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AIBU?

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Original poster

To think this isn't good enough? Landlord

138 replies

MillyA · 09/12/2020 09:29

The barrel lock in my front door bas been getting progressively more shit for the past few months which culminated in it breaking completely last night and rendering the door (which is on a busy main road) unlockable.

I contacted my landlord as a matter of urgency as I have children in here and need to feel safe. Instead of sending an emergency locksmith which should be the first thing he did surely, he says he'll ask a painter and decorator bloke he knows to come and "have a look at fixing it"

If anything needs doing in here he always delegates it to this bloke, to save money on calling the professionals.

The bloke is notoriously unreliable and never turns up when he's supposed to, I've had work done in here by him before.

Decorator bloke gets back to him this morning and says he will "try" and get round here today, which translates as him not coming as he doesn't even turn up when he's actually scheduled to, having left me waiting in all day on at least 5 occasions before.

AIBU to think this isn't good enough? I'm now stuck in the house with three children, one disabled, and i can't lock the front door / go out / do anything.

OP posts:
Smallsteps88 · 09/12/2020 10:22

I wouldn't know what lock/barrel to get though, would it matter?

Bring the broken one with you and try and match it. If stuck, ask the shop staff for help.

TigerDrawers · 09/12/2020 10:24

Do you have a friend or relative that could bring you and fit you either a replacement barrel for the lock or at the very least a sliding bolt that can be fitted to the top of your door, out of reach of DS? (If the door is wood anyway - I wouldn't want to fit anything to a upvc door)

It's not in the slightest what you should be having to do as the LL should definitely have arranged for someone reliable to come round ASAP. I'm staggered that "putting something heavy in front of the door" is anywhere near acceptable in his mind as a police officer who must have first hand knowledge about the crime rate in your area.

Sorry you're going through this @MillyA - if I lived closer I'd offer to come round and help!

Original poster
MillyA · 09/12/2020 10:25

Excuse my naivety but does a new lock contain both barrels (for the inside and out)?

The outer barrel remains intact but doesn't lock.

OP posts:
StopGo · 09/12/2020 10:26

@MillyA you actually have the upper hand here. Send him a text, email or whatever and simply inform him that if he or his representative hasn't attended by 12 noon you will report him to the professional standards department of his police service. This is a safeguarding issue as you have a child with special needs and he knows this. Good luck.

PatriciaPerch · 09/12/2020 10:27

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Original poster
MillyA · 09/12/2020 10:27

Thank you Tiger, it's such a pain in the arse and a worry.

It's a UPVC door so installing a bolt isn't possible.

I can't believe the laxity, he knows what happened with DS the other month as I contacted him to ask permission to install secondary locks on the windows (at my own expense)

OP posts:
Original poster
MillyA · 09/12/2020 10:28

Crossed posts Pat and Stop, thank you

I'm making a note of all the suggestions here. You've been more helpful than he has!

OP posts:
teateateateateamoretea · 09/12/2020 10:29

It sounds like you might have a complicated door, so a simple barrell change may not be a fix for you

Original poster
MillyA · 09/12/2020 10:31

The road I live on is especially busy and dangerous, we've been here almost 4 years now and there has been numerous accidents on the road from crashes to people being hit by cars. This is my absolute worst fear recognised. At the risk of sounding melodramatic I'm already traumatised by DS escaping before, he reached the bottom of the road to the junction where cars come from three directions, they were having to stop and sound their horns. If it weren't for a kindly stranger spotting DS and grabbing him before he went into the road he would have been seriously harmed.

OP posts:
HoneyBee03 · 09/12/2020 10:32

I completely understand, our landlord also sends over a handy man to do every job and he bodges everything. Our roof was leaking rain into one of the bedrooms for 2 years before they made an effort to fix it and we recently spent 2 months without an oven.

I hope you get your lock fixed soon! I agree with PPs about possibly finding a locksmith who will invoice directly to your landlord.

Original poster
MillyA · 09/12/2020 10:32

Indeed! The door is a UPVC one and the lock chamber contains two separate barrels, one to lock from the inside and another one to lock from the outside. They sit together horizontally inside the chamber.

I'm probably not explaining it very clearly.

