Repairs and responsibilities

Sutton Housing Society

As a landlord, we have a statutory duty to carry out repairs to your home. Generally, this includes but is not limited to:

• the structure and exterior of homes including the roof, walls, windows, hard surfaces, external doors and loft and cavity insulation;
• heating systems including central heating, gas boilers, flues and ventilation;
• water including pipes, basins, sinks, toilets, baths, drains and guttering;
• services for utilities including gas pipes, electrical wiring, and any appliances provided;
• communal areas such as hallways, stairs, lifts, communal entrances and some specified external areas which we own;
• other external areas (such as paths) where the landlord has responsibility.

Residents

Residents are responsible for taking care of the inside of their homes and for certain repairs, including:

• the repair and/or replacement of their own appliances;
• carrying out or paying for any repairs that are caused by accidental damage, misuse or neglect, including any damage caused by friends and visitors to the property;
• carrying out routine household maintenance, like replacing light bulbs, fuses, fluorescent tubes, batteries in smoke or heat detectors, replacing plugs and chains on sinks, baths and basins, unblocking a sink (where they have caused the blockage);

If you lock yourself out of your home, you will be charged for a contractor to attend and allow you access to your property. If you lose your keys resulting in a lock change you will be charged for this.

If you are concerned about mould, damp or condensation in your home, please take a look at this leaflet and contact the office should you need to report any concerns.

Most residents are also responsible for:

• internal decorations, furniture, fixtures and fittings and any additional fixtures added by you;
• replacing lost, broken or stolen keys and replacing locks to internal and external doors unless a crime reference number is provided;
• replacing cracked or broken glass (we will only make safe) unless a crime reference number is provided;
• TV aerials (except where these are maintained as part of a communal system), phone lines, satellite, cable TV and broadband to their own homes;
• general garden maintenance, including shrubs, patio area and garden sheds within self-contained gardens;
• repairs to garden fencing, gates and boundary walls to private gardens.

Pests

Pest infestations in individual homes are usually usually your responsibility, unless otherwise specified by the tenancy agreement.

Where an infestation has spread from a communal area or another home, we are responsible for the removal.

Recovering costs

Where a resident fails to carry out repairs for which they are responsible, we may carry out the work and recover the cost of the work from them. Once we have carried out the repair, we may then charge the resident in line with our recharges policy.

Residents will be recharged for replacement lock changes, keys, glazing if there is no associated police/crime reference number and out of hours callouts that relate to something that is a resident’s responsibility.