Can delayed reporting of a leak make a tenant liable for damage?
9 months ago | 5 comments
Should tenants receive compensation for delayed hot water repair?
12:01 AM, 31st July 2026, 3 weeks ago
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Hi, I have two tenants in an all-electric property, and both elements in the hot tank failed. The thermal reset worked for a while, and I tried changing the thermostats, but neither solved the problem.
The repair took about six weeks in total to complete. Contributory factors were the contractor not being available and the tenant not willing for me to accompany a contractor.
I lent the tenants an urn so they could at least do the washing up. They have an electric shower, and the property has heating.
The two tenants are a gentleman who has some autistic issues and a lady who has various health issues. He has just moaned a bit in WhatsApp messages, with no formal complaint.
I don’t know whether they have any recourse under the tenancy agreement or the new Renters’ Rights Act. Any payment would be a goodwill one.
What do you think I should offer the tenants in compensation, if anything?
Thanks,
Mike
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Member Since August 2016 - Comments: 1196
10:16 AM, 31st July 2026, About 3 weeks ago
What are you thinking of compensating them for, loss of hot water out of the tap ? They have heating and an electric shower. And you’ve given them a hot water urn to use. I can’t see they have suffered any hardship here. Things break and landlords repair them as best they can, which you’ve done here. That’s life. Once you go down the compensation route you’re admitting liability and can open up a load of grief so don’t do that.
Member Since February 2016 - Comments: 2
11:19 AM, 31st July 2026, About 3 weeks ago
I just wonder why they are so unwilling for you to accompany the contractor.. what are they trying to hide..??
Member Since October 2019 - Comments: 427
12:34 PM, 31st July 2026, About 3 weeks ago
Do what the government do, drag your feet!
Member Since January 2015 - Comments: 1557 - Articles: 1
2:50 PM, 31st July 2026, About 3 weeks ago
Offer nothing as you supplied alternative source for hot water. For washing up they could have just boiled a kettle.
Member Since October 2020 - Comments: 1317
10:34 PM, 31st July 2026, About 3 weeks ago
Never offer compensation. Anything ever offered should be a goodwill gesture with no admission of liability. However, given what youve said, I see little evidence in this case that the repair could have been done much quicker, so I dont think any payment is due.
Member Since August 2026 - Comments: 7
9:47 PM, 7th August 2026, About 2 weeks ago
I’d be more careful than the answers above. Heating water is squarely inside s11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, and six weeks is not a short outage. The Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018 lets a tenant bring a claim themselves without going near the council.
The urn and the electric showers help you. They reduce what was actually lost. They don’t make the breach go away.
The thing that will decide it is your paper trail. When were you first told, when did you instruct someone, when were you refused access. If you have that logged with dates you’re in reasonable shape. If you don’t, that’s the gap to close before you decide anything about money.
Member Since October 2020 - Comments: 1317
2:20 PM, 9th August 2026, About 2 weeks ago
Reply to the comment left by at 21:47
The key factor is whether an owner-occupier in the same situation could have got it done any quicker.
Member Since September 2018 - Comments: 3708 - Articles: 5
5:07 PM, 9th August 2026, About 2 weeks ago
you have done all you can to mitigate the inconvenience of not having a not water tank to provide hot water by lending them an urn. Probably not necessary really as they can boil a kettle. They do not need compensation as there is no change to heating or hot water for showering. Waiting for a contractor is normal. It is not an excessive time to wait and you have communicated with them throughout.
Member Since August 2026 - Comments: 7
8:36 AM, 11th August 2026, About 1 week ago
Reply to the comment left by DPT at 14:20
That’s not the test though. Section 11 asks whether the repair was done in a reasonable time, and an owner-occupier isn’t a comparison because nobody owes them a repairing covenant. Someone choosing to live with a cold tap is making a choice. A tenant isn’t.
I guess “Could” is the operative word here. And I think most arbitration would agree that somebody “could” have got hot water repaired in less than 6 weeks.
Doesn’t mean Mike owes anything here. The urn and the electric shower genuinely cut the loss, and if the delay was access being refused that’s on the tenants. It just isn’t decided by what a homeowner would have tolerated.
Member Since October 2020 - Comments: 1317
10:58 AM, 11th August 2026, About 1 week ago
Reply to the comment left by at 08:36
My understanding is that when considering the s11 reasonableness test, judges are usually swayed by a defence from that landlord that shows they couldn’t have had the work completed any quicker even if they lived there themselves.