What are my rights as a tenant? No running hot water/heating since 22nd and a newborn at home

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Basically the caption, the agency hasn’t replied to us since the 22nd, radio silence. We have checked the fuses etc.

i understand it could take a few days to get someone out over Xmas, but they are literally ignoring us.

What is a reasonable time for her to fix it? Should she be providing electric heaters? We are boiling water to wash baby bottles and pumps as we have a newborn at home.

just a disclaimer, the landlord took 4 months to fix a leaky roof, so she doesn’t have the best track record.

What brand is your boiler? Ours went the day after Boxing Day last year, it was awful, we had snow and everything but no newborn thankfully.

Basically it’s nothing you can resolve the someone needs to come out and have a look at the boiler.

law states landlord has reasonable time to deal with the repair. There is no definition of reasonable. You may find things are a bit slower due to Xmas. Don’t pay for the call out yourself if you can’t afford it as the LL does not have a legal obligation to reimburse if they haven’t agreed or authorised. The landlord should however provide temp heating

I'm sure you should be provided with temporary heating.

You're in London? Expensive, but Pimlico Plumbing will be working all over Christmas. As a PP says, you may not be reimbursed but the LL could get someone out themselves (and should).

I'm really sorry. Sounds awful.

I am answering as a landlord - I would have got British Gas out as an emergency repair as soon as you reported it. In absence of that, I'd have used my trusted plumber. In absence of that, I'd have got an emergency plumber.
At the very least I'd provide portable heating.
This is what I'd do in my own home, and it is how I treat my tenants.

Your example is why I despise using agents. In my experience, they cause delays and bad feelings all round. They have groovy reporting apps...which fail to work in emergencies.

So in answer to your question, as a landlord, unless the parts were unavailable, I'd have done the repair by now as there are always plumbers working, even over Christmas. It is no excuse not to answer you. You need to complain and document all requests for assistance and requests for repairs.

So sorry you're without heat and hot water at Christmas. It's not a great service you're receiving, and this is what gives all landlords a bad reputation. It is unacceptable xx

As a landlord I would say that a reasonable time to deal with no heating and hot water in December is 24 hours.
The boiler can’t necessarily be fixed in that time if parts need to be ordered, but an initial visit should have been made and supplementary heaters offered.
My gas boiler cover plan operates every day except Christmas Day, and an engineer will attend the same day if called by midday, or the next morning if after midday.

I’m a landlord and if my tenants couldn’t get hold of me in this situation, I’d fully expect that they would organise an emergency call out (try Pimlico plumbers) for which I’d fully reimburse them and be sufficiently apologetic. You have rights as a tenant. Worth calling Shelter; they can advise you further. Make sure you keep all records of attempting to contact your landlord so if she gets funny about having to reimburse you, you can present her with the evidence. At this stage, I’d probably be emailing her and explaining that you have attempted to contact her several times, that you have a newborn, and as such you'll be calling an emergency plumber and expensing it back to her.
Have you got a street WhatsApp group on which you could put a call out for a spare heater or two?
Good luck.

The scope of Awaabs law has been widened since it was initially proposed.

Any issues that could endanger health or life would come under this and no heating/hot water would certainly be included. Unfortunately it only applies to social housing.

I hear that we should gwt it fixed and ask the landlord to reimburse. But she won’t, when we moved in the property was disgusting including dead flies all over, mould and rubbish from the last tenant. And she refused to pay a cleaner to come and clean the property.

ring the emergency number you have for them

Can you get some electric blankets? They will make a big difference.

We have Dreamland over blankets

You need more than one heater.

If you can't get hold of the landlord or agency then contact your Local Authority Environmental Health Department as they can enforce, complete emergency works and bill the landlord.

or no heating or hot water in cold weather, landlords must fix it in a "reasonable time," often meaning within 24 hours, as it's an urgent health & safety issue. For other hot water problems, it's usually 24-48 hours; for non-emergencies, up to 14 days might be acceptable, but always depends on circumstances like weather and if tenants have alternatives.
Key Timeframes

• No Heating/Hot Water (Winter/Emergency):Within 24 hours (1 working day).
• Urgent Hot Water Issues (Partial loss/Lukewarm): 24-48 hours.
• Standard Repairs (Non-Urgent): Up to 1-2 weeks.

What's Considered "Reasonable"?

• Emergency: No hot water in winter is an emergency; landlords must act fast.
• Impact: How severe is the issue on daily life (hygiene, cooking)?
• Alternatives: If you have another way to heat water or access hot water, it might not be an immediate emergency.

What to Do If Repairs Are Delayed

1. Contact Landlord: Inform them in writing (email/letter) and reference the urgency.
2. Escalate: Contact your local council's environmental health team or housing standards.
3. Seek Advice: Get help from organizations like Citizens Advice or Shelter.

Landlord Responsibilities

• Under law (Landlord and Tenant Act 1985), landlords must keep installations in good repair.
• They must act once they know about a problem.
• They should offer temporary solutions (e.g., portable heaters) if delays happen.

@Clarehandaust good luck with trying to get a plumber out between now and the new year. I'm afraid you are wrong. A landlord must effect repairs within a reasonable time. However what they should be doing is providing alternative heating as in radiators or space heaters until the repairs are carried out. And they certainly should be communicating more effectively than this landlord.

My own heating I waited 3 and a half weeks for parts. Unfortunately stuff can't be magicked up.

I think it's classed as an emergency when there's a newborn on the home. You need to be phoning as well as emailing.

If you have involved the local council to do a repair (you mentioned a leak) and the LL tries a revenge eviction there is legislation to protect you for 6 months. By then the new law (Renters Rights Bill) will be in force and the LL cannot use section 21. Those posters who are LLs will confirm this.

What hotel are your parents staying in? Can you decamp there for a bit? We stayed in a family room premier inn last week and there was a king bed + single + kids bed + travel cot. Could you see if your parents can switch to one of those rooms and the DC + you go there at least to get some warmth and shower?

Are you bf or formula feeding? If ff, id try using the premade bottles for the next few days. You can buy a box of disposable teats on amazon so you wouldn't even need to sterilise bottles. You mention pumping as well, so look up the fridge method for storing pump parts, so at least you only have to sterilise once a day. Have you got a microwave? If so, look at getting a microwave steriliser from argos / amazon on boxing day to make it easier as they dont need hot water.

We came back from holiday two years ago to a boiler that had broken whilst we were away and the house was 4c. I was heavily pregnant and DD1 was 2y. It was awful. Lots of good advice on this thread and hopefully it gets sorted for you soon. Congrats on your newborn 💐