Our tenant messaged me on Saturday because she had no hot water. I replied within the hour with the contact details of the gas engineer who put in the new boiler in June but she was unable to get through to him as he doesn’t work weekends. I got through today, Monday and he is going around.
The tenant is saying that I should have had it fixed on Saturday. So, by law, what time is considered reasonable please? And if it turns out that it’s low pressure or user error, would it be reasonable to expect a tenant to cover the cost of an emergency call out in the future? Ie if the tenant won’t wait for the next working day.
I am not sure there is a specific law that says you need to get it fixed in a certain timeframe. However, having no hot water would make the property unfit for human habitation so would require prompt action to put it right. I am sure everyone would agree that you responded with impeccable timing. It was just unfortunate that it happened on the weekend.
Personally, I prefer to have insurance or a maintenance contract to deal with this type of emergency because they are 24/7
Thanks Chris- that’s a very good idea. Have you used an insurance company you’re pleased with?
Also, is there a website that has clear legal guidelines on such things please?
Julie:)
I had the same issue a couple months ago. I made the call on a Saturday evening and an engineer attended first thing Sunday morning. It was an optional extra with my landlord insurance. There are lots of companies that do stand alone maintenance contracts. British Gas are probably the best and the most expensive.
The law states “a reasonable amount of time”. I would say that is perfectly reasonable.
They can boil a kettle and have hot water. I don’t agree that the property is unfit for habitation! (Maybe if your tenants are Gen Z perhaps!) 
Is your warranty with the installer invalidated if you have another gas engineer look at it?
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A few days is perfectly reasonable unless she has previously notified you of some medical condition or other need requiring constant hot water.
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