To have not paid rent (yet!)

[FreshFancyFrogglette]

Before we start I am totally aware that officially withholding rent is not encouraged, and/or advised, but listen to the circumstances first please.

5 year tenant with private association rent always paid on time, and in full (apart from when there was a surprise increase of £25 and the email went to my old email so it took a few months to update the standing order form).

Had a problem with my boiler (completely gone). Spoke to association, took a week to get back to me. Took another week to hear from the plumber. Took another week to order parts, and another week to actually install it. Total 1 month no heating or hot water. All this time increase in electric to use halogen heaters and kettles. Still paid rent on time. December. I think new boiler is working, but it turns out they've left the boost on which has been rinsing my electric. Turn it off. Back to no hot water. Christmas/new year period. Cold spell, try to get the storage heaters on. Leave them 48 hrs to be sure (should only take 12hrs but I wanted to be sure). Low and behold no heating. I email landlord, first day back I call them. They say they will call back, and never do, twice. Rent becomes due. I've got it, but I don't pay it. Accounts email me, and I explain. I've got rent here, I want to pay it, but I also want hot water and heating. Bare in mind it's fucking freezing here at the moment. They get the electrician out, he thinks it's a fault with the supplier, ring them, they don't think it is, electrian thinks its meter. (they got electrian out the next working day, compared to when I did pay rent and got fobbed off for 3 weeks!). I'm sat here freezing, too scared to put halogen heater on because I'm skint. My daughters staying elsewhere, it is too cold to have her here atm. Waiting for engineer to come.

My question is should the landlord give me a discount on the rent because I've been 2 months without heating and hot water? If its the meter at fault, whose responsibility is that? I've been very vocal about getting this sorted, and never wanted to withhold rent, but I'm at the end of my tether. I want someone to listen to me. I am waiting for my warm home discount, but at the moment I can't afford to heat the place. We are at the beginning of the month, and my uc is due at the end. Wwyd please?

Boiler and heaters are the LL’s responsibility, obviously. As terrible as it is for you to have been without heat and hot water, you should not withhold rent payments. You will go into arrears regardless of whether you think you’re justified in not paying or not, and rent arrears do not look good on your record.

This. I'm a tenant and would never withhold rent because it can come back to bite you in the arse later down the line. Worst case you'll end up evicted, or bailiffs coming round, and you left with a shitty credit history. Make a fuss by all means, but don't withhold rent.

I’d pay it you don’t want to risk getting kicked out.I’m with housing association too I’m pretty sure you do get do get some money off your rent for being without heating or hot water if they don’t fix it within a certain time, it’s not loads but the longer it the is more money off- have a google. Also if they don’t call you back harass them. Do you have children ? If you do they could get in trouble.

YABU, you must pay your rent.

Otherwise your next thread will be that you’ve been evicted.

Also complain and ask for compensation for additional costs and distress.

After reading your update OP, if it's a faulty meter then it is the suppliers responsibility, which is nothing to do with the LL/HA, it would have been different if it was a broken boiler for example but as it is the meter that is direct with the supplier which is the tenant that deals with that. Therefore, it should be the supply company that you raise a complaint with and ask for financial compensation. As it is not a LLs responsibility then they won't be liable to offer you compensation.

Find out how to raise a complaint with the company you're with and follow that procedure, detail it all in writing so you have evidence in black and white, include timescales, when you've contacted them etc. If they still don't do anything, take it further

Is there an official complaints procedure for this housing association? Put your complaint in writing and follow the procedure. Tell them about all the times you have tried to resolve this and how you did this. Note that you are being treated unfairly. Then say, if this is not dealt with within a week or the applicable timeline they set out in the procedure (with a demonstrable timeline), you will escalate this complaint to the relevant Ombudsman. Most associations or companies have to track complaints and avoid it getting to an escalated complaint. In my last company, customer complaints had to be reported to the Board.

IMO this is a disgrace. But don't withhold your rent.

Hi, dealt with this a few times at work so I might be able to offer some advice.

If you're withholding rent, week legal advice and place the money in a separate bank account, keep evidence of this.

Follow the associations complaint procedure, right through to the ombudsman if need be. Have them admit liability in their response for not responding in a timely manner. It would help massively if you could provide proof of the increase in your bills since the problem started.

