Leak through Ceiling of my Flat - Neighbour won't deal with

[TigerPicker]

Hi All,

First time poster, but read some of the topics on the forums for advice before. Long post, so please bear with me.

I live in the middle flat, with one above and below. I’ve had an on and off leak through my Bathroom ceiling for the past few weeks. It’s leaked out around 6-7 times through the Bathroom Light fitting. I immediately notified the upstairs neighbours about it and phoned the housing association to report the problem; I own my property fully but not everyone does in the block.

I’ve spent the past few weeks trying to get this sorted, I’ve had a plumber out as soon as possible after to look it from my property. Based on the damp in the ceiling, the fact that it's not happening all the time, and where the leak is coming from, his best conclusion is that it’s either the seal around the plughole/waste pipe, the overflow pipe to the bath or the grouting around the tiles in the property above.

The housing association won’t get involved as I own my property and the neighbours above part own and part rent. At present it the visible damage is damp in the ceiling leading to where their bath is and to the light fitting, which I’ve had to keep switched off since the leaks started. I’m obviously concerned about non – visible damage as well.

I’ve offered to pay for a plumber call out to look at the issue and fix it if it’s not a major issue, and have offered to be at home when the plumber attends to assist. I’ve spoken to my insurance and notified them, but at this stage they won’t do anything about.

I’ve tried to deal with the neighbours verbally and by text so far, but they refuse to engage with me properly to deal with the issue as it isn't visibly affecting them

I’ve had enough with trying to communicate with them reasonably about the issue, my next planned step is to write separate letters to both them and the housing association, outlining the problem, restating the offer to pay a reasonable amount for a plumber to attend and fix the issue with a time limit on the offer (say 7 Days). My questions are;

• Any other actions I should be taking at this stage?
• Are there any other approaches I can take to getting this sorted (Environmental Health etc)

Any advice greatly appreciated.

[Captain Haddock]

I would certainly write to the part-owners (by name) and to the HA, if they are indeed the other part-owner and state that you intend to contact the local council/regional authority and ask for their assistance. I am pretty sure that councils can get involved in enforcing repairs on private property. Pretty surprised at the attitude of the both these parties named, especially the HA, as landlords have a duty to keep their property in repair.