Chimney Sweeping - Rented property

[FelicisWolf]

We've just had a reminder sent through by our landlord to sweep the chimney as otherwise their building insurance is void. It was put in the contract we signed, so therefore I know we have to do it, but we are thinking it's a bit cheeky to make us pay for it when it's part of property maintenance? Is this normal?

We had to arrange and pay for the chimney sweep at our rental. It was about £50.

Oh that's not as much as we thought it would be, thank you! Whereabouts are you based roughly? I'm in the south east

We're in Devon. Chimney sweeps are still fairly common round here as there's no mains supply for gas... it's like Mary Poppins! Not sure about over your side though.

It's a fairly normal requirement in a lease if you have a fire.

£60 here, SE, NotLondon.

Needing it swept for insurance is normal. I don't know who normally pays if it's rented, but if I were your landlord I would want to see to it personally, to make sure it's done. Why risk voiding your insurance on someone else doing a fairly minor bit of admin?

You are using the fire not your LL so why should he pay?
We have ors swept annually or if there is a chimney fire our insurance wont pay out.
I

Tenants always pay for the chimney sweep.

We paid when we were renting. The house had central heating so i guess the logic is using the fire was optional. Was £40 in the midlands.

The obligation to have the chimney swept is that of the landlord under statute. They can write what they want to in the lease, and often do, but they can’t trump a statue. I have been a landlord and have also been a tenant. The landlord of the last house I rented, in between purchases, asked me to get the chimney swept. I quoted something along these lines ....

Under Section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, the Landlord is legally responsible for ensuring the safety, working and servicing of all heating and hot water installations. Although the wording can seem ambiguous, this also refers to open fires, Rayburns, Agas, coal and wood burning stoves. This responsibility includes all flues and ventilation, therefore under this Act, it is the Landlord’s responsibility to have all chimneys swept annually in a rental property.

Even if a tenancy agreement were reworded to state that a tenant is responsible, this would not stand up in court.

I didn’t have to pay for the chimney to be swept.

I bought a set of brushes off Amazon. Think they were around £15 and I do them myself before and after winter. It's dead easy. A professional sweep is around £40 here. Cheap for what amounts to your family's safety regarding chimney fires and blockages which can cause carbon monoxide poisoning etc.