I had a new pair of tenants move in yesterday. Today they informed me they had no hot water.
The flat is all electric and has a tank with an immersion heater. I had turned this off in the week between one tenant leaving and these new ones moving in, so the water was cold.
Anyway, it was still cold this morning, so we have had a look at it, read the manual, flicked a switch and it now appears to be working, but we won’t know until tomorrow morning.
So my question is : If it is not working and we have to have it mended, then how much (if any) rent reduction should I give the tenant while it is out of service?
I would say, as the issue has been just a day or two and you acted on it immediately then a rent reduction isn’t necessary. Others may disagree, but I’d say it was a simple teething problem and - while inconvenient to the tenants - it was promptly resolved… (no negligence by the landlord - just an innocent oversight)
I agree wth @Russell_Jones_Proper; it sounds like you acted to fix the situation very quickly. Are the tenants directly asking for compensation? If so then it may be sensible to offer them some small amount off the rent just to make sure the tenancy begins on a good footing. Otherwise, there may not be any need.
I’m sorry I didn’t come back to anyone on this. Just to say our ‘switch-flicking’ worked and a repair was not needed. Thanks for your advice and once again I apologise for my bad manners.