Need some advice from landlords please-urgent!

[pinkdolly]

Ok - so have been in this house since July 07. The gas boiler is 20 years old and has been playng up ever since we moved in.

The landlord was told be several boiler engineers to replace but he chose to fix over and over and over again.

I was promised by the landlord in the summer that by this winter I would have a boiler that works.

Today it has just gone off again. I am freezing, my girls are freezing.

I am 17 weeks pg and my husband has just been sent to sea for 9 weeks. I cannot keep climbing up the loft to hit the boiler nad try and get it to work.

Please can someone give me some legal advice to throw at the landlord so he will get this problem sorted once and for all.

Also would I be withn my rights to phone an emergency electrician and get him to pay.

Thanx

Pink

Look up the number of your local council's Private Sector Housing Team.

Tell the landlord he has 24 hours to sort it out else you will report him to them and they will come out and inspect the property.

We have just had them round and they were fab. Full Health and Safety inspection of my house, and they have the power to force landlords to carry out work.

Yes do that. Don't call emerg. elec. as he might not pay and you'll be stuffed. Also he has to allow any work done to his boiler so could claim you've made it break etc et.

Ring council, they will sort you out. just ring main desk and ask for private sector team.

Do you rent directly from the landlord, or through an agent? If with an agent, they should have a 24 hour emergency call out number, and they should deal with it for you.

If your dh has gone to sea, is he in the RN? If so, see if you can get moved into an MQ...SSAFA or the welfare people should be able to help you with this. Just looked at your profile, so you're down country from Plymouth and Torpoint. I'd ring the welfare bods if your husband is RN anyway and see if they can exert some pressure. That's what they're paid for.

I'm in Belgium at the moment, so exiled from Cornwall, and I miss it loads, especially the blackcurrant icecream at Cotehele and saffron cake.

hi pinkdolly,

You are within every right to demand that your boiler is fixed, if you have no hot water then you do not have to pay rent, check your tenancy agreement, but most shorthold tenancy agreements state that hot water should be provided. Also there is a government grant avaliable called warmfront, if you are on a low income, they will mend boliers and heating etc, but there is a 4-6 month wait (very cold wait in our case!). in my experience nagging landlords is the only way to get things done, i have been known to phone our hourly until he gets it done!

Anyway i also wanted to ask you if you still run a baby and toddler group in redruth if so is it still on wed mornings? sorry for the hijack, you can email me at [email protected] or reply on this post, cheers.

Good luck with your boiler