Council Refuse to Send Out Plumber HELP PLS!

[alenuk]

I have to say i am really annoyed with Hounslow Council.
I will cut the long story short.
I am leaseholder who bought the flat in 2002.Council Tenant who was nightmare from day one(level of noise)moved out last Septmeber.
But,before they moved they demolished the flat and left the water running,what caused damage to my ceiling and water was dripping.
Report it straight away,plumber came,close the tap upstairs,then left,never leaving any note to me and never did nothing to check what kind of damage was done in my bathroom.
Probably saw the state of the flat and just "run away".

2 months later,after all repairs done,new tenants moved in.
But now in bathroom i can see that yellow marks are getting bit by bit bigger-and there is some moisture.
Just called council to report this,to send plumber to see what is going on upstairs(Neighbours upstairs don't open the door,religious reason,god knows?).
Council's response?
Problem was fixed in September,yellow marks are normal,celling might need to be replaced,contact my insurance company...)
In other words they don't care!!
I explained to them,i don't sue for the damages(maybe i really should!),just please send someone just for "piece of mind"-but they don,t.
One would think that being here for almost 8 years and paying all my bill regularly (council tax,service charges etc)that would not be a problem!
How wrong i am!
It makes me feel-like putting this property on the market right now or really getting some insurance company-repair the ceiling and pass the bill to them.

Still-knowing how they operate,they would probably then refuse to pay.
I would appreciate Any advice and suggestions -

[jeffrey]

It's nothing to do with the Council, surely, as the sub-T who damaged the flat is yours not the Council's!

[alenuk]

Damage is caused by Council's Tenant who left.
Surely,they have to take responsibility for that.They said,they did fix the problem(stop the water leaking)..but from what i am seeing-they didn't do it properly.
Am i missing something here??

[jeffrey]

You mention 'Council tenant' but wasn't it you as L (not the Council) who let to T?

[alenuk]

Hi Jeffrey I am sorry if i was not clear enough.
No,i live in the flat that i bought 8 years ago.
It is one of those,ex council flats.
Nothing to with renting it-i live here.
But flat above me,they are tenants of Hounslow Council
They are the one who caused the damage-when they were living(apparently that is very common in England that once "kicked out" they demolish the property and people like me "pay the bill through service charges later on"-was told by one of repair guys later on).

Hope that helps

[jeffrey]

Aha- you didn't explain that before!
Yes, assuming that the Council own the block's freehold, they as L are bound by covenants to maintain/repair. You need to enforce these.

[alenuk]

Ok.thanks for fast response...
Now. maybe this will be naive question.
They said to call my insurance company.
Now-i dont have one.
I mean..i do pay Building Insurance every year.Do they fix those kind of things?
Or should i get another one?
Thanks !!!

[Poppy]

If it is not your imagination that the problem has not completely gone away, you need to be more persistent. Are you calling the leasehold support department (or whatever your council calls it)? Call them, get the name of the person you speak to, get a reference number for the report you are making. Tell them that the problem which originates from a council tenanted property does not appear to be fully resolved and that you insist that it is investigated by a plumber as soon as possible. If they don't already know, tell them that the plumber will need access to both your property and the property above.

For now, leave the buildings insurance out of it. When the problem is finally resolved, you could probably repaint the water marks yourself.

[alenuk]

Ok.Thanks a lot..Will do it as you suggested!

[JK0]

I bet it's not a plumbing leak, but the sealant round a bath or shower that is knackered. That would explain why your stain is gradually getting worse, but no water seems to be gushing out.

[Preston]

Ok.thanks for fast response...
Now. maybe this will be naive question.
They said to call my insurance company.
Now-i dont have one.
I mean..i do pay Building Insurance every year.Do they fix those kind of things?
Or should i get another one?
Thanks !!!

Forgive me, but I think a point is being missed here. As you say, you pay, through your service charge no doubt, for buildings insurance. You should contact the insurers straight away to discuss how to make a claim.

If the Council attended to the original leak promptly and fixed it competently then I do not see how they are legally liable for your repair. It would be no different if a private landlord owned the flat above or indeed the whole block would it? They would suggest that you make a claim under the buildings insurance for which you have already paid.

I tend to agree that it would have been helpful for the landlord to send a plumber to pay a quick call, if for no other reason that to check that everything is safe, but the longer you delay in making your insurance claim the more difficult it may become.

Good luck.