Opinion?

Barely Hedged

I share a two bedroom flat with another lad who is the owner. I put on a wash on Tuesday evening and forgot to take it out until Wednesday evening - usually take it out straight after the wash finishes. I came back Wednesday evening and the door was open on it. Took my wash out and left the door open as he's a bit strange with things like that (I noticed in the past that after I emptied the machine after a wash and closed it he'd have the door open when I'd returned 5 minutes later)

Got a text from him this morning saying that the washing machine door is broken and that I need to have it fixed/replaced as a matter of urgency. I didnt know what was wrong with it so I asked him and he said "the hinge was smashed presumably from being opened too hard".

Now the door is a bit fidgety to close but it's a knack im all too familiar with and had no problems closing it on Tuesday evening and obviously returned on Wednesday evening to it open.

Where do I stand on this? Any opinions from landlords or from tenants as to who is liable for repair costs?

Marcusm

He provides you with facilities, you oay him rent. Provided you didn't abuse the machine, it's his responsibility.

djimi

Unless he can prove that you broke the door he is responsible as landlord for its repair. Especially if the door was faulty anyway.

In the interest of maintaining a civil living environment it might be in your best interests to see if you can come to an arrangement about it.

zac8

Sounds like normal wear & tear so his responsibility.

Barely Hedged

I'd consider myself pretty considerate and didn't do anything out of the ordinary when closing it and obviously returned to it open. The door and machine have a bit of a chequered history as well as the machine had vibrated out of position under the worktop across the kitchen several times before. I'd consider that normal wear and tear what has happened with the door in my opinion and just a coincidence that it happened on my turn.

Also, I'm just a bit curious as to how it was a problem that occurred when the door opened - from below "Took my wash out and left the door open as he's a bit strange with things like that (I noticed in the past that after I emptied the machine after a wash and closed it he'd have the door open when I'd returned 5 minutes later)"

I'm not really in the mood for paying £100 - £150 for a call out and component charge to something I know beyond doubt was not my fault.

odds_on

How long have you been living there?

Remember, as you are probably a licensee and not a tenant (because you are living with the owner), if you are unhappy, you can always leave with short notice.

However, likewise, if the owner is unhappy with you, he might just ask you to leave.

Barely Hedged

odds_on wrote: »

How long have you been living there?

Remember, as you are probably a licensee and not a tenant (because you are living with the owner), if you are unhappy, you can always leave with short notice.

However, likewise, if the owner is unhappy with you, he might just ask you to leave.

Just bang on a year now. No contract signed or deposit left.

I'm always open to compromise in situations when you're sharing with people otherwise it will never work but I'm starting to harden my stance on this and would consider not backing down on being blamed and charged with paying for this replacement.

djimi

Barely Hedged wrote: »

Just bang on a year now. No contract signed or deposit left.

I'm always open to compromise in situations when you're sharing with people otherwise it will never work but I'm starting to harden my stance on this and would consider not backing down on being blamed and charged with paying for this replacement.

If you have nothing to lose (no deposit left and dont mind finding somewhere else to live if needs be) then stick to your guns on this. It very much sounds to me like the machine was on the way out anyway, and now your landlord is just using a convenience excuse to get you to pay for the repairs.

odds_on

IMHO, I would say that the majority of agreements with live-in landlords and their licensees/lodgers are unwritten contracts. The result is, that when a problem arises, there is no formal agreement as to what happens when there is a problem.

If I were a landlord with a lodger (and I have been, and I am currently a lodger myself) I would be not very happy to have to pay for the repair for a washing machine myself and would expect the lodger to contribute to the cost as he is sharing its use with me.

If I had been living in my current lodgings for a year and an appliance broke that I used with the landlord I would expect to pay for part of the cost of repair/replacement - but not on a 50/50 basis (nor more than 50%) as the appliance was there before I moved in and will be there when I leave.

IMHO, this is not the same situation as a landlord/tenant situation, where the landlord is responsible for the repair/replacement of an appliance, provided that the damage was not caused by the tenant.

Incidentally, I, too, like to leave the door of a washing machine open after use as it helps to "air" the inside of the machine.

tfitzgerald

Tell him you don't know what happened the door but in the interest of fairness you will go 50/50 with him . If that does not do him then leave . Also tell him if he has a problem in future you would prefer to be told face to face not by fcuking text

Barely Hedged

odds_on wrote: »

IMHO, I would say that the majority of agreements with live-in landlords and their licensees/lodgers are unwritten contracts. The result is, that when a problem arises, there is no formal agreement as to what happens when there is a problem.

If I were a landlord with a lodger (and I have been, and I am currently a lodger myself) I would be not very happy to have to pay for the repair for a washing machine myself and would expect the lodger to contribute to the cost as he is sharing its use with me.

If I had been living in my current lodgings for a year and an appliance broke that I used with the landlord I would expect to pay for part of the cost of repair/replacement - but not on a 50/50 basis (nor more than 50%) as the appliance was there before I moved in and will be there when I leave.

IMHO, this is not the same situation as a landlord/tenant situation, where the landlord is responsible for the repair/replacement of an appliance, provided that the damage was not caused by the tenant.

Incidentally, I, too, like to leave the door of a washing machine open after use as it helps to "air" the inside of the machine.

Sounds fair enough. Cheers

Barely Hedged

djimi wrote: »

If you have nothing to lose (no deposit left and dont mind finding somewhere else to live if needs be) then stick to your guns on this. It very much sounds to me like the machine was on the way out anyway, and now your landlord is just using a convenience excuse to get you to pay for the repairs.

Live in London so moving quickly is to somewhere else is not an option

Barely Hedged

tfitzgerald wrote: »

Tell him you don't know what happened the door but in the interest of fairness you will go 50/50 with him . If that does not do him then leave . Also tell him if he has a problem in future you would prefer to be told face to face not by fcuking text

Yeah I just showed someone the texts there and they said they were quite ratty and terse as well. Not an ideal way of letting someone know about the situation

odds_on

Barely Hedged wrote: »

Live in London so moving quickly is to somewhere else is not an option

This is where English/Welsh law (Scottish law may be different) is similar to Irish law as regards live-in landlords - there are very few laws and very few rights for the lodger/licensee.