I moved into a privately rented flat three weeks ago through a letting agent. The cooker that came with the property has a broken oven element and two of the four hob rings do not ignite. I reported this to the agent on my second day and they said they would “pass it on to the landlord”. I chased them again last week and was told the landlord “is looking into it” but nothing has happened.
The inventory lists the cooker as included with the property and it was there when I viewed the flat. My tenancy agreement does not specifically mention appliances but it does say the landlord will keep the property in good repair. I have been using a microwave and a plug in hob I bought myself in the meantime.
Is there a legal obligation on the landlord to repair or replace the cooker given it was provided with the flat?. And if the agent continues to stall, what is the correct next step. I do not want to escalate things unnecessarily as I have only just moved in but three weeks with no proper cooking facilities is getting ridiculous.
If it was on the inventory as a provided item then yes, the landlord is responsible for keeping it in working order or replacing it. The Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018 requires the property to be fit for habitation throughout the tenancy and a cooker that does not work could fall under that, though a lot depends on whether it was listed as a fixture or a chattel. Either way the fact that it was there at viewing and on the inventory makes it the landlord’s problem.
Put the complaint in writing to the agent by email so you have a paper trail, reference the inventory entry specifically, and give them a reasonable deadline, say 14 days. If nothing happens after that you can contact the local authority’s environmental health team. Keep receipts for the plug in hob, you may be able to argue for reimbursement later though I would not hold my breath on that.
Three weeks is daft. Buy a cheap freestanding cooker from Argos and take it out of next month’s rent. They’ll move fast enough then.
Update on this. I emailed the letting agent again on Friday chasing a response and they came back this morning saying the landlord wants to send someone round to repair the cooker rather than replace it. The oven element they can do but they said they need to “assess” the hob rings which to me sounds like they are going to tell me two working rings is acceptable.
The cooker is at least fifteen years old based on the model number I looked up. At what point can I insist on a replacement rather than a patch up job?. I do not want to go down the route of buying my own cooker and deducting from rent as I think that would cause problems with the agent. But three and a half weeks with half a cooker is wearing thin.
Another update. The letting agent rang me this afternoon to say the engineer they use is fully booked until the 16th, so it will be almost two more weeks before anyone even looks at it. I have now been without a working oven for over three weeks and only two hob rings. I asked the agent whether I could arrange my own repair and deduct it from the rent and they said no, do not do that, it could be treated as non-payment. I am not sure that is right?. I have been cooking everything in a microwave and a slow cooker since I moved in. At what point does this become a breach of the fitness for habitation requirements?. I do not want to escalate things with the landlord this early in a tenancy but this is getting ridiculous.
Two weeks on top of three you’ve already waited? Buy an electric hob off Amazon for thirty quid and stop suffering.
The letting agent emailed today offering to drop off a single ring induction hob as a temporary measure until the engineer visit on the 16th. I asked whether the landlord would consider just replacing the cooker given it is clearly beyond economical repair and the response was that they need to wait for the engineer’s report before making a decision. So the sequence is: three weeks with a broken cooker, then a single ring hob for another two weeks, then an engineer visit, then presumably another week or two while they decide what to do, then however long it takes to actually get a replacement fitted. We are looking at March before this is resolved. I have started keeping a log of every email and date as someone suggested earlier in the thread.
@Northgate79 take the hob. It is not ideal but you have been without a working cooker for weeks and holding out for perfection is not going to speed things up. In the meantime put everything in writing, confirm the 16th date by email, and ask them to confirm whether it will be a repair or replacement. If it drags past the 16th you have a paper trail.
Took everyone’s advice and accepted the hob. The agent dropped it off yesterday evening, it is a single ring thing that looks like it belongs in a caravan. It works though, so that is something. The engineer visit is still booked for the 16th. I have asked twice now whether they will replace the cooker if it cannot be repaired and both times the agent has said they need to speak to the landlord first.