Quote the right to repair act - by law they have 1 day to acknowledge this repair and attempt a fix. Information on this is easy enough to find and mentions compensation.

As a landlord I have to say I suffered during this pandemic and there was no government support was in a position were tenant would not pay I couldn't evict him because of covid laws I was genuinely screwed. As a person that works in finance the payments holidays are not the best idea as interest still piles up and could put u in further debt. I used my rainy day money which I really need rn as I've had a LO. I tried to be as understanding as I can and let him pay small amounts. But please talk to ur landlord - u could work something out perhaps and they relying on receiving that money it is an income for them

I'd you can't afford to pay your rent because of the increased power bills, you need to call them and sort it, so you're paying a set amount. Even though the arrears will be increasing, you're showing willing and you then need to pay rent plus extra each month once it's fixed.

If it's a "fix it or no money" it won't work. If it's HA it's not even the same department. Rent Team won't care that Repairs are being crap. They'll just follow the steps and take legal action.

Call them daily for an update, remain pleasant cos it's not the call handlers fault but try and get hold of someone on the repair team

Hi everyone. I am pleased to say that I finally have heating and hot water!! I hated having to with hold rent, as was anxious the whole time. But ive got to say, compared to every other time I've reported this issue, this has been the only thing that has got them to take it seriously. It is largely the suppliers fault, however they - and I) weren't to know this without investigation, and I spent all of Xmas and new year with no heating or hot water. I have emailed the agency to say thanks for being in contact. (although I arranged for the engineer to come and check, and repair the meter. Don't know how long it would have taken the LL association to do so). I am ready to pay rent. However, I have asked for a token good will gesture of less than 10% off. Will see what they say. I don't think this is unreasonable given the circumstances. If they refuse I will pay in full, but I think it's bloody greedy, and I will keep note of it for future repairs, and not be as reasonable as I have been this time (2 months no heating or hot water in the middle of a cold spell, and global pandemic and I haven't made an official complaint). This money doesn't begin to compensate how much I am out of pocket over this issue.

To be clear this isn't an individual LL with 1 property and a mortgage to pay. They own the whole block, and others. It's an association. They are cost cutting (Hall lights on timer which is unsafe and a bloody nightmare), and slow with repairs (communal lift, essential for disabled people and people with small kids, out of action for months!). Communal washing machine always out of action. No wet floor signs when the communal areas are cleaner (once in a blue moon). I could go on. It makes me mad. If it was an individual I would be more understanding.

Anyway, thank u for your support and replies. Was at a real low point yetserday. Did not want to be here any more.. Much better today..

Great news OP! It’s a shame it had to take late rent payment to make them act.

And yes, this would change how reasonable I would be with them in future. I remember when
pigeons were shitting all over our balcony every day making it completely unusable. We were paying £1100 for a 1 bed and yet I had no idea of my rights and was just sending begging emails asking the agency to fix it. It does feel like LLs have all the power when you’re a good tenant.

Pelosi, sounds horrible! It's not nice to feel powerless and miserable. And totally reliant on someone else. That's the trouble with renting. Would be much nicre to have your own agency over these things, but we can't all afford it!

Just to report a happy outcome, everything is up and running agai (I'm so happy!! :)) , and we've negotiated about 8% discount to cover a bit of the cost, and a bit of a good will gesture. All the rest is now paid.
Thanks for the replies! I would hate for anyone else to be in this situation. I can't advocate withholding rent, because it could go either way, but for me I wasn't thinking rationally because I was so cold, and worn down with it all. It did help them to take notice, as it got accounts involved, rather than just maintaince. However, I suspect there was a possibility it could have backfired. So who knows if it was the right thing to do. I'm grateful to have it fixed, and for the acknowledgement of it in a slight discount.

What happened to the rent money you had ? You could use some of that to heat house ?

Ah man seen update / glad you got sorted !

Mrsbuyers I kept the rent money seperate as I knew I'd have to pay at some point.. My point was to dip into it to heat the house if the situation dragged on indefinitely. I paid my rent as soon as the heating and hot water was back on, but they did allow (at my suggestion) a small discount of less than 10%, to contribute towards my high energy costs during this period. I would have preferred a bit more, but as the problem was with the meter, that wouldn't be entirely fair on the LL (although they shouldve acted quicker, especially in relation to the boiler which was also buggered).

Overall I got what I needed, main thing is to have heat and hot water restored. :)