Do You Need To Complain To Your Landlord?

Are you looking to complain to your landlord? Here’s the process of what you need to do.

First of all, you can complain about your landlord whether they’re doing something wrong or if you are uncomfortable with their behaviour.

Examples:

• They discriminate against you.
• They’re harassing you, such as entering the home without permission.
• They aren’t doing repairs that they’re responsible for.

Speak To Your Landlord:

Your problem can be solved the quickest by speaking to your landlord first. Try to explain what the problem is and discuss whether it can be resolved. You may find it easier to call or email instead of speaking face to face.

It is also a good idea to make notes of everything that you want to say to your landlord, as you can refer to your notes while you speak to them or email.

What To Do If Speaking To Your Landlord Doesn’t Help:

If speaking to your landlord doesn’t resolve the problem, you should make a formal complaint. To make a formal complaint, you need to write a letter to your landlord.

What to include in your letter:

• What you’re complaining about
• Dates/times the problem took place
• What you want your landlord to do about the problem
• Copies of any emails/letters between you and your landlord
• Details of any conversations with your landlord and what they agreed to do
• Photographs that show damage or disrepair.
• Receipts for anything you had to pay for because of the problem

Complain To Your Local Council:

You can complain to your local council if writing a complaint also doesn’t solve your problem.

Complain by writing a letter, explain your problem and the steps you have taken to try to solve it with your landlord. You should also include a copy of the letter you wrote to your landlord.

However, your local council can only help with complaints about:

• Illegal eviction
• Harassment
• Repairs that cause a risk to your health and safety not being done
• Dishonest or unfair behaviour

If you complain about repairs not being done, your council should contact you and your landlord and explain the law if you complain about repairs not being done. The council can inspect your home and order your landlord to carry out the repairs.

If you complain about being harassed or illegally evicted, your council can investigate if you complain about these two things. They can tell your landlord to stop harassing you and also have the power to stop the illegal eviction. If your landlord ignores this, they can be taken to court.

If you complain about your landlord being dishonest or unfair, you can ask for your problem to be looked at by the Trading Standards team at the council. Your landlord can be given a warning or fine if they’ve broken the law by acting unfair or dishonestly.

If You Still Can’t Get Your Problem Solved:

If your landlord still doesn’t sort out your problem after taking all of these steps or if the council doesn’t help, you might be able to take court action.

However, court action can be expensive so you should make sure whether it’s the right option for you.

This guide should be able to solve your problems with your landlord! If you have any questions, comment below!