Tenancyrepairhandbook

Contents• Gettoknowyourproperty• Commonmaintenanceissues• Gasandcarbonmonoxide• Condensation• Blockages• Extractorfans• Appliances• Reportingarepair

Gettoknowyourproperty

Doyouknow…

• Wherethemainstopcockis?• Wherethefuseboardis?• Howtoturnoffthegassupplyinanemergency

Commonmaintenanceissues

1. Boilernotworking?• Checkthatthefusespurisswitchedon• Checkthatthepilotlightison.Ifisnot,presstheresetbuttonorlimittorestartthe

boiler• Pressuregaugeshouldreadaround1bar

2. Coldradiator?

Youmighthavetobleedyourradiatortoremoveanyairinit• Turnthecentralheatingandhotwateroff• Placeadryclothundertheradiatortocatchanywaterthatmaycomeout• Findthesquarebleedscrewatthetopoftheradiatoronthesideorback• Insertbleedingkey(availableatmostDIYshops)andturnitslowlyanti-clockwise

untilyouhearahissingnoise• Waituntilthehissingstopsandabitofwatercomesout• Retightenthescrewbutbecarefulnottoover-tightenit

Therearealsoseveralvideotutorialsavailableonline

3. Nopower?Checkthefuseboardandtryswitchingtrippedswitches.Ifnoswitchedhavetripped,checkwithyourneighboursandcallyourenergysuppliertocheckiftherehasbeenapowercutintheareaorthereareworkstakingplace.Ifitisnotthecase,contactus.

4. Singlelightout?Trytochangethelightbulbfirst.Ifitdoesnotwork,reportittousastheremightbeanelectricalfault.

5. Smokedetectorbeeping?

Whenasmokedetectorstartbeeping,itisawarningthatthebatteryisrunningout.Replaceitassoonaspossible.

6. GasandcarbonmonoxideIfyousmellorsuspectagasleak:

• Turnoffthegassupplyasthemeter,unlessitislocatedinthecellarorbasement• Openwindowsanddoorstoletgasescape• LeavethepropertyandcallNationalGridon0800111999

Gaschecksandservicing

Ifyourpropertyhasgas,onceayearwewillarrangeforaqualifiedgasengineertovisityourpropertyandcarryoutagasandsafetycheck.AGasSafetyCertificatewillthenbeproducedandsentbyemailforyourrecords.

Carbonmonoxide

Faultyappliances,includingfluesorventilationcanproducecarbonmonoxidefumes,whichareextremelydangerous.Ifyourpropertyhasgas,youshouldhaveacarbonmonoxidedetectorinstalled.Youareresponsibletochangebatterieswhenneeded.Ifthepropertyhasafuelburningappliancesuchasacoalfireitisalegalrequirementtohaveacarbonmonoxidedetector.

Condensation

Howtopreventit

• Openthewindowafterabathorshower• Makesureyouusetheextractorfansintheproperty.Forbetterperformance,cleanthem

every4-6months• Makesureventsarekeptclear• Reportanyleaksordampimmediatelytothepropertymanagementteam.• Controlroomtemperatureseffectively.Suddenchangesintemperaturecanputwarmairin

contactwithcoldsurfaces,whichincreasesthechancesofcondensation

Mouldgrowth

Whenasurfacehasbeenexposedtocondensationforlongperiodsoftimemouldmaygrow.Itcanappearinmanyformsbutitwillusuallydosoinsmallblackdots.Ifyousufferfromcondensation,pleasecheckforthesesignsregularly.

Howtotreatmould

• Makeasolutionofchlorinebleachandwater–1partbleachto3partswater–oruseahouseholddetergentspraywithbleachasanactiveingredient

• Usingastiff-bristledbrush,scrubtheblackenedarea• Rinsethoroughlyanddry• Youshoulddothisregularlyaspartofyourcleaningroutine.

Blockages

Howtounblockabath,basinorsink

• Useacuporsmallcontainertoremovemostofthewater• Usearagorclothtotightlycovertheoverflowopening• Putaplungerovertheplugholeandpumpupanddownrapidly• Oncetheblockageisclear,unscrewthetrapandcleanitout

Trapscaneasilybeunblockedbyunscrewingthejointandcleaningtheout

Beforeyoudoso,placeabucketunderneathtocatchanywater

Howtounblockatoilet

• Useacontainertoremovemostofthewaterifanyinthetoiletbowl• Useaplungerortoiletbrushandpushittothebottomofthepan• Createavacuumbypumpingupanddownrapidlyaboutadozentimes• Flushthetoilettocheckiftheblockagehasgone

Youmightneedtorepeatsteps3and4afewtimesbeforethetoiletflushesasusual

Extractorfans

Yourextractorfansshouldbecleanedregularlytoreducethebuild-upofgreaseanddust.Alwaysmakesureyouturnthemoffwhennotneeded.

