To expect my landord to provide heating and hot water?

[Newyearbadstart]

I will attempt to be concise but include details in the hope that I don't have to drip feed later. Be kind....because it's a bit of a long story.

So- I moved with my husband and young children from an extended period overseas. Due to the Covid situation, we found a house online and agreed to rent it online. Due to the nature of assured shorthold tennacies in the UK we paid 12 months rent in advance.
We arrived and moved-in in August.

All was fine. We had a very very short handover, the owners did not even walk us around the house/property they just gave us keys and left us with an A4 file of info.

So, on December 27th we discovered unfortunately we had no heating or hot water.
This house is served by an oil fuelled burner which we had to fill in early November when the "watchman" digital alerter told us to fill it.
On discovering that the heating and hot water had failed we messaged the landlord who came out that day and inspected the system and showed us how to reset the boiler. He left feeling that everything was working but he did state that he would call for an engineer to investigate the failure.

At this point I must write that the hot water system has a back-up immersion heater installed in the event that the boiler fails.
We discovered that, as the boiler had failed, the immersion heater was not working. We messaged the landlord about this.

The engineer for the oil boiler came on the 29th and upon arrival, merely looked at the outdoor enclosure for the boiler and informed that since it was raining (drizzling) he could not and would not open the system to investigate what was wrong.

With a real need now to have, at least, hot water for our children we insisted that the landlord look at the back-up immersion that wasn't working. We stated that we believed the 13 amp fused socket was insufficient for the immersion heater and that a 20 amp was required. We sent him photos of the unit showing that the 13 amp socket had melted. He stated, in writing, that the immersion was broken and that he needed to replace the immersion heater itself as well as the socket. A plumber arrived and replaced the immersion and replaced the 13 amp socket.

The next day the hot water failed because the 13 amp socket failed and burned out. We were again left without any hot water and heating has been broken since the 27th.

We requested an emergency electrician and stated it was our belief that the 13 amp fused switch was insufficient for the load. The landlord refused our request.

We asked if we could please get an electrician to replace the 13 amp with a 20 amp and we got the reply that we had to pay for it but that the landlord would send the electrician. We agreed and the electrician attended and installed the new 20 amp switch. We paid for this and we now have hot water.

We have today received an email stating that the "damage" to the main oil burner is our fault and that the landlord will not pay for it. We must agree to pay for all repairs by return email or the repairs are not authorised to go ahead. The reason he has given is that we failed to fill the oil tank before a level that was too low to cause damage to the system.
The file of information left us did not state that if the oil level gets too low it would damage and potentially break the whole system. This is all new to us.
The level of oil, when we filled it, was below the "alert" level for the system they had installed.

We have stated that section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant act 1985 declares that tenants should not be without water or heating for more than 24 hours but the landlord replied that we are "misrepresenting the act" and that "we know it".

We are feeling very bullied and confused. We genuinely don't know if we have messed up a heating system or not, but we didn't have any information to tell us otherwise other than what was in the file. Currently we are looking at looking at a period of pre-paid tenancy with no heating at all unless we pay for repairs we really don't believe we have caused. We don't even know what damage (if any) there is to the system and what the cost of any potential repair is.

Any advice/comments/observations gratefully received. Thank you.

I guess I'm just baffled that given plenty of people will never have used an oil boiler, and it's apparently so easy to cause expensive damage to it, the landlord didn't undertake due diligence in letting the tenants know how to use it properly. Negligent at best. Just plain stupid at worst.

Definitely contact Shelter, OP. I'm a landlord myself and this sounds v shady. You shouldn't be paying for any repairs where a fault hasn't even been diagnosed!

I have oil central heating. I have a watchman meter. It is not always reliable at estimating the amount of oil, so I often check the valve on the tank or take the cap off and have a visual inspection. Oil boilers have safety features fitted to shut down and prevent damage when there is no oil coming into the system. My boiler is ancient and it still has this. Google your make and model of boiler online. You may find the manual, or you could ask the manufacturer for a copy. It will contain confirmation of troubleshooting and safety features. You mention a melting electrical point for the immersion tank. I assume your consumer unit did not trip off during this event. That points to electrical safety concerns as a modern consumer unit should trip, or the RCB should engage to prevent the risks arising from a fault this serious. If you don't have a modern consumer unit, you may not have an RCB. You should take a photo of any old or exposed wiring or signs of wear/ tear for your records.

Contact your local environmental health department to ask for a property inspection. Show them pictures of the main issues. They have considerable enforcement powers over matters of heating and building maintenance. They can insist the landlord remedies any issues.

