Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Flip

1 2 3 4

Original poster

to think we are not the landlord's servants?

86 replies

grumpytenant · 09/04/2011 19:07

We rent a house, including a washing machine.
On my due date (I am now 40+2) the washing machine broke.
DP called the landlord, couldn't get hold of him, called his son, who can contact his father abroad, blah blah, complete palaver, anyway the long & the short of it is 12 hours later the son turned up to have a fiddle with the washing machine. (We can't just call an engineer because then the landlord won't pay for it.)

He arrived in the middle of dinner time and then co-opted DP into spending 4 hours messing about trying to fix it (doing all the normal stuff we had done already, reading the manual etc), fetching buckets, moving things around, etc. I knew he wouldn't fix it but also knew his dad is too tight to call a pro until he had put his son through all this. DP was knackered before all this started.

Eventually he left, too late to do anything or call anyone, saying he would get an engineer the next day. So: beautiful washing day wasted, no resolution, wasted evening that DP had earmarked for other stuff, and spent chasing around after someone else (while I admittedly sat on my extremely large arse and finished my dinner)

AIBU to think that if you are renting a house you are paying the landlord to sort this shit out, and that if he is too tight to just call a pro to fix the washing machine, he should at least get his son to bring his own helper to fiddle pointlessly about with it?

OP posts:

Original poster

grumpytenant · 10/04/2011 11:22

I think he should / could have said no. but I can't quite see how this would work.

"can you just give me a hand pulling out the washing machine?"
"no sorry, I'm having my dinner. It's your washing machine, you sort it, and quickly because we're paying you for the use of it"
"I can't budge it on my own"
"not my problem"

Really?

OP posts:

JaneS · 10/04/2011 12:22

YANBU. I'm obviously more of a cow that grumpy because I've sat calmly working at my desk while they get on with stuff around me ... wouldn't occur to me to offer to help as I know it's up to them and they know it's up to them. I make them tea, though.

I'm pretty about him taking 4 hours to work out it wasn't simple - come on, that's pushing it!

TattyDevine · 10/04/2011 12:30

OP, agree with your example above about not helping him pull it out.

I reckon he could have got out of the rest at some point though - I mean, 4 hours?!?

"Do you have a bucket?"
"Um, actually, no, we dont mate, sorry" instead of going out to the shed to get one.

"Sorry mate, anyway, I better let you get on with it, let us know how you get on".

That kind of thing. If you keep doing that and giving the absolute minimum (all in a polite but slightly evasive manner, and just curiously miffed if the landlord's son gets irritated) then it probably wouldn't have gone on so long. Its not that he shouldnt' necessarily help - just 4 hours is crazy. I'd give about 20 minutes of my time happily enough for mutual benefit - but not 4 hours.

It is hard though, I know.

EricNorthmansMistress · 10/04/2011 12:37

YANBU in that you are 9 months pregnant but in every other respect YABU I'm afraid.

I have reported things broken twice when in fact it was something very obvious and simple. The first time I had to pay for the callout. If the LL had sent someone round to check it first I would have been very grateful as it would have avoided either of us paying for it! Our current LLs are an older couple with a retirement investment, not professional LLs and I'm more than happy for them to pop in if there is a problem to see if they can sort it before they send the contractor round. I don't want them to spend money for noting. Of course if it's an immediate issue then not - but a broken washing machine is not an emergency, You were lucky to have it fixed in two days!

Washing machines are also usually 'extras' and not part of your contract so unless your tenancy specifically states that they must maintain the washing machine, he could have left it for weeks or not bothered at all.

SugarPasteFrog · 10/04/2011 17:59

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

nijinsky · 10/04/2011 18:03

YABU. You got the washing machine fixed within 2 days. I don't think I could get an engineer out to my own washing machine faster. Its up to your DP whether he helped or not - some men just cannot resist the temptation to fiddle. It might have been something very simple wrong with it, and your landlord sent someone round to check it within 12 hours.

Nancy66 · 10/04/2011 18:12

think you're being a bit OTT - if you're a home owner and have a washing machine it will usually take a few days to get it sorted.

You can always handwash, use a launderette. A couple of days without a washing machine is not the end of the world.

Tenants are always quick to want to call for engineers/replacements/repairs because they don't have to pay for them.

JaneS · 10/04/2011 18:51

I've never had or heard of a tenancy where the washing machine was an 'extra'! And we live in a place without central heating atm, so not exactly luxury lets.

SugarPasteFrog · 10/04/2011 19:14

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Original poster

grumpytenant · 10/04/2011 19:30

"Tenants are always quick to want to call for engineers/replacements/repairs because they don't have to pay for them."

They are quick to want to call for engineers because they are paying for the use of the thing that is now broken, ie, useless. If the landlord doesn't want to pay for the engineers, then don't own the appliances, let them out and try to make money off them. You can't have it both ways.

Actually I feel slightly in credit by the number of YANBUs I got on here because I thought there would be a strong, aggrieved, second-property, buy-to-let demographic on mn who would be all "well you should buy your own house then you low-life, anyone who rents property is scum who deserves to be ripped off by the mortgaged classes". Surprised by how reasonable those of you who are landlords are! Thank you for reaffirming faith in humanity.

Still no baby by the way. Think it is phantom pregnancy.

