Preparing for your repair - and follow-up
1. Before we call
Repairs will only be carried out where a responsible adult is present to allow us access. If no responsible adult is present we will reschedule one further appointment. If there is no responsible adult to allow entry a second time, we will cancel the repair request, unless doing so would result in a health and safety risk.
If a repair represents a health and safety risk and there is no one at the property during the appointment, we may have no option but to force access to the property. This is detailed in full on the Compulsory Access Procedure page.
You should