I agree with suggestions to contact Shelter, but LandlordZone is another useful resource. The chief guys there are landlords but are always willing to help tenants.

The fact that the electrical certificate is out of date is concerning. But it also means that your landlord is in deep doodoo.

We're you given the Government's How to Rent guide? Terms and Conditions and Prescribed Information for your deposit? If not, you LL has not complied with the legal requirements and you can sue him.

@Starcaller

Why would the oil burner fail six weeks after it was topped up then? If OP caused it by letting it run empty (which they didn't anyway but for the sake of argument let's say they did), why would it then fail six weeks later? How are those two things related?

They topped it up in November. When it broke and the landlord came out, there was no suggestion that it was out of oil again.

Also if you have a heating system that requires such careful maintenance that it can be broken so easily, you at least tell your tenants how to do the maintenance. I'm a landlord and if I had something expensive in my house that could be broken if tenants didn't do something specifically, then you bet I'd be telling them about it! Bonkers not to.

Because that's roughly how long it takes a pump to fail after sludge has been dragged from the tank into the boiler due to low oil levels. Been there, had the bill, which was nearly £700 (but a lot of that was travel, as we're an hour's drive from the nearest heating engineer and he had to come out twice).

OP, as a landlord, I would be paying for that repair. Sounds like the tank had a load of crap in the bottom of it. I would recommend filling up when you've got three bars left on the Watchman though.

I think you are partly in the right and partly in the wrong. First of all I am baffled by the first comment that you paid 12 months in advance “due to the nature of assumed short hold tenancies in the UK”. It is very unusual to do this, I even thought it was illegal for anyone to ask for 12 months up front (although I could be thinking of somewhere else I us3 to live).

I think that you are unreasonable with your timings, 24 hour fix would to be possible for many landlords and it is Christmas so even a few days is not very realistic. I don’t think it is your place to insist upon the type of fix you want (20v not 13v standard) and you can order any report you want but you can’t expect the landlord to pay for it.

But I think you should push back on the repairs for the heating system, I think landlord could be trying it on. I have had an oil fired system in the house I own for fourteen years. I don’t have anything to alert me, I check with a stick when I think of it. I have had a couple of times when I have run out of oil, all that has happened is no heating or water until I get it filled up again!

If the landlord is claiming you caused the sludge issue then request proof that there was absolutely no sludge in the system prior to you moving in, he won't have that proof.

Just a thought, did you fill the tank when you topped up or just a bit and it's low again? My old tank had to be filled past a certain point to reset the gauge, it was 50 years old!

Thank you for the replies.
To answer some questions:
The "house instructions" we were given by the landlord says this:
"Inside the house is an electronic watchman device which identifies the level in the tank at all times, when the tank gets low, the device oil levels will all start to blink which is a warning that you need to refill ASAP, we would recommend you do not delay refilling."

The watchman was not blinking when we refilled. These written instructions share no warning of damage to the system should the oil get too low. That's all the info we were given and we have not used an oil burner before we have no experience of it.

When we reported the lack of heating to the landlord- he came out to the house. He saw the boiler was off. He, himself, re-lit the boiler and showed us how to re-light it. At that stage, his advice as the owner was to re-light and continue using.
Now it is all our fault and we must pay?
I am just very uncomfortable with the very aggressive stance he has chosen to take when yes- He absolutely does not know what exactly is wrong with the boiler.
Again, the lid of the boiler has not even been lifted to ascertain what the problem is, could be or might be. He has decided it is broken because the oil got low. He has no means of knowing that. None that I can work out anyway.

@gogohm when we filled the tank we filled it. We didn't order a fixed amount we filled it until full.

If you have house insurance, check to see if you have legal advice attached to it.

The landlord is responsible for

Electrical safety report from a qualified electrician- every 5 years

Gas inspection every year

Repairs & maintenance for gas, electrical, water heaters are the responsibility of the landlord, not you or your family

@Theluggage15

Your landlord is talking rubbish about the system. It wouldn’t break because oil was too low when filled and certainly not six weeks after the event. This is completely his responsibility. He doesn’t even know why the boiler has broken yet anyway! Sorry you have such a horrible landlord. You should insist in writing that the boiler is repaired and ask to see the report before the repair takes place.

This. You can't break an oil bolier by not filling it. It might be airlocked but you won't know that until a plumber looks at it and if it is its not a big drama. He is taking advantage of your lack of knowledge. Most people I know don't have a digital alert system ..they just gauge the tank visually it will have a little indicator on top..or failing that just use a big stick ! Its not a very scientific system. If you filled with 500l of oil in November yes it could well be empty again and combined with air lock it will need restarted. Oil boilers can be dodgy and temperamental if they are getting old and no amount of repairs will work they need replaced. How old is it ?

