder if he'll be happy to pay if it turns out to be HIS electrical appliance that has caused the problem. Perhaps you could ask him before calling out at night rate? I think he may be happy to wait if you do.

jenga079 · 28/03/2011 22:21

YANBU. I wouldn't call an electrician out tonight for my own house. I'd have a bath and cold drinks tonight then wait until the morning to get it sorted.

It does sound like a fuse though. It teminds me of the time my DP called downstairs to tell me 'there's a powercut upstairs'. 'Um? Really? A powercut that just effects upstairs darling?' 'Yes' 'Have you checked the fusebox?' 'The what?' 'Nevermind, I'll do it...'

Have you been round to check yourself or got him to check?

bilblio · 28/03/2011 22:23

smokinaces - yes sorry, I'm tired and it came across wrong... I mean to put my second post in too.

Basically I think tenant is daft to even consider calling out an electrician at this time of night, he should just go to bed and sort it tomorrow.... but OP should put something together so the tenant knows what is considered an emergency and what isn't.

cricketballs · 28/03/2011 22:24

as a tenant I would expect that if I had lost electricity (and it was not the fuse box Smile) at any time then my landlord would either sort it out or refund the cost of me calling out an electrician. Theres a reason why we pay rent (which is more than a mortage would cost) and when you become a landlord than this is the responsability you have to stand up to.

MaisyMooCow · 28/03/2011 22:25

YABU There could be a serious electrical problem which could cause a fire.

Original poster
MeantToStopAtTwo · 28/03/2011 22:27

Thank you for your replies. I like the idea of a list of what constitutes an 'emergency.'

If it were my own house, I would wait until morning without a doubt, even with my three little ones here. I've just done some research and, as some of you have pointed out, freezer stuff will be fine for 12+ hours with the door shut. (I wouldn't like to think of that happening to my supply of frozen breastmilk but don't think that's an issue for this tenant!).

OP posts:
Skinit · 28/03/2011 22:29

What if he WANTS to open his freezer to get some food??

bigbeagleeyes · 28/03/2011 22:29

He's a single guy, it's late.
I'm Housing Association and when I call them they are excellent. But I don't consider this an emergency, and wouldn't dream of calling them out at this time of night for the sake of a power shower. The freezer will last till the morning too, has no one ever had a power cut?
We had one today btw for a few hours. I survived.

MrsSnow · 28/03/2011 22:31

YANBU simple. If it was his own house he would wait.

bubblecoral · 28/03/2011 22:32

YANBU

MaryThornbar · 28/03/2011 22:35

By law, you only have to get things fixed for a tenant at the same speed you would if you were living there yourself. In the case of failed gas or electricity supply, it would be deemed reasonable for it to take a few days.

ButWhyNot · 28/03/2011 22:35

YANBU. Not an emergency. Sort first thing in the morning.

wisecamel · 28/03/2011 22:39

YAB completely U because the point is that it is not his house, it is yours and he pays you rent every month so that you look after this kind of thing and he doesn't have to.

MaryThornbar · 28/03/2011 22:42

wisecamel - it's not a hotel! Tenants have a responsibility to look after the property as if it was their own, and landlords are not expected by law to fix things quicker than if they were living there themselves. It's completely unreasonable and unrealistic to expect a landlord to be available, let alone call out an out of hours electrician at this time of night, when it's not a real emergency.

PyjamaLlama · 28/03/2011 22:43

Firstly, I think you need to ring him back and just make sure he actually knows not to open his freezer door.

Then get him to check the "fuse box" (it will probably be a box with circuit breakers in them). The switches need to be in the up position. If any are down, then they have tripped and will need resetting (putting back to the up position).
If they they will not reset, he will need to unplug everything in the house - including fridge, freezer etc. Then try resetting circuit breaker. If this time it resets OK, he should then start plugging things back in, one by one, until it trips again - he will then know which electrical item causes it to trip. Hope it's not the freezer!

JaneS · 28/03/2011 22:49

YANBU. I'm a tenant and if my electrics went right now it wouldn't even occur to me I could call the landlord/an electrician. It's a first thing after 9am tomorrow job, sure, but not tonight, that's ridiculous!

mummylin2495 · 28/03/2011 22:49

i have just spoken to my dh who is an electrician and he says its probably the circuit breaker tripped or blown and just to push the button back in on the fuse box

Grevling · 28/03/2011 22:54

If it was me and my house I'd wait till morning.

If I was a tenant I'd want it fixed asap.

That money you take off him isn't just to fund your "investment" it is also meant to cover other things as well. Your not doing him a favour by living there its a business relationship.

How would you feel if he delayed payment to save himself a few quid?

readywithwellies · 28/03/2011 23:13

Bet its the tumble dryer. Damn tumble dryers

DancingThroughLife · 28/03/2011 23:16

Ready, my tumble dryer does that too! Freaked me out the first time it happened, twas at night too! I couldn't even find the drawer with the torch let alone the fuse box. Stayed in the pitch black all night (it happened about 8pm) and had a very early night.

OP, has he checked the fuse box?

JarethTheGoblinKing · 28/03/2011 23:21

"Firstly, I think you need to ring him back and just make sure he actually knows not to open his freezer door. "

She's not his Mum! Grin

Wink
Swipe left for the next trending thread