Badly maintained rental property, what are my rights?

[creaturcomforts]

Hi all um just looking for general advice and opinions as a renter it's hard to know where I stand. I rent a small edwardian house with me and dd, rent is comparable to other 2 beds in area with a garden, and parking and larger I'm general. Me and dd moved here from a larger rent as landlord wanted to sell and have always done my best to keep the house maintained.

This house is f energy efficiency, no glazing, poorly fitted doors, and it feels as cold inside as out. It has storage heaters that are temperamental and the electric only system is constantly cutting out or tripping. Electricians from the rental agency have deemed it all ok but still problems.

The house is listed but I still think they should improve things, its freezing and even with the storage heaters loses heat in winter constantly.

I'm a single parent and struggling to repay my electricity which, as a renter for the last 12 years, has never been so high and now have turned off the heating for the last 3 months because of the Bill's, me and dd are always cold in the house.

The estate agents are due to come to inspect as they had to stop due to covid but I'm struggling each day to remove the black mold that is there due to single insulation with slide windows and worried what they will say!!

It's not a cheap rent that I pay and I feel I have no rights, most of my wages goes onto rent and I'm angry that there is no insulation but do I have any rights?

Whereabouts are you and do you get benefits? In Scotland a scheme run by warmworks accessed through the energy saving trust installs free double glazing and central heating to low income households. So if you have a child and are in receipt of universal credit with an earned income less than 1250 a month then you can get a full grant to make the property more efficient.

If you're not in Scotland I'd contact whatever the equivalent to the energy saving trust and see if they have equivalent schemes. Come to your landlord with a solution and it won't cost them anything.

It may be annoying that they get a free upgrade but at least you'd be warm and not spending all your money on heating

I just wanted to add that I've been coughing and unable to sleep because of the cold and the high Bill's, I'm a single parent and work full time but have had alot of pressure from my energy company and am paying them back a high amount but it feels like such a waste and my average montly electric only bill is estimated and I pay 350 a month! Dd has her heater on but I'm so tired of being cold

Hi, thank you so much womaninatightspot, yes I get universal credit, but I'm not sure wether I'm allowed to make any changes to the property as it's a grade 2 listed building. I've tried to look online but I dont think I'm eligible unfortunately, I just seem to be at the mercy of my electricity provider and the house is rented through an estate agent who are less than helpful!

Yes I'm uk, I dont think I'm allowed to make changes to the property without landlord consent but I've had the warm home discount, for people on a low income which is 150 off my energy bill. Not much help as my bills seem so so high

I think rental properties have to be a minimum energy rating of E now.
Surely the estate agents should know this?!
See article here
www.gov.uk/guidance/domestic-private-rented-property-minimum-energy-efficiency-standard-landlord-guidance

If you are in England it is illegal to rent the place at all. Min rating is E. Few possible exceptions.

The electrical inspection should have been done by 1st April. Lots of other things should be in place. Read your how to rent guide or find it online.

In practice there is very little enforcement. Shit landlords dont change.

Hi murblrub, its interesting how the rental company were so insistent that I had the recent full electric check, in fact it was carried out just 2 weeks ago! It's impossible to make any changes myself without permission to keep the house warm and yes its annoying as all my wages are going to rent and heating, I feel so frustrated as I dont think its right. I've contacted cab and they are giving a callback tomorrow, ihope it helps

Contact your Environmental Health team for a HHSRS assessment.

I am working full time, have no support from the dad, but I am literally slipping into debt and no way of paying it back despite getting universal credit to top up wages. Never had this problem with rental, but looking into it, when we moved in, my landlord should have made improvements to insulate the house unless it was Impossible as it's a protected building, grade 2 listed,I dont know if they have to do anything. Hope c.a.b will help.. it's so frustrating...

Thank you catanddogslife, yes I think that legally the landlord and estate agents that cover them , do know that they legally have to make improvements if the property has no insulation, as the house that I live in does not. However I'm not sure wether they have to make any improvements at all since the property is so old and is listed... it may be exempt, from having to make any changes. However it would be nice to know, my estate agents are not approachable, and I have to know my full rights before approaching them, as a single parent, before we were 2 tenants they had me provide proof (understandably) I could pay rent as a sole tenant, but they could find reason to remove me from the home and daughter now, I'm not on a high income, and they would find reason to kick is out before I proved the estate agents and landlords where in the wrong....

well, at least they are trying to stick to some legals. What does the copy of the EICR say regarding any faults or improvements needed? Constant tripouts cannot possibly be compliant.

are you on an economy 7 tariff for the storage heaters? Do the input/output controls work?

