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Myself and my partner privately rent a house through a letting agency, on June 17th I reported that there was a water leak coming through the ceiling just off the corner of the main bedroom which had formed a damp patch of roughly 30cm's across. A repair man was sent out and discovered that the leak is coming from broken solar panel fixtures but he was not qualified to fix it which is fair enough. The letting agency informed me that the solar panels are owned by the landlord and falls under his responsibility to fix but they would inform him of the issue.
A couple of weeks went by and a technician from an electrical company came to assess the problem, he told me that it was something they could sort out but had other jobs to attend to first but would put us on the 'priority list' so it would be sorted soon.
Throughout the following weeks it had rain many times and the leak gets worse each time it does. When it rains water freely runs down the bedroom walls from the upper skirting (spans over a meter across the wall), soaks into and through the carpet into the floorboards and for the last two months it now runs into the main living room beneath onto the laminate flooring and if it rains heavy overnight we are welcomed by two meter plus wide puddles on the floor.
We have an 18 month old daughter who has slipped over on a few occasions when we have not noticed the water on the floor. Mould is spreading across the upper skirting in the main bedroom which despite how often we clear up it returns as the problem is deeper in, this is concerning for my partner as she is asthmatic and worries how it will affect her health if the mould continues to worsen. There is a second damp patch on the main bedroom ceiling which as of this day has grown to encompass the first and also a damp patch above the place where it comes into the living room.
Up to this day I have kept the letting agency informed by email each time the leak worsens and included photographic evidence. Whenever I ask for an update of when it will be fixed I keep being told someone will get back to me which has not happened. I even contacted the electrical company myself to ask and was met with the same response. It is nearly four months since I first reported the issue and my patience has worn out, the final straw was them informing me that our rent is to be increased in November knowing the issue this property has. My concern is with the health of my partner and safety of my daughter and it seems they are not concerned with this at all.
I am not savvy in this area of the law or rights as a private tenant and I'm here asking if anyone can give me any advice as to what steps I can take to get them/landlord to take this seriously, especially with more wet and cold weather not far off. Fairly certain there is more than one company in our region that can fix this. Lastly if it's handy to know we are on a standard assured shorthold tenancy agreement. Appreciate any help in this, thank you.
A couple of weeks went by and a technician from an electrical company came to assess the problem, he told me that it was something they could sort out but had other jobs to attend to first but would put us on the 'priority list' so it would be sorted soon.
Throughout the following weeks it had rain many times and the leak gets worse each time it does. When it rains water freely runs down the bedroom walls from the upper skirting (spans over a meter across the wall), soaks into and through the carpet into the floorboards and for the last two months it now runs into the main living room beneath onto the laminate flooring and if it rains heavy overnight we are welcomed by two meter plus wide puddles on the floor.
We have an 18 month old daughter who has slipped over on a few occasions when we have not noticed the water on the floor. Mould is spreading across the upper skirting in the main bedroom which despite how often we clear up it returns as the problem is deeper in, this is concerning for my partner as she is asthmatic and worries how it will affect her health if the mould continues to worsen. There is a second damp patch on the main bedroom ceiling which as of this day has grown to encompass the first and also a damp patch above the place where it comes into the living room.
Up to this day I have kept the letting agency informed by email each time the leak worsens and included photographic evidence. Whenever I ask for an update of when it will be fixed I keep being told someone will get back to me which has not happened. I even contacted the electrical company myself to ask and was met with the same response. It is nearly four months since I first reported the issue and my patience has worn out, the final straw was them informing me that our rent is to be increased in November knowing the issue this property has. My concern is with the health of my partner and safety of my daughter and it seems they are not concerned with this at all.
I am not savvy in this area of the law or rights as a private tenant and I'm here asking if anyone can give me any advice as to what steps I can take to get them/landlord to take this seriously, especially with more wet and cold weather not far off. Fairly certain there is more than one company in our region that can fix this. Lastly if it's handy to know we are on a standard assured shorthold tenancy agreement. Appreciate any help in this, thank you.
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