Howtocleanyourextractorfan

• Firstofall,turnthefanoffatthewallswitch• Unscrewtheventanduseavacuumcleanertoremovedustthatmayhavesettledinside• Useadampclothtocleantheunit• Leavetheventtodry• Screwtheventbackin

Appliances

Washingmachine

Tokeepyourwashingmachineingoodorderandgetitsbestperformance,youshouldcarryoutamaintenancewashonceamonth.Inordertodoso,followthesesteps:

• Removethedetergentdrawerfollowingtheinstructionsonthewashingmachinemanual.Soakitinhotwateranduseasparetoothbrushtoremoveanyresidueofmould.Rinseitthoroughlyandletitdrybeforeputtingitback

• Dampaclothinbleachandwipearoundtherubbersealsofthemachine,beingcarefultoliftthemawayfromthemetalwherepossibletogetresiduethat’shiddenaway.Useprotectiveglovesforthis

• Setyourmachineforahotorsanitisingcycleandaddacupofwhitevinegartothedrum.Thevinegarwillhelpsanitiseyourmachine

• Letthecyclefinish.Openthedoorandair-drytheinsideofthedrum.Ifanybadodourorresidueremains,repeattheprocess

ReportingarepairWelcometoyournewhome

ThankyouforchoosingRegentLondonLetsasyourlettingagency.WewillbemanagingthepropertyonbehalfofyourLandlordduringyourtenancy.

WhattoexpectfromtheRegentLondonLetsPropertyManagementTeam:

RepairsandMaintenance

IfthereisafaultormaintenanceissueatyourPropertythatfallsoutsideyourresponsibilities,pleaselogtheissueviaouronlinehelpdesk,accessibleviaourwebsiteorat:https://regent-london.fixflo.com

Pleasenote:allmaintenanceissuesmustbeloggedviathehelpdesktobeprocessed.

BeforecontactingRegentLondonLetspleaseconsiderthenatureoftheproblem.WeareunabletoresolvesissuesthatdonotdirectlyrelatetotheactualPropertyitself.Forexample:

• Ifyouhaveissueswithyourwatersupply,pleasespeaktoThamesWater• Ifyourbincollectionismissedpleasespeaktoyourlocalcouncil

Ifyoueversuspectagasleak,youshouldcontactthefollowinghelpline:

• NationalGridGasEmergencies(FormallyTranscoGas)–0800111999(thisisa24-houremergencyline)

• PleaseseetheNationalGridwebsiteforfurtherdetails:wwww2.nationalgrid.com/uk/Safety/

General

• IfthereisaleakinyourProperty,pleasechecktoseewhetherthisiscomingfromaneighbouringproperty

• Intheeventofaleakthatisneighbour-related,youshouldendeavourtoretrievecontactdetailstopassontousforaccess

• Ifthereisapowercut,pleasecheckwhetherthisisalocalareaissueorwhetheronlyyourbuildingisaffected

• Ifyourdrainsareblockedpleasecheckthisisn’tduetoresiduebuild-up

Inallcases,werequireapprovalfromtheLandlordbeforeweprocessajob.Thismaytakeuptofiveworkingdaysfromwhenyoulogarequestsopleasetakethisintoconsiderationwhenlookingatresponsetimes.However,anythingthatposesaHealthandSafetyriskwillofsourcebedealtwithimmediately.

Responsetimes

Highpriority:Immediateaction24-48hours

• Substantialwaterleak• Securityissue• Powercut

• Disruptiontoheating• Lackofhotwater• Gasleak• Blockdrain

MediumPriority:4-5workingdays

• Accountmatters• Pestcontrol

Lowpriority:10-15workingdays

• Internalrefurbishment• Cleaning• Lightbulbreplacement

Call-outs

Pleaseconsiderthevalidityofthemaintenancematterbeforerequestinganymaintenancework.Therewillbeacall-outchargepayablebyyouastheTenantifthematterisfoundnottobetheresponsibilityoftheLandlord.Thecall-outchargermayrangefrom£50+VATtothecostoftheworks.NocontractorswillbeappointedtothePropertyuntilthechargeiscleared.

Access

WewillrequireaccesstothePropertyandwillliaisewithyoutoensureaconvenienttimeisbooked.If,however,youhavearrangedanappointmentandfailtobeatthePropertyoryourefuseentry,a£50+VATcancellationchargewillbepayable.

GasInspections

Annualinspectionsarerequiredbylaw.Accessmustbeprovidedtoallowonannualgassafetychecktobecarriedout.