OP posts:

Nancy66 · 10/04/2011 20:21

it was fixed in two days though....not quite sure why you should feel like 'servants'

EricNorthmansMistress · 10/04/2011 20:43

LRD every single let I've had through a letting agent has been without a washingmachine. The only places that have had them have been private LLs that I knew personally.

JaneS · 10/04/2011 20:57

How odd. I am thinking of furnished lets as SPF says, so maybe that is it.

I've always felt one of the benefits of renting is that if an appliance like the washing machine goes, it may not be repaired or replaced straight away, but you know it will get replaced in the end. I'll remember to look out for contracts that are written differently in future though.

grumpy - you'll have us checking back for a labour thread!

Original poster

grumpytenant · 10/04/2011 21:10

Nancy66 - feeling like servants because fetching and carrying for him.

It is very simple: if it were my washing machine I would be free to use my own time and / or labour to fix it, or pay someone else to fix it, or ask (eg) a neighbour or a friend to give a little help on the basis that it's a reciprocally friendly relationship, they can refuse if not convenient and it's just part of being on non-commercial good terms with people. End result: I have used my resources to fix my property. However, when the landlord (or his representative) comes over and uses up hours of your time rather than calling in paid help or making use of his own friendly non-commercial relationships, then he is taking the piss because he is using your time and labour to maintain his property which he is simultaneously charging you for the use of. Get it?

OP posts:

Original poster

grumpytenant · 10/04/2011 21:14

LRD - I think anything the landlord lets with the house - leaves in the house when you take possession of it - is implicitly being let to you with it and therefore it is up to him to maintain it in working order.
there may be ways of introducing clauses to exclude things but I am not familiar with this.
A landlord who doesn't want to do this should remove every single thing and let the place unfurnished.
Often they want to have it both ways - they want to leave a 5 year old washing machine in the place, rather than pay to store it somewhere or have it removed, they want it to feature on the inventory ie they still own it, they would like to use it as a bargaining point when it comes to rent, but as it is not new they realise it won't last for ever and would like to wriggle out of having to deal with it if / when it breaks down. Sadly (for them) this is against the law.

OP posts:

pingu2209 · 10/04/2011 23:22

Is your tenancy for a furnished or unfurnished property? If it is unfurnished, they don't have to fix the washing machine. I rented about 2 years ago and found this out this little gem to my cost. Our dishwasher broke down, the landlord said that as we rented unfurnished he didn't have to provide a dishwasher (or washing machine/fridge/freezer etc). The fact he did was a bonus, but if it broke he didn't have to fix it.

EricNorthmansMistress · 11/04/2011 07:42

Yep Pingu has it. I don't know about the cooker TBH but every single other appliance is considered extra.

SillyHat · 11/04/2011 08:48

YANBU

Ok for him to send his son round to ensure that it wasn't something obvious -but that should have taken 20 mins MAX and your DH should not have got involved beyond that.

pingu2209 · 11/04/2011 10:12

Still, the fact is the landlord on an unfurnished property does not need to fix the washing machine at all. It is just a bonus and if it breaks he does not need to fix it.

JaneS · 11/04/2011 10:18

I may be being thick, but surely furnished/unfurnished is actually a red herring then? I had no idea unfurnished places came with anything at all, myself. But if they come with a washing machine and it's on the inventory ... what else would you do but expect it to be fixed?

Sorry, I'm slightly hijacking it's just DH and I are thinking we might move and I've never had an unfurnished let and it sounds as if it works very differently. On furnished lets anything mentioned on the inventory has to be maintained and kept working or replaced; anything not on the inventory, it's up to the tenant to chuck or keep.

bibbitybobbityhat · 11/04/2011 10:26

Erm, well, others have said it but ... you are complaining because you couldn't use your washing machine in this recent spell of good drying weather? How would you have felt if it had been peeing with rain? What would you have done if it had been your washing machine? Probably called an engineer and had to wait a couple of days for an appointment ...

TheSmallClanger · 11/04/2011 10:31

Threads like this make me glad that our landlord lives abroad and allows us to sort our own problems out, within agreed price limits.

Having the son come and piss about with the washing machine for 4 hours would have annoyed me, as well.

pingu2209 · 11/04/2011 13:04

LittleRedDragon and Grumpytenant, many private LL rent their houses as officially 'unfurnished' in that there are no beds, settees etc. But many leave washing machines, microwaves or dishwashers etc for the exact reason you stated, that they don't want to pay to have it removed or stored somewhere.

However, there is no precedent or law stating that anything left is implicitly being let to you with it and therefore it is up to your LL to maintain it in working order. The law is purely the contract terms. If a white good breaks down the LL is doing you a favour by fixing it.

The washing machine may well be on the inventory along with say some curtains in the lounge etc. However, just as it is on the inventory does not mean the LL has to fix it, it just means you have to give it back in the same condition.

So if you do something that breaks a white good, then you have to fix it but if the item breaks down through no fault of your own/old age, then the LL does not have to fix it - just remove it.

BettySwollocksandaCrustyRack · 11/04/2011 13:31

YANBU to be a bit annoyed but really 2 days......thats actually quite good.

Ryoko - I am a Landlord, believe me, tenants get away with far more than we can........we have hardly any rights to our properties believe me!

BettySwollocksandaCrustyRack · 11/04/2011 13:32

...and that is precisely why I would never rent my property out with any fixtures - he would have been better off not supplying a washing machine at all !

Flip

1 2 3 4

Swipe left for the next trending thread