[Verurtle]

Our gas heater is on the brink. We are renting.

I mentioned it to the real estate agency 2 weeks ago when it started to turn off funny. She said if it continued to do it to fill in a repair form.

Over Friday night it continued to turn off regularly.

On Saturday morning I handed in the completed repair form to the real estate.

While I was there I asked if there was a phone number for a gas repairer in case the heater does switch off over the weekend. The lady behind the desk (not protery manager) told us heating is not an essential and it would be too hard to get a repair out over a long weekend.

I again asked if we could have a phone number for someone in case it breaks down, She gave me the property managers mobile number and told me to call her if the heater does break down over the weekend.

I am not impressed.

I dont understand why they could not give us a number of a repairer. Yet we are expected to interrupt the property managers long weekend.

I am hoping that it hangs in there untill Tuesday.

This post has been edited by **meagain**: 10/06/2012, 08:03 PM

[Guest_NinjahAlpaca_*]

Going by a recent thread on EB on this subject it does appear that heating is a bonus, rather than an essential.

How cold is it where you are?

[Oriental lily]

Pretty sure it's not an essential service.

But considering your paying rent for a house WITH a heater thus paying for it I would imagine it should be fixed quickly. Not on a long week end though.

[TheGreenSheep]

Where I live it is! I daytime temps don't go over 10, I think today it was 8?

[Verurtle]

Where I live it is! I daytime temps don't go over 10, I think today it was 8?

Sorry I should have told everyone what the temp is - At the moment it is 5 degrees and like The Green Sheep it hasnt been getting over 10 during the day.

Nights have been -4

[JAPN2]

Not sure if its an essential however, you rented a property with heating.

If it stops working and you cannot get immediate action and its cold, you could probably reasonably rent or buy a heater for which you could claim compensation for the costs involved.

However, most states have a tenant union and online fact sheets. Check these out before you do anything.

Edited to add: Ensure you keep all records of conversations/letters/emails and receipts.

This post has been edited by JAPN2: 10/06/2012, 07:31 PM

[mumto3princesses]

Yep, I agree. It depends on where you live and how cold it gets I think.

We have a gas fireplace and if it went *touch wood* I would expect it repaired in a reasonable amount of time as we rented a place with a gas fireplace but wouldn't think it's an urgent thing as in getting it repaired during a long weekend etc.

I recently bought electric heaters for our bedrooms and have worked out it gets about 3-4 degrees overnight without them. (Don't have them on all night but will turn them on in the early hours and they have a thermostat on them)

eta: Just saw your post. brrrrrr -4! I think I would freeze to death!

This post has been edited by mumto3princesses: 10/06/2012, 07:32 PM

[MeNelly]

It is essential in Victoria as far as I am aware. When I was a landlord I had to replace the entire central heating unit in the roof cavity when it broke down irreparably. I do recall when renting myself I was informed it was an essential service, along with cooking and hot water.

I hope it stays working for you

[biscuits]

My experience of having a broken heater in a rental (Victoria) is that if there is a heater it must be working. If there is no heater at all they don't have to supply one.

It was sooooo good to get the ducted heating fixed in that place the winter I lived there.

Good luck with getting it fixed.

[vääräsääri]

Depends on what state you're in as ever, probably. In NSW at least, repairs for heating fall under the same category as hot water, cooking and cooling. They don't have to provide something like gas heating, but once they have and it breaks down, then it counts as an urgent repair.