Tenant sent the builder home!

[Ilovemychocolate]

I am a landlord, and rent a house out to a young couple.
There is some urgent work that needs doing to it, so I arranged for a builder to attend the property yesterday and today to carry out the work, at my expense obviously.
At lunchtime the tenant sent the builder home, as her cat had escaped and she said the cat wouldn’t return if the builder was in the house, he was plastering so hardly creating a huge amount of noise.
Not withstanding that her original tenancy agreement stipulated no pets, (which I overlooked as she is very pet orientated) am I being unreasonable to ask her to pay for the builder when he has to return next week to finish the work?
She didn’t phone me first to check if it was ok to send him home, I called her when I found out she had, and she swore at me, saying she didn’t give a fuck about the building work, she was more concerned about finding her cat.
I am bloody livid right now, the work should be finished by now, and now I’ve got to stump up another £250 for an extra day!
And before anyone piles on, yes I have a cat, yes I get she was upset, and yes I know the rules about pets have changed since May 1st.

I know, I am an old hand at Mumsnet, I know you always get the keyboard warriors desperate to stick the knife in, I also know in real life they would never say what they do on here 🤣

I would enforce the lease regarding pets and she may leave of her own accord.

So pathetic. No wonder she takes you for a mug but then you know that.🙄

You reckon? I for one write as I speak irl.😆

OP, let this be the sign that swings it for you, time to sell.
She thinks you are a soft mug.
Time to sell up.
Who needs the aggro.
I wouldn't accept being sworn at for a minute.
Time to get her out and sell up.
Yanbu.

All these posters saying you aren't cut out to be a landlord are hilarious. Supervise the plasterer? Don't talk such utter shite, not once have I supervised a repair nor would my tenants want me to.

So many posters are an absolute joke who just enjoy being twats for no reason.

Well, you could always say, tou need to pay the additional £250 or ill terminate your contract under the no pets clause/im selling up. And recoup the floor damage out of her deposit.

Poor Flopsy. May she/he rest in peace... until you evict.

Pointless saying what happens in the US because the law here has just been updated. 🤷‍♀️ I’m selling my tenanted house, I’m sick of being responsible for someone else’s damage and it isn’t making money. Tenants are delighted to buy. Sell, I say.

Thanks!
Life is nuanced though, don’t you think?
Because around the time I found out she had pets, my teenage dd was going through a mental health crisis, which culminated in her trying to take her own life.
So funnily enough, my tenant having unauthorised pets wasn’t top of my priority list.
But you don’t want to hear that do you? You are MUCH happier to insult me, and call me pathetic.
Enjoy the rest of your evening!

I would email her and ask her to pay, as she has created this.
i have a tenant and arranged with him for gas safety inspection date/time suitable for him.
guess what he forgot
it will be coming out of his deposit and I put it up more than I was going too.
give them an inch …..

Don’t get hot under the collar, just keep records (1) you giving notice of builder (2) her agreeing (3) message from builder she sent him away with job incomplete and that he will need to charge another full day fee to complete the work.

hold that on file and when she eventually leaves the property include it as a deductible.
don’t advise her of this in advance… no point as it will only cause upset. Hood her accountable at the end of the tenancy.
also as an fyi, you can take your tenant to court for damages and costs even if u do it don’t evict them.

I agree with you. I woud be furious too.

She received sufficent notice.
The repairs benefit her as well as you.
You have been very agreeable as a landlord, tolerating pets and the garden burial.
She swore at you.
Builders are difficult to get and she turns obe away.

I would actually document it in writing....bery disappoint...adequate notice...extra cost of €250...swearing - abusive language will not be tolerated etc.

Getting her out, even if everything is done absolutely correctly, is going to be a nightmare.
Not to mention the execumation of the rabbit!

If you are thinking of selling anyway, this might be enough to finalise your decision.

I was merely pointing out that d pays to have animals and I guess that some landlords have asked for pet payment in the UK prior to the new rules. Therefore being previously covered for any damage.
What happens with damage now caused by pets? Is it reclaimed out of the deposit at the end of the tenancy to cover repairs? Asking because I don't know.

Think it’d depend what it says in the tenancy agreement what fees you can charge and for what: england.shelter.org.uk/professional_resources/legal/costs_of_renting/tenant_fees_and_other_costs/tenancy_fees..

It's on her to arrange what's happening with her pets (that she shouldn't even have) when she knew perfectly well that she would have a builder in that day.

I would put it all in writing that you want her to pay for the additional cost as she alone is responsible for it, and point out that she's breaking her tenancy agreement by having said cat in the first place.

I wouldn't be renewing her tenancy when it's up, she sounds like a total arse, and I say that as someone is a cat lover!

@Ilovemychocolate YANBU. I would ask her to pay for him to come back. I wouldn't hold your breath though. She won't.

Obviously she is in the wrong. Thats very annoying. I'd try and get rid of her. If you even can now with all the new regulations. She sounds very selfish and uncooperative and a bit silly re a cat refusing to come in the house. Ridiculous.

You can ask. I'd just save myself the hassle and not bother asking for £250. If hes coming back you probably need to supervise otherwise it will be another £250! ..mumsnet hates landlords!

I'd be happy to hear you decided to sell it if she's a difficult tenant.

Serve her notice. Get her gone.

@Ilovemychocolate I’m not saying he is not a nice man, I am saying he should have contacted you to discuss before he left.

How did your tenant send a builder home?? If theres a problem with the work being done (more usually an issue with access) the builder contacts you and you go round, the builder doesn't get to just take the rest of the day off and let you know?

I know you've said you work full time but if you're having work done, you should have some capacity to supervise it, not to rely on your tenant for that. This situation is unusual but its common for trades to find new issues/realise the work is more complicated than initially guessed or just need instructions to make sure they're working to your standard and not cutting corners because they've found an easier way to do something. Leaving that up to the tenant is daft. Your builder taking instructions from the tenant is daft.

I can understand why you'd want the tenant to reimburse you but I can't imagine you've got any legal recourse. Chalk this one up to experience and make sure you're there next time.

Tenant should absolutely pay!

She sounds like an utter chav to have spoken to you like that and not to get the onus is on her. No sane person would do that and certainly not without contacting their landlord.

that would be an instant eviction from me