Repairs and Improvements
Who is responsible for what?
It is our job to maintain and repair your home. This section explains in detail the repairs service that we provide for you.
Our responsibilities
We are responsible for maintaining the structure and outside of your home. We will repair:-
- Roofs, foundations, outside walls
- Drains, gutters, external pipes
- External doors, windows and fascia boards
- Fences, pathways, steps and other entrances to the building
- Chimneys and chimney stacks
Inside your home, we will repair:-
- Plumbing systems including pipework, tanks, stopcocks, taps, cisterns
- Internal doors, internal door frames, skirting boards, kitchen cupboards
- Central heating systems, immersion heaters
- Electrical wiring, plug socket outlets, light fittings, switches
- Floors and stairs
In shared areas of blocks of flats, we will maintain:-
- Communal stairways, corridors, entrances
- Shared facilities including television aerials, door entry systems, rubbish chutes, lifts, common area lighting
Emergency “out of hours” services
When our offices are closed we provide an emergency contact service. It is available 365 days a year, 24 hours a day on 0800 923 2700. Please use this number only in a genuine emergency.
Emergency Repairs
This service deals with situations such as burst pipes, power failure or fire damage. We will try to get someone to make safe or repair a problem, as quickly as possible and will normally attend to carry out an interim repair within 2 hours. Please note, if we later find the damage was caused by you, your family or visitors, we may have to charge you.
Reporting repairs
You must report any faults or damage immediately to us to prevent more serious damage occurring. You can do this in any of the following ways:-
Online, in person, in writing or by telephone to your Area Housing Office By telephone to the Repairs Freephone Number on 0800 923 2700
When you report a repair, always give the following information:-
- Your name, address, mobile or landline telephone number
- The room and location of the repair
- Details of what repair is needed
- Dates and times when we can gain access to do the work
Whenever you report a repair you will be sent a repair notification with a unique reference number, target date for completion of the repair, the name of the contractor and the detail of the repair requested. Keep your receipt as proof that you have reported the repair. Please complete and return the repair notification to us when the repair has been carried out. It is important for us to know whether the work was completed on time and if it was to your satisfaction. If you send your notification back to us, you will be entered into a monthly prize draw to win Marks & Spencer vouchers.
Getting the repair done quickly
The time taken to carry out repairs depends upon the sort of repair you need. We have four different categories ranging from emergencies, where there is danger to life, to non- urgent work like renewing a bath panel. In exceptional circumstances, for example, where an elderly or disabled person is involved, a repair may be given a higher priority. If a workman calls when you are out, they will leave a card. You must contact them to arrange another time for them to call, otherwise the job may be cancelled.
Please quote your ‘Job number ’ located on your Repair notification if you ever need to contact us regarding your repair.
Giving access
You must allow our workers or contractors into your home to inspect the condition of the property or to carry out repairs. In many cases an appointment will be arranged giving you at least 24 hours notice of when we will call to inspect the property or do the repairs. But if there is an emergency which may cause personal injury or damage to either your or another property, we can enter your home immediately. Our inspectors, contractors and The Trust Staff all carry identification which you should ask to see before letting them into your home. Representatives of Gas, Electricity and Water Companies also carry Identity Cards. They should also have an official order form, or ‘job sheet’ with them.
If you have any doubts about someone who calls at your home, don't let them in, check with your Area Housing Office or the Call and Repairs Centre.
How quickly can you expect repairs to be done?
We have four different categories of repairs which relate to a target time you can expect the repair to be completed by. In exceptional circumstances for example where an elderly or disabled person is involved, a repair may be given a higher priority.
- Priority E
- Emergency work which will be completed/made safe within 2 hours and is not pre-inspected.
- Priority X
- Emergency work which will be completed/made safe within 24 hours and is not pre-inspected. This applies only to serious emergency situations where there is a danger of death or injury or major damage to your home or surrounding homes. Reinstatement of essential services is also a top priority.
- Priority U
- This is for urgent repairs which will be completed/made safe within 5 calendar days and is generally not preinspected. This is for situations where the repair is urgently required but there is no immediate danger if it is not completed within 24 hours. Typical examples are:-
- Sinks, baths, basins - blocked
- Electric - fire/heater elements, lights, sockets, switches
- Waste pipes - leaks
- Door Entry Systems - repair
- Drains - blocked (surface water)
- Glazing - including doors
- Locks - doors/windows (repair/replace)
- Priority R
- This is for routine repairs which will be completed
within 28 calendar days and when appropriate, pre-inspected within 7 days. This is for situations where a repair is required but there is no immediate danger. Examples include:-
- Brickwork - internal
- Communal (shared) areas of flats - repairs to stairways/corridors/entrances
- Dampness or condensation
- Doors - internal/frames
- Gutters - broken/hanging
- Plaster - bulging/fallen/loose, all internal plastering
The above lists act as a guide for when you can expect a repair to be done. For more information about specific repairs ask at your Area Housing Office or dial the freephone number.
