About our repairs service and reporting a repair.

Advice on Coronavirus COVID-19

We want to let you know that we’re closely monitoring the situation around Coronavirus COVID-19.

We’ll do our utmost to maintain essential services though we have little choice but to do some things a bit differently for the time being.

Click here for more information from us on COVID-19.

Our repairs service

Our repairs service is here to carry out essential repairs to your property. We have a team of operatives who cover emergencies, gas and electric jobs, roofing, plumbing and other building repairs.

If you need to contact us, please click here to see our opening times and contact details. We will give you an appointment slot for many of the jobs we do so please let us know if you cannot make it.

Our repairs policy

Our repairs policy document contains information on these points:

Which repairs are our responsibility and which are the tenant’s responsibility.
How we prioritise repairs.
What happens if there are special reasons we should prioritise a repair
Which repairs might be dealt with by our planned programme
Our out of hours service
Rechargeable repairs

Revised repairs policy

Revised Repairs Policy from Friday 20 March 2020

You can download our most recent full repairs policy document below:

Repairs policy [pdf] 140KB

We’ve reviewed and updated our repairs policy, considering feedback from tenants and ensuring we comply with new legislation under the Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018.

Click here for further reading on the consultation and tenants’ views in Tap4 issue 3.

The policy changes that we’ve made will provide a better repairs service offer to tenants and help us to deliver quality affordable homes for all.

The key changes include us now:

replacing all failed double glazing (changed from living rooms only);
completing all emergency repairs within 2 or 24 hours (removing 12 hour and 3 day targets);
repairing or replacing kitchen and bathroom doors;
changing bulbs in kitchens and bathrooms;
replacing broken fluorescent lights with LEDs;
in void properties; completing refurbishment works before new tenants move in, installing extractor fans, and installing cloakroom basin units in downstairs bathrooms where space is available;
and the policy document itself is also more comprehensive in its scope and reworded for clarity.

The Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018 should result in better living standards across the social and private rented sector and give tenants more power to hold their landlord accountable when falling short of their responsibilities.

See our Repairs FAQs

Total results: 10

How do you prioritise repairs?
How quickly will you be able to respond to an emergency repair?
What do I do if I won’t be at home at my appointment time?
What happens if you visit to do a repair when I am not in?
What happens when I report a repair?
What if I can’t pay for a chargeable repair?
What if I don’t want to pay you to carry out a repair?
What shall I do if I smell gas?
What should I do if I’m not satisfied with repair work you’ve done on my home?
When will you remove any debris left by work to my home?

How do you prioritise repairs?

Emergency repairs take priority. They are usually dealt with within a few hours of your call and always within 24 hours.
Urgent repairs are dealt with within a week of being reported.

Minor non urgent repairs are usually dealt with by our community based repairs service within seven working days of being reported.

Essential repairs are usually large non urgent repairs. These are dealt with within 21 working days of being reported.
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How quickly will you be able to respond to an emergency repair?

We will respond to extreme emergencies within two hours. We will usually respond to other emergency repairs within a maximum of 24 hours.
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What do I do if I won’t be at home at my appointment time?

Please tell us as soon as possible so we can rearrange your appointment.
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What happens if you visit to do a repair when I am not in?

If you are not in when we come to carry out the repair we will leave a card asking you to call us to make another appointment.
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What happens when I report a repair?

When we receive the report we may need to check some of the details with you or arrange an appointment so make sure you provide us with contact information.
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What if I can’t pay for a chargeable repair?

If you can’t pay it all at once then a payment plan can be agreed. However if you refuse to pay we may take legal action to recover the cost.
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What if I don’t want to pay you to carry out a repair?

You can carry out chargeable repairs at your own expense with a different repairs person. If you do this you need to make sure they are able to do the work to a high standard, have the right qualifications and are insured. If we need to put their work right we will charge you for this.
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What shall I do if I smell gas?

Turn off all gas appliances
Open all the windows and doors
Put out any naked flames, eg candles
Do not smoke
Do not use electrical switches
Call the National Grid Emergency Number on Freephone 0800 111 999
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What should I do if I’m not satisfied with repair work you’ve done on my home?

If you’re not happy with work we’ve done on your property please call us immediately to let us know.
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When will you remove any debris left by work to my home?

Any debris left by building work or an accident will be removed within three working days. If it is classed as hazardous it will be removed within 24 hours. If it is not removed within these timescales then call our 24 hour debris hotline on 01204 660665.
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