You’ve done nothing wrong, he doesn’t know why the boiler isn’t working and needs to get it fixed at his expense asap. He just doesn’t want to pay for new boiler. There’s probably been ongoing problems.

My daughter had a landlord like that. Kept telling the engineers to do cheap fixes even though they said they wouldn’t last and it needed a new boiler. In the end my daughter and her flatmate were without hot water and heating for 3 months in the winter as he messed about and delayed, was awful and he had to pay for new boiler in the end anyway. When they left at end of tenancy, they took him to small claims court and got a fair wodge of money.

OP, your landlord sounds difficult! By law they should have an EICR in date, if not they can be fined by the local council up to £30k. It's also an important document for you to ensure your home is safe! So I would be asking them for a copy, pointing out the provided one is from 2013 and no longer relevant.

We moved into a rental house with an oil boiler two years ago, regularly refill the tank when it's at alert level, no problems and this has not been raised as an issue on the annual servicing. Either way, your landlord has provided no proof so is out of order holding you to ransom. I suspect because you paid for the immersion plug, he's hoping you'll cave in for the boiler. I recommend contacting Shelter or the private rent team at your local council for advice.

I think the landlord is trying his luck and sees you as an easy target who will pay for it. You've paid 12m upfront so can't withold rent and also paid to replace the fuse when you shouldn't have done. When his repair failed, it was his responsibility to sort it out.

No way would i be paying for the boiler. Contact Shelter and a solicitor if necessary

Well his final word is that we must reply to his threatening email with the written assurance to him that we will cover the cost of any and all repairs and that until we do, he will not send anybody to repair and we will remain without heating.
What should I reply to him?

Due to the nature of assured shorthold tennacies in the UK we paid 12 months rent in advance.

Ok, I don't know about the boiler but I'm a LL and all our tenancies have run on one month's deposit and one month rent in advance. I don't know anyone who has to pay a year in advance even if you may need to sign a contract for a year.

the amount of people not understanding this :S its not difficult.

By below alert level the OP obviously means it was above alert level so hadnt dropped so low that the alert was sent out.

@Newyearbadstart

Well his final word is that we must reply to his threatening email with the written assurance to him that we will cover the cost of any and all repairs and that until we do, he will not send anybody to repair and we will remain without heating. What should I reply to him?

I would say you are seeking advice of solicitor. In the meantime you are looking for an independent engineer to prove the boiler issue is your fault.

OP how did you find this property?

Do you have a property contract, deposit in protection scheme etc? Is the property in decent nick and priced similarly to other rentals locally?

I would really like to know the real reason the landlord is expecting and anticipating an extensive repair with a large bill. That seems very suspicious. It hasn't even been investigated.

I would speak to the housing team at the council. They will advise you if you have no heating contact the landlord on your behalf.

@Newyearbadstart

Just for the sake of absolute clarity.....

We had no alert of low oil.

We actively noticed the oil was running low (but not low enough to alert).
We filled the oil tank.
Heating and water were working fine after the oil fill and for 6 weeks later until until the heating/hot water failed. It is at this point that the landlord states that we are responsible for repairs.6 weeks after the oil fill.

Honestly, these days, the comprehension level on MN is so dire, it's almost pointless asking 'real' questions.

Occasionally someone with some knowledge will stumble across a thread and help, but more often than not you spend the rest of your thread repeating what was actually clear in your first post!!

You haven't done anything wrong, your landlord is being an arse. I would sent one more email in a similar way to the post I've quoted and tell them if it's not fixed by x date then you'll be taking legal action.

This is NOT your fault at all & it IS your landlords responsibility.

I don't think you helped yourself here by offering to pay for the fuse change. He shouldn't have let you have it done unless it was recommended by the engineer & if the engineer said it needed to be changed he should have paid for it!

@Newyearbadstart

Well his final word is that we must reply to his threatening email with the written assurance to him that we will cover the cost of any and all repairs and that until we do, he will not send anybody to repair and we will remain without heating. What should I reply to him?

Reply to him that you are seeking urgent legal advice on this matter as you have fully complied with all instructions left for you.

@MerryMarigold

Due to the nature of assured shorthold tennacies in the UK we paid 12 months rent in advance.

Ok, I don't know about the boiler but I'm a LL and all our tenancies have run on one month's deposit and one month rent in advance. I don't know anyone who has to pay a year in advance even if you may need to sign a contract for a year.

A lot of shit landlords are using it to get around the deposit rules.

Especially someone coming from outwith the Uk as the OP was when she was looking, and with how many prospective tenant there are compared to available rentals atm.