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Repairs and maintenance
This following information concerns the repairs and responsibilities that we are responsible for as landlord and you are responsible for as the leaseholder. It also tells you how to request a repair from the landlord and how long it will take us to do the repair.
Landlords Repairs:
We are responsible for the repair and maintenance to the structure of the building and those parts that are used by all residents, these are known as communal repairs. You will have to pay your share of the costs of these works through your service charges.
This includes:
- The roof
- External walls
- Internal supporting walls
- Joists, beams and lintels
- Window frames and sashes
- External doors and frames
- Guttering, down pipes and soil stacks
- Drains (serving the whole building)
- Lifts
- Booster and pit pumps
- Alarms
- TV aerials
- Communal; heating systems
- External lighting
- Entrance lobbies and stairways (communal)
- Roads and paths
- Gardens (communal)
Requesting a repair:
If you need to request a repair or report a problem in a communal area you should telephone the local housing office, or call in to the reception.
We will deal with your request in the same way we deal with repairs for tenants. We will tell you what the priority is and when the repair will be done by. If it is internal to your flat you will be given an appointment.
The priority times are:
Priority 1 – these are emergency repairs and will be completed in 2 hours of being reported
Priority 2 – repairs will be completed within 24 hours of the request
Priority 3 – repairs will be completed within seven days
Priority 4 – repairs will be completed within 28 days
Priority 5 – repairs will be completed within 13 weeks
Out of hours emergencies:
If there is an emergency repair that is required outside normal office hours (8.45am-5.00pm Monday to Friday) you should telephone 020 8748 8588.
An emergency would be a repair that is necessary to prevent personal injury, something that could damage someone's health or a danger to the building. You should not use this number if the repair is not the landlords' responsibility.
Gas leaks should not be reported on this number. Telephone Transco direct immediately you become aware there is, or might be, a problem. Their number is in the local directory.
Access to carry out repairs:
If we need to get inside your flat to carry out a repair, for which we are responsible, we will try to give you at least 24 hours notice of this. We will try to do the repair at a time convenient to you. Repairs such as TV aerials, door entry systems and window repairs may need us to come into your flat.
In an extreme emergency we may need to get into your flat immediately for example flooding into the flat below. If you are not contactable we may need to force an entry. If this is necessary we will inform the Police of our intentions, and make every effort to contact you. If we force an entry we will make sure the flat is left secure and you know who to contact to get back into your flat.
Major Works:
From time to time the council will undertake major works to your building, some of which may include work to your flat.
Leaseholders' repairs:
As a leaseholder you are responsible for repairs inside your flat.
These include repairs to:
- Window glass, and sills
- Wall and ceiling plaster
- Floor boards and concrete floors
- Internal doors
- Plumbing and electrics servicing your flat only
- Water tanks serving your flat only
- Individual heating systems
- All fixtures and fittings
You are also required to keep the property in good decorative repair internally.
The council cannot undertake any repairs inside your flat, if they do you will be charged the full cost of the repair plus an administration fee. You must not use the emergency service to request repairs to the inside of your flat.
The council cannot recommend a contractor to undertake repairs for you. You should select your contractor carefully try to select one that is registered with one of the trades organisations. For example Corgi registered gas installers.
Alteration and improvements to your home:
Under the terms of your lease you are allowed to make alterations or improvements to your flat. However you must first get the permission of the landlord to carry out the works.
This is so that the landlord can make sure that what you are planning to do will not affect others who live in the building or put the building at risk of damage in the future or you neighbours.
The alterations you want to make will depend on the type of consent you will need. There are two forms of licence, a letter licence and a full licence. The letter licence is issued when the alteration is of a minor nature, for example installing central heating, removal or erection of stud partition walls. A full licence is issued when the alterations affect the structure of the building, for example loft conversions, extensions, removing internal load-bearing walls.
You do not need our permission to renew your kitchen units or bathroom suite.
If you install shower you must make sure it is properly plumbed as this is the most common cause of leaks into other flats. You will be responsible for any damage caused by water penetration from your flat if you have carried out alterations involving plumbing.
Applying for a licence:
If you want to carry out alterations you must first complete an application form. You can get this form from the Right to Buy section by telephoning 020 8753 1743 or emailing home.ownership@lbhf.gov.uk or write to Home Ownership Unit, RTB section, Riverview House, London, W6 9AR.
It is important that you complete the form as fully as possible and return it with all the paperwork required to support your application. Letter licences will take approximately six weeks to complete and full licences will take around eight weeks.
Planning Permission and Building Control:
In many cases you will also need to make an application for Planning permission and Building Control approval.
Planning permission is required for all alterations to flats including internal layout changes, extensions, loft conversions and other external changes. Unlike houses flats do not have any deemed planning consents. Planning is mainly concerned with the appearance of the building in relation to other buildings in the street. Town and Country planning law deals with changes to buildings.
Building Control is required for all alterations to flats and is concerned with the structural integrity of the building and safety for all occupants. Building Control will look at your proposals and the way the work is to be done. It will make sure that the building work is done to a good standard and in a way that will not result in damage to the building.
Building Control will also look at proposals for internal alterations to make sure the building is safe for all users. For example all rooms off of a passage or hallway must have doors and kitchens must have doors fitted. This is to slow down the spread of fire.
Applications and further information about Planning Consent and Building Control can be obtained from the councils Environment Department located at the Town Hall, King Street, W6 9AJ. You can also telephone their call centre on 020 8753 1811.
CAUTION:
If you are thinking of doing a loft conversion, extension or basement conversion you should first check your lease to make sure the area you are going to build on is included in the lease.
Leases do not include loft spaces and these will have to be purchased from the council before you can do any work or use the loft area. You should not take it for granted that the loft will be sold to you. You should check out your plans with your neighbours as any objections they have may affect our decision to sell you the space or grant a licence
Also if you are planning an extension you must make sure the area you intend to build on is included in your lease. You will not be allowed to build on any communal ground shared with other building users.