OP posts:
notdaddycool · 09/12/2020 10:32

If it is a eurolock (See link) you can get them for about a tenner and it's one screw to undo and do up again. You need to get the same size though. www.screwfix.com/p/union-6-pin-euro-cylinder-lock-35-35-70mm-satin-nickel/2008G?tc=VT5&ds_kid=92700058173290408&ds_rl=1244072&gclid=CjwKCAiAiML-BRAAEiwAuWVggrcrVziZ_h8BDCZpgZ1LUT304B3PUrrU2uDtpQ7O6ThlNGdjIv-zBhoCkB8QAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

Viviennemary · 09/12/2020 10:33

Just call out a locksmith and get it fixed. Then charge it to landlord or deduct from rent.

apric0t · 09/12/2020 10:33

I replaced my upvc doors barrel lock upon buying my house. There are a few length options of barrel, you can use a screwdriver to remove the barrel in the door and measure it, then order and collect same day at screwfix. Cost around a tenner and was really easy to install. The outer and inner locks are either end of the barrel. I was about to call out a locksmith but my FIL told me the above and that it was easy, he want wrong!

Original poster
MillyA · 09/12/2020 10:35

I completely understand, our landlord also sends over a handy man to do every job and he bodges everything. Our roof was leaking rain into one of the bedrooms for 2 years before they made an effort to fix it and we recently spent 2 months without an oven.

What a coincidence! I've also had problems with a roof leaking rain into my bedroom recently. It came to a head when we had torrential rain a few months ago and my bedroom totally flooded, damaging my belongings in the process not to mention the laminate floor and decor.

Landlord claimed on the insurance and I'm still waiting for the repairs to be done.

I've also gone without an oven twice (they're built in)

I'm so tired of this place.

OP posts:
Original poster
MillyA · 09/12/2020 10:36

I've just compared the lock to the link above and yes I'm almost certain it's a euro lock

OP posts:
PatriciaPerch · 09/12/2020 10:36

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Belladonna12 · 09/12/2020 10:37

It's not good enough. Perhaps the landlord is not enlightened on the fact that the painter/decorator is not very reliable. You need to call him now and be very clear on the fact that it is urgent. Tell him that if the painter decorator hasn't done it by the end of the day then you will need to call a locksmith and it will obviously cost more if out of hours. As this would have to be deducted from the rent, would he prefer to get a locksmith out now? Just be really pushy.

PatriciaPerch · 09/12/2020 10:40

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Original poster
MillyA · 09/12/2020 10:41

LL knows about the incident with DS and his additional needs yes, I've also told him many times that this decorator is unreliable and has wasted my time on several occasions by not turning up.

It seems to me that he wants to keep costs down at any cost (no pun intended) so signposts all issues to this bloke as he's cheaper than the professionals.

I have no faith in him being able to sort the door lock either, he was supposed to be sorting the internal doors (problems with them too, they don't close) and said he can't do it because we 'need a carpenter'

OP posts:
PatriciaPerch · 09/12/2020 10:41

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Original poster
MillyA · 09/12/2020 10:42

@PatriciaPerch

our roof was leaking in the bad landlord house too. I actually feel they took advantage of my good nature because they knew it would be difficult for me to move as my daughter had autism Confused when she moved out (adult care) I put my foot down and said they had to do the repairs on the house otherwise I would not renew my contract. They served me a section 21. I hadn't missed a rental payment in 8 years! The house remained empty for the best part of a year when I moved out as they had to do so much work on it, they must have lost thousands.
That is appalling, what a bastard (excuse my language)
OP posts:
PrincessBuggerPants · 09/12/2020 10:51

OP get some proper advice from Shelter rather than people suggesting you 'deduct it from your rent' or landlords suggesting it is somehow your fault: england.shelter.org.uk/housing_advice/repairs/what_to_do_if_your_landlord_wont_do_repairs

80sColourfulChristmas · 09/12/2020 10:51

@MillyA

LL knows about the incident with DS and his additional needs yes, I've also told him many times that this decorator is unreliable and has wasted my time on several occasions by not turning up.

It seems to me that he wants to keep costs down at any cost (no pun intended) so signposts all issues to this bloke as he's cheaper than the professionals.

I have no faith in him being able to sort the door lock either, he was supposed to be sorting the internal doors (problems with them too, they don't close) and said he can't do it because we 'need a carpenter'

To be fair, you do need a carpenter to properly plane internal doors. I'm waiting for mine to be done
GalaxyCookieCrumble · 09/12/2020 10:54

I would request a chain lock or extra lock at the top of your front door as well for future in case your little one can unlock the door himself.