Repairs & Improvements
The Council’s repair responsibilities
These are also detailed on page 10 of your tenancy agreement. If the Council has to carry out a repair because of wilful neglect or damage, and not fair wear and tear, you will be charged for the work.
The Council will keep in good repair the structure, exterior and common parts of the premises, together with any installations provided by the Council for space heating, water heating and sanitation, and for the supply of gas, water and electricity, including:
- roofs, walls and floors
- stairways, lifts, passageways, rubbish chutes and other common parts
windows and external doors (including frames, thresholds, hinges, locks, jambs, lintels and letter boxes) - gutters, down pipes, waste pipes and drains (but not clearing blocked drains)
- chimneys and flues including annual sweeping of chimneys
- internal walls, door frames, floors and ceilings (not including internal painting and decorating)
- internal plasterwork (except minor cracks and blemishes)
- heating systems and equipment installed by the Council
- heating systems and equipment installed by the tenant where the Council has agreed to undertake the maintenance
- smoke detectors
- carbon monoxide detectors
- gas pipes and electrical wiring
- sinks, basins, baths and toilets
- external decorations
- banisters and handrails
- paths, steps and boundary fencing
- garages
The tenant’s repair responsibilities
These are also detailed on page 4 of your tenancy agreement. You must carry out the following repairs for which you are responsible promptly and at your own expense:
- replacing damaged door handles, latches, letter boxes and knockers
- replacing locks and keys where lost or damaged
- replacing broken locks and hinges (including outhouses)
- unblocking sink, bath and lavatory waste pipes, and cleaning gullies, where blockage is caused by household waste
- replacing window and door glazing as a result of damage or breakage not caused by the Council or its contractors
- replacement of internal doors where wilfully damaged
- trimming of doors to clear floor coverings
- plugs and chains to baths, sinks and basins
- toilet seats and covers
- replacement of cracked and broken wall tiles
- electrical fuses, bulbs, tubes and plug tops
- shelving, coat hooks etc.
- pelmets and curtain fittings
- internal decoration
- replacement of fire baskets, frets, bars, firebricks and glass strips to heating appliances where less than two years old
- inter-property fencing
- flexible gas tubes for cookers
- paths (except for main paths leading to front and back doors)
- dustbins and clothes drying facilities
Repair priorities
The Council has the following response times for repairs:
EMERGENCY REPAIRS - WITHIN 24 HOURS
These are repairs necessary to avoid danger to occupants or serious damage to the property. Examples include major pipe leaks, total power failure, serious roof defects, lightening, storm or flood damage, blocked or broken W.C’s, broken soil pipes, serious roof defects.
URGENT REPAIRS - WITHIN 7 WORKING DAYS
These are repairs necessary to prevent further damage to the property. Examples include replacing or repairing sanitary fittings; replacing door or window furniture; slating and roof work.
ROUTINE REPAIRS - WITHIN 28 WORKING DAYS
These are non-urgent repairs, and include internal joinery work; pointing and brickwork; easing of doors and windows.
Cyclical and planned maintenance
As well as day-to-day repairs, the Council operates the following maintenance programmes:
Cyclical maintenance
The Council services its gas and solid fuel central heating systems every 12 months, and paints external doors and windows on a five yearly basis.
Planned maintenance
This covers major work such as re-roofing and electrical re-wiring, for which you will not be asked to pay more rent.
Modernisation and Improvements
The Council has a planned programme for further modernisation and improvements. This is a ten- year rolling programme and you will be informed in good time if your home is affected.
How to ask for a repair
You can request a repair online, by phone, in writing or in person at the local area housing office or centrally at the shire offices in Neuadd Maldwyn or Neuadd Brycheniog. A member of staff will log your request and pass it to a Maintenance Officer for him/her to arrange to inspect the repairs or to raise a works order to pass to the Housing Maintenance Services. The person taking your request will pass emergencies directly to the Housing Maintenance Services.
When you ask for a repair, the Council will need to know:
- your name, address and telephone number (if you have one)
- what needs to be repaired or replaced
- what the problem is
- what the cause of the problem is (if known)
- where it is: inside or out, upstairs or down
- can you describe the item (size, shape, what it is made of)?
- is it causing any other problems or damage?
- when it would be convenient for someone to call either to inspect or carry out the repair.
By giving the Council this information we will have a good idea of what needs to be done and what materials are needed. This will help us respond quickly to your problem.
If you are not happy with the way your repairs request is dealt with you should follow the Complaints Procedure.
Your right to repair
You can get certain small, urgent repairs done (up to the value of £250) if they are likely to affect your health, safety or security. These are known as “qualifying repairs”.
If the repair which you have requested is a “qualifying repair”, the Council will arrange for the works to be done within the set time, and will send you a copy of the repair notice it sends to the contractor. If the Council does not do your repair in time, you can insist that another contractor does the work. If the repair is still not done in time, the Council will pay you compensation of up to £50 per repair.
“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 (if there is no other toilet)
- water leaking from heating pipes, tanks or cisterns
- loose or broken banisters or handrails
