White goods/general appliances failing in rental apt :(

ringthebells

Hi all, I moved in (with my roomie) to a 2 bedroom apt in early-mid July. Since then, our washing machine has broken (we used it 3 times in a month - called in a serviceman and he said a major part had failed) and it now looks like our fridge is on the out - it's pooling water on the floor and fails to remain at the temperature we've set it at. The hob also has an issue in that whenever you turn on the oven at all, one of the hobs will also come on despite being set to off - this obviously is eating extra electricity as well as posing a burn risk to us as it is not immediately obvious the hob is on at all.

Other than this the apt has been good and the landlord pretty OK (we've notified him about all these issues except the fridge [still hoping it will work out with an extra defrost tomorrow] and he's ordered us a new washing machine but no moving on the hob issue). I'm just wondering where we stand - we have a year lease signed and are good tenants who pay on time. Do all of these issues reflect badly on us or do we have a right to get them all fixed? I would think our being in the apt only a month should suggest that these issues predate our tenancy but just want to get some opinions I guess - it feels a bit whingey to keep going to our landlord time and again (only one month in!) with failing appliances.

Thanks for any & all opinions.

confusticated

I get what you mean but I'd be inclined to bring them all up now, so that he can't give out when you go to move out that things are broken, or three months in when you could conceivably have damaged them. You can be nice about it like, you don't have to hand him a list and demand they're all fixed at once (although you could) but you could prioritise, say you need the fridge fixed in the next week or so if it's not keeping the temperature, and the oven will need to be fixed but isn't as urgent? When you say no moving on that issue, did he flat out refuse to fix it? That would ring a few alarm bells for me in the first month...

Also, from experience, not sure how you're communicating with him but I'd tend to have it in writing if possible.

Victor

I would be paranoid about the hob, as it has the additional risk of causing a fire.

ringthebells wrote: »

it now looks like our fridge is on the out - it's pooling water on the floor and fails to remain at the temperature we've set it at.

Is someone pressing the defrost button?

ringthebells

Victor wrote: »

I would be paranoid about the hob, as it has the additional risk of causing a fire.

Is someone pressing the defrost button?

RE: Hob - yep, I would've thought the landlord would've been concerned too as it's a bit of a safety risk either way. We told him about this issue 1-2 days into the tenancy and he acknowledged it and said he would fix it but hasn't, though he has fixed other small things that were also broken as we moved in (shower fixture, etc).

No-one is pressing the defrost button on the fridge - we're just coming home to pools of water and a lot of icy build-up despite the fridge being kept clean and at an appropriate temperature. It is a small, under-counter fridge with a freezer unit attached (which was also full of ice and uncleaned as we moved in, but anyway...)

I guess I just read a lot on these forums about tenants who get somehow 'uppity' or demand issues be fixed and how this can sometimes cause landlords to act aversely towards them in terms of raising rent, etc, though I am not sure he can do that to us until our year lease is over. Basically I would like to maintain a good relationship with him as he seems a decent man but these issues are impacting on our quality of life.

odds_on

What to do if there is a problem your accommodation
The Residential Tenancies Act 2004 states in Part 2, Section 16:

(d) notify the landlord or his or her authorised agent of any defect that arises in the dwelling that requires to be repaired so as to enable the landlord comply with his or her obligations, in relation to the dwelling or the tenancy, under any enactment,

This is very important. Very few tenants actually do this correctly, as a result, repairs or problem issues are not remedied and the tenant is constantly phoning or texting the landlord. This goes on for weeks and weeks if not months. Never ever rely on verbal agreements for repairs etc. either before signing a lease or once you have taken up occupancy.
If the tenant has an issue with anything in the property (appliance failure, pest infestation, problems with windows, floors, leaks, heating, etc) that the landlord should maintain under his obligations, then the following steps should be taken:
1. Advise the landlord immediately either by phone or text.
2. Follow up immediately by writing to the landlord (keep a copy), date it and state the failure and give the landlord a reasonable time to remedy the failure. A reasonable time would normally be 7 – 14 days but may be less in serious cases. If the tenant does not give the landlord a time limit for the rectification of the failure, the problem will to drag on and on and on …….
3. Under normal circumstances, if the landlord does not rectify the failure within the time limit then he is in breach of his obligations. However, if he has to wait for new parts, then he would not be considered in breach as this is out of his control.

If you have done the above, and the landlord has not remedied the problem then you should be free to leave after a written Notice of Termination (usually 28 days notice but could be 7 days in cases where serious injury or damage to tenant or property are possible) and be entitled to the return of your deposit. Again, keep a copy. There is an Example of Notice of Termination of Tenancy (with notes on its completion) on the PRTB web site which can be used by either tenant or landlord.
You could also make a claim to the PRTB for "damages" - inconvenience, stress, loss of quiet enjoyment of the property etc depending on the type of failure. Financial rewards to the tenant are often made in these cases.
By keeping a copy of the letter requesting repairs (make sure it is dated and specifies by when the repairs/replacement should be done) advising the landlord about the failure, you have evidence to back yourself up should there be a claim with the PRTB as regards the landlord’s breach of his obligations.
Under the RTA 2004 Section 12 (g), if you feel inclined and would like to remain in the property, you could have the repairs/failures remedied yourself, having:
a) received several quotes for the work and
b) informed the landlord (in writing, keep a copy) that as he has not remedied the issue you will have the work effected using the lowest quote (provide a copy) and withhold rent to cover the cost of same.

RTA 2004 Section 12
(g) without prejudice to any other liability attaching in this case, reimburse the tenant in respect of all reasonable and vouched for expenses that may be incurred by the tenant in carrying out repairs to the structure or interior of the dwelling for which the landlord is responsible under paragraph (b) where the following conditions are satisfied—
i) the landlord has refused or failed to carry out the repairs at the time the tenant requests him or her to do so, and
(ii) the postponement of the repairs to some subsequent date would have been unreasonable having regard to either—
(I) a significant risk the matters calling for repair posed to the health or safety of the tenant or other lawful occupants of the dwelling, or
(II) a significant reduction that those matters caused in the quality of the tenant’s or other such occupants’ living environment,

ringthebells

Thanks a million, odds_on - appreciate that advice. It feels a little bit formal doing the whole letter-writing thing - would be worried it will get the landlord's hackles up unnecessarily - but I guess that is where tenants and landlords alike fall into traps with tenancies. I'll send a reminder text and then a signed letter. Now how to do so in as friendly a way as possible...

odds_on

ringthebells wrote: »

Thanks a million, odds_on - appreciate that advice. It feels a little bit formal doing the whole letter-writing thing - would be worried it will get the landlord's hackles up unnecessarily - but I guess that is where tenants and landlords alike fall into traps with tenancies. I'll send a reminder text and then a signed letter. Now how to do so in as friendly a way as possible...

Do it correctly, with all the information required, because, should you have to go to the PRTB at any time (perhaps at the end of the tenancy in a couple of years time if the LL decides to retain part or all of your deposit unjustifiably) you will have the documentation to back up any claim whether by you or the landlord.