Sharing a house with new people and living in a new place… sometimes things don’t always go to plan or work out how you thought they would! It’s really common, and it’s good to remember that you do have options.
Housemate Disputes
The first thing you can do if you are having a dispute with a housemate is to try to talk to them. If you end up needing to seek further assistance, you will likely be asked what has been done to try and resolve the issue. Secondly, you can also seek advice from your Landlord/Lettings Agent to see what they can do to help.
We know friends and housemates can end up having disagreements over a variety of issues, so please contact our team to share a little about your situation so we can provide tailored and informed advice.
If your housemate is refusing to pay rent/bills: check your contract to clarify your legal responsibilities and whether you have signed up to the tenancy either as a household or per room. Unfortunately, if you signed up to the tenancy as a household then the whole house is liable for the rent and bills, which means you could be responsible for the rent/bills when someone does not pay.
If there are financial difficulties in the house, students can talk to the University's Money Support Team for advice, or contact them directly on moneysupport@surrey.ac.uk
For any kind of further questions, don’t hesitate to contact us: ussu.advice@surrey.ac.uk
If you are in a situation where you want to leave your tenancy, check out our separate page on Leaving Your Property Early.
Disrepair Issues
Sometimes the issue needs urgent attention, such as flooding, broken boilers, gas or significant electrical issues. Basically, anything that is dangerous to you or the building. Your landlord should provide you with an emergency out-of-hours number or an emergency number to call should you need it. Make sure to report all the facts and log any responses or visits as evidence if you need it. Your contract or tenancy agreement should outline what counts as an emergency and what to do in this situation.
Your landlord is legally responsible for most repairs in your home and keeping your home safe. You should allow access to your home if your landlord wants to inspect the condition of the property. You must get at least 24 hours' written notice of an inspection. An inspection should be at a reasonable time. Suggest a better time if it is not convenient.
As a tenant, you are responsible for taking care of the home, reporting any disrepair issues in a timely manner, and letting the landlord or contractors in to inspect or fix problems. Repairs you are responsible for include: 1) fixing appliances or furniture you own, and 2) damage caused by you, your family or your guests. You might have to pay for damage you cause, even if your landlord has to fix it. For example, you might be charged if you block a drain or toilet – but always check what your contract says!
Landlords are responsible for identifying and fixing the causes of damp and mould, as well as preventing other hazards in your home. They must complete repairs within a reasonable timeframe, depending on how serious the issue is, and should redecorate if necessary once the problem is resolved. To help ensure quick action, report any repair problems to your landlord as soon as possible.
Landlord and Lettings Agent Issues
There may be times that you have disagreements with your landlord and/or Lettings Agent, and if this happens, it is worth talking to the landlord to try and resolve the issues as soon as possible. Making sure you read and understand your responsibilities that you have agreed to in your tenancy agreement is very important and making sure you stick to them can help avoid or fix disagreements with your landlord.
If you do have an ongoing dispute with your landlord, keeping evidence of your situation will help demonstrate what has happened – so make sure that you have a record of all conversations, visits and agreements. For example, if you have a conversation with your landlord over the phone, then it is worth sending up a follow up email of what was said and actions agreed. If there is an issue with the house then document it with videos, pictures and any other records.
If you need to make a formal complaint about your landlord, then you will have evidence to back up things that have happened.
How to complain directly to your landlord
Put things in writing. Use an email or a letter to set out:
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what your complaint is
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what you want your landlord to do
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when you want your landlord to respond
Some landlords have a complaints process.
How to complain about a letting agent
You must start by making a complaint to the letting agent who caused the problem. After that, you can take your complaint to:
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a letting agent redress scheme
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the letting agent's professional association
Ask the letting agent for their complaints procedure. A complaints procedure tells you the steps to take to complain about the letting agent’s behaviour or their service. Check the agent's website or ask their office how to complain. They must tell you. Send them a letter if the agent says they do not have a complaints procedure.