Sorry, I didn't spot it is grade II listed which can mean an exemption from min EPC:

www.gov.uk/government/publications/private-rented-sector-minimum-energy-efficiency-standard-exemptions/guidance-on-prs-exemptions-and-exemptions-register-evidence-requirements

no-one is being 'kicked out' at the moment so don't worry about that. Even if they get all the stuff right for a section 21, you can stay to the bailiffs (if you want council housing you will have to) and that is two years at least.

as mentioned, please read how to rent - shit landlords play on ill informed tenants.

Thank you mrbblurb, there is no advice whatsoever in the tenancy , about constant cutouts, the water sometimes doesnt heat other times the power cuts out, this can be hard as I work full time as a carer and when I have my days off I am trying to sort out problems with the electric and have electricians, this has been since I moved in three years ago now, yes it is on economy 7, but I have asked Ron to change to a single rate tariff now, in an effort to pay off the mounting debt from awful storage heaters in a house with no insulation by not having any heating in winter.

When I asked eon to change to a single rate tariff the advisor had said she couldnt believe I had a 500 pounds bill for one month from having the storage heaters on when it was really cold, I'm trying to catch up now but that's so much money to me, it's just a 2 bed, not a mansion....

I am rather surprised that an Edwardian terrace is listed to be honest. In many areas there are lots of such houses.
It should be possible to check whether the property is listed and the type of listing. Are they mixing up listing and being in a conservation area for example? It's usually possible to install secondary double glazing in listed properties and roof insulation would be fairly straightforward.

Thanks catsanddogslife, yes it is a grade 2 listed building, so I'm not sure wether any improvements must be made!

I stupidly didn't realise when I moved in, but I think certain things cant be altered, it's a grey area as i cant find out where ths leaves me as a tenant in a cold building, can I change anything to make it more habitable or not?

It sounds like you’re paying market rent so could you start looking for similar and move? At least you’d get back to more normal heating bills even if rent stays the same .

It's not for you to sort things out, that is the landlords job.

Not sure why coming off economy 7 helps, if you are out all day you will use less of the pricier units. The heaters will charge up overnight on the cheaper rate.

Im afraid it was 'sold as seen' with the epc which is why they are issued. if the place isn't cheap there's only one remedy.

Oh, and just to check - were your meter readings the right way round? That bill was indeed huge.

I would look to move OP.

Until recently I rented out a property and listed buildings are ones where full compliance with energy efficiency is potentially exempt.

Older buildings even with insulation can be cold and storage heaters while perfectly legal aren't the warmest of heating solutions.

If you are slipping into debt with heating a modern flat would be much cheaper to heat.

Sounds tricky, the building might be exempt from EPC because it’s listed (or changed that might alter the integrity of the building) same re double glazing but the heating no system should be ok to upgrade to energy efficient panels if the landlord can afford it, do you know the landlord situation, for example multi portfolio or one off landlord, if it’s a one off they might be making no or very little money to upgrade the system depending on their outgoings. There are sometimes grants available though which landlords can apply for. Have you got thermal back curtains ?

*heating the system

I think you should look into moving! Why have you stayed so long?
One point about the black mould - I have that in our house - it's a nightmare. We have double glazing, insulated walls and central heating. I know you have other problems but that part may not get fixed by the upgrades.
Have you considered a dehumidifier? That will dry out the air and make it easier to hear the house too.

Also don't dry washing indoors or at least not without the dehumidifier on.

Our local council has a housing enforcement manager who will come out to privately rented properties if they are in a state. It sounds like yours could be. Might be worth finding out if your local council does?

I would be looking to move if at all possible.

Seriously, if you can move you should. It sounds miserable. The cold, the bills, the poor insulation.
Maybe as we are moving into the summer months start looking in preparation to move in the autumn.

I lived a Winter in a freezing house. It was grim. We lived huddled under heated throws as they were cheap and we didn't have to have the heating on. The CAB should be able to help with the other stuff.

It all sounds awful. Storage heaters are so inefficient and expensive.

I'd get advice from the CAB then look for a new property to rent. If you were in a new flat, it would be much cheaper to heat.

Well done you for soldiering through and paying all the heating all this time.