TenancyRenewal

ThreemonthspriortotheendofyourtenancyyouwillbecontactedbyRegentlettingstonotifyyouofyourlandlord’spositionregardingrenewal.Ifyouwishtospeaktousregardingrenewalatanytimeduringyourtenancy,pleasecontactyourPropertyManager.

SecurityIssues

IntheeventofasecuritybreachofthePropertyinwhichyoureside,pleasefollowtheprocessbelow:

• Contactthepolice• Obtainacrimereferencenumber• Contactyourinsurancecompanyandprovidethemwithyourcrimereferencenumber• ContactyourPropertyManagerusingthecontactdetailsshownonthebackofthisbrochure

Keys

Replacementofbroken,lostorfaultykeysandlocksistheresponsibilityoftheTenant.

Do’sandDon’tsasaTenant(YourResponsibilities)

• NominateoneoftheTenantstobethemaincontactwithyourPropertyManager.• KeepthePropertyinacleancondition• Reportallfaultsinatimelymannerviaouronlinehelpdesk• Keepallcommunalareas(includingthegarden)tidyandclearofrubbish• TestthesmokealarmsinthePropertyandchangethebatteriesinlinewith

manufacturer’sinstructions• Replaceanylostkeys(youwillbeliableforthecostsandanydamageoccurringduring

re-entry)• ForwardanypostaddressedtotheLandlordtoyourPropertyManager• Reportproblemsinfullandallatonce,ratherthaninapiecemealfashion,viaouronline

helpdesk• KeepingoodconditionanyareasofthePropertythatfallunderyourtenancy

agreementincluding,butnotlimitedto,thegarden,communalspace,loftspace,garageandshed.

• NotifyyourPropertyManagerifyourpersonaldetailshavechanged• Leavefoodoutwhichmayencouragevermin• PutpicturesupwithoutaskingtheLandlord’spermission–emailyourPropertyManager

withthedetailsofwhereyouwouldliketohangthepicturesandtheywillliaisewiththelandlord.

• Causeanydamage.YouwillbeliableforthecostincurredinrepairingdamagecausedtothePropertybymisuseorneglect

• ContactRegentlettingswithutilityorcouncilqueries–youmustliaisewiththerelevantutilityprovidersorlocalauthoritiesdirectly

• AskyourPropertyManagertovisitthePropertytotakedeliveryofanyitemsortogiveaccesstothird-partycontractors.Thisisyourresponsibilityandwewillnotbeabletoassistwiththeserequests.

• AvoidreportingdamagesoccurringinthePropertyduringyourtenancy.Otherwiseyoumayruntheriskofincurringrepaircostsattheendofyourtenancywhichwillbedeductedfromyourdepositmonies.

Generalinformation

Rent

YourrentistobepaidtotheRegentLondonletsPropertyManagementAccountbystandingorder.Pleaseensureyouallowtransfertimefromyouraccountforrenttobereceivedasclearedfunds,onthedatetherentisdue.Asrentispayableinadvance,paymentswillbeclassedasonemonthoverdueiftheyarenotreceivedasclearedfunds.

Smoking

Yourtenancyagreementstipulatesano-smokingpolicywithintheProperty.IfyoudosmokewithinthePropertyyouwillbeinbreachofyourtenancyagreementandmaybesubjecttochargesforcleaningandredecoratingtheProperty.

Emergencies

IfthereisanemergencyattheProperty,pleasecontactyourPropertyManager.However,ifitinvolvesautilityservice(electricity,gas,wateretc.)youmustcontacttheutilityproviderdirectlyonthehelplinenumberprovidedonthebill.

Intheeventofafire:

• Donotstoptocollectpersonalbelongings–evacuatethePropertyimmediately.IfthereareotherpeopleintheProperty,soundthealarm(ifthereisone)asyoumakeyourescape

• TelephonetheFireBrigadeon999immediatelywhenyoureachaplaceofsafety.Ifyouthinkingtheremaybesomeoneleftinthebuildinginformthe999operatoranddonotattempttore-entertheProperty

Insurance

Itisimportantthattakeoutcontentsinsuranceinordertoprotectyourbelongings.

Withholdingrentsandthelaw

ATenantcannotwithholdrent.Iftheydoso,theLandlordhasthelegalrighttogivetheTenantanoticeofterminationduetonon-paymentofrentandcouldthenfileanapplicationforeviction.Inacaseinvolvingmaintenanceproblems,thereareotheroptionsaTenantcanpursuetodealwiththese.AslongastheLandlordisbeingreasonableinattemptingtoresolvesmatters,therecannotbeajustifiablereasontowithholdrent.

Whatconstitutesacomplaint?

• Maintenanceissuesresolvedoutsideofourresponsetimesasreferencedinthisbrochureandonourwebsite

• Poorqualityrepair