AIBU to ask here what to do for tenants?

[whateveryousay]

Yes, I know I am, but posting for traffic really.
So I own a flat which I rent out to a family. I have not ever actually met them, as they were found via an agent, but they are good tenants, and I want to be a good landlord.
The issue is that the communal door to the flats keeps getting deliberately broken, from the inside, causing it to not close properly. The management company send someone out to repair it, but within 24hrs it is vandalised again.
My tenants have had buggies vandalised, (they leave buggies and bikes locked in communal area just inside communal entrance, as the flat is up a few flights of stairs).
They have seen rough sleepers in there, vomit in the stairwells, and cigarette butts and general mess.
The final straw was their bikes being stolen yesterday. This is clearly not acceptable, but as their landlord, beyond chasing the management company to keep repairing the door, what else can I do? Should I be contacting the police? My tenants did so yesterday about the bikes, but the police weren’t very interested, they wouldn’t come out to see them.
Wwyd?? Thank you!

Could you ask the management company to install cctv?

I would be contacting the police.

Also it's not solving the problem but a letter to your tenants apologising for their distress and telling them you're trying to sort it out would do the world of good in making them feel like they aren't being ignored.

Thank you! I will write the letter now.
I did suggest cctv to the management company, but the person that I spoke to said that they ‘thought it would be too expensive’. I did point out that sending out an engineer to repair the door on a daily basis was going to get fairly costly too 🤔 They suggested I contact the police myself.
So I will also contact the non-emergency police number.
Who should I be pushing to resolve this? The police, or the management company? I’m happy to be an annoying pita on behalf of the tenants, but not sure who I should be chasing for results.

No one seems to know who is vandalising the door. I’m assuming that it’s whoever is sleeping rough in there (it’s a rabbit warren including the fire escapes) but I could be wrong.

I'd push the management company, because the police will only do the minimum when it's a relatively minor crime (I know it's not minor for the tenants but unfortunately the police aren't very interested in minor thefts and vandalism) but it still needs documenting in case it escalates.

Do the management company allow things to be left in the communal area? I live within a similar set up and our communal spaces are maintained by the council. They do not allow things to be left in the hallways as they need to be clear to exit in am emergency and cam also be a h&s risk. We do have sheds/garages in which to keep such items though.

Although they may be good tenants it sounds like your property is not suitable for them unless you can make it so by providing something/somewhere in which to store such items.

Perhaps the management company need to get a better door, rather than repairing the existing one. I would direct them to complain there rather than to you actually, as you can’t do anything about this.

There isn’t much you can do, it isn’t your fault or your responsibility that they keep having things stolen. It sounds like it’s not practical for them to take the items upstairs to their flat, but if I was living somewhere with that problem I certainly wouldn’t leave my property somewhere I knew it would be vulnerable like that.

If the management company do allow items to be kept in communal spaces then they surely are responsible for keeping it secure so you would have good reason to follow this up with them.

I would see if it’s possible to change the door to one that isn’t as easy to vandalise and leave open. I assume the people vandalising it are the rough sleepers who want it open so they can sleep in there.

Which floor are your tenants on? I would personally be especially worried if I lived on the ground floor. Could you ask other leaseholders to back you in installing CCTV.

Your management company are failing to act responsibly in keeping the property safe for residents, for keeping the property in good repair. Do you pay your insurance to the management company can you check how much extra it's costing due to break-ins in terms of insurance and repair bills. This would allow a comparison against the cost of installing CCTV.

Good luck as it's an unsatisfactory situation and you might need to leaflet drop other flats to gain support.

I had a similar situation as a tenant with anti social behaviour in the area and my neighbour being the prime contributor. It was hell, fights at all hours, damaged property, scared DC and the police a bit shoulder shruggy. I knew there wasn't a lot my LL could do, but he was amazing.
He chased the neighborhood policing team over and over until they finally got involved, he complained to the council repeatedly and he kept me in the loop. So I got updated every time he spoke to anyone, and their response. He also installed extra security on the doors and yard gate and for an outbuilding that was in the yard. He also spoke to other LL in the area who's tenants were affected and got them to do the same as him. They had to push hard but they did get a local police and council response eventually.
It made me feel better knowing he was fighting my corner too and wanted the situation resolved as much as I did without me having to move.
I'd start with your management company and ask them to become more proactive and complain to the neighborhood police team, and ask them to rally other tenants and owners/LLs to do the same. I'd also second writing to your tenants and telling them what you're doing.
Good luck 😀

Surely a hive camera can’t be that expensive?

How many flats are using this communal door?

You need to find out how the undesirables are getting into the building in the first place. If it is friends of one of the tenants, you will have to get their Landlord involved as they are breaking their tenancy agreement.

This could lead to an anti social order being issued.

Your tenants should call the police every time someone is in the communal area. It is a h & s issue.

Also if these people are homeless the police could help with directing them to homeless shelters etc.