Please note, if it is necessary to order parts, a delay may occur, but you will be fully advised of when to expect a completion of the works.
Decorating after repairs
After a repair, we will leave the decoration as close as possible to how it was before we did the work. If this is not possible, we may be able to help by giving you a decoration allowance.
If you ask us, and there is already a gas supply to the property, we will install a bayonet fitting for a gas cooker at the start of your tenancy.
Make sure you know where essential services can be found such as stop tap, meter cupboard, etc.
Usually we are responsible for any fixtures or fittings that are already installed inside or outside the property before you move in but there may be some exceptions, such as when a mutual exchange of tenancies takes place.
You are responsible for minor repairs as listed below, but we may be able to help you if you are over 60 years of age or disabled.
- Plugs and chains for sinks, baths and wash hand basins
- Toilet seats and covers
- Clothes lines and rotary dryers (except in shared yards)
- Chimney sweeping (except 3 storey flats). Chimneys should be swept twice a year for safety and efficiency. If you burn logs you should sweep your chimney every 3 months
- Grate bottoms within 12 months of renewal
- Electric plugs and fuses
- Gate and shed latches
- Internal door locks and latches (change of locks if keys are lost)
- Cost of gaining entry if you are locked out
- Smoke detector batteries and testing smoke alarms
- Floor and wall tiles
- Letter plates
- Minor plaster crack repairs
- Minor repairs to kitchen unit cupboards and drawers
- Internal decorating (keeping the inside of your home clean and tidy)
In addition to the above, you are responsible for carrying out repairs or renewing any of our fixtures and fittings which have been damaged or deliberately neglected by you, anyone living with you (including children), or any visitors.
If we have to repair damage you or they have caused, you will be asked to pay for the cost of the work. We ask for payment (or an arrangement to pay over a set amount of time) before any work is carried out. Only emergency repairs will be undertaken until any outstanding debts have been paid.
Remember: Always leave a spare key with a friend or neighbour, in case you lock yourself out. You are also responsible for repairing or maintaining any fixture or fitting which you have paid for and installed yourself.
Remember, improvements need written consent before being undertaken and if consent is given the cost would normally be met by yourself.
Your Right to Repair
We aim to complete all repairs to a good standard within the priority timescales. However, if we have failed to carry out certain repairs within a certain time and you have given us reasonable access, then you may use your legal ‘Right to Repair’. The ‘Right to Repair’ is a scheme to make sure that certain small urgent repairs (up to the value of £250) which might effect your health, safety or security, are done quickly and safely. These repairs are called Qualifying Repairs and are the Trust's responsibility.
Qualifying Repairs include:-
- unsafe power or lighting sockets or electrical fittings
- blocked flue to open fire or boiler
- leaking roof
- toilets which don't flush
- blocked sink, bath or basin
- leaking water pipes, tank or cistern
- loose or broken banisters or handrails
When you report a ‘Qualifying Repair’ you will be sent a repair receipt. This will tell you which contractor will do the repair and when it should be done by. If the first contractor doesn't do the repair in time you can contact the Call and Repairs Centre and ask for a second contractor to do the work. Unless there is a good reason why the work hasn't been done, we can get a second contractor. You will get a second Repair Receipt. The second contractor then has the same amount of time to do the repair as the first one had.
If the second contractor doesn't do your repair in time, you can claim £10 in compensation. For every extra day you wait, you will get a further payment of £2 up to the maximum compensation allowed for any one job of £50. We will pay you compensation unless you owe us any money. If you do, then we will take it way from the amount you owe. Sometimes there may be a good reason why a repair can't be done. For example, if the workmen couldn't get into your home to carry out the repair. In a case like this, we will not have to pay you any compensation.
Communal television aerials
If your television operates using a shared aerial system and you suspect that it is faulty, please check with your neighbours that they are having problems with their reception before reporting the matter. If there is a problem report it to the Call & Repairs Centre.
We have Service Standards for Repairs, which we aim to meet.
date published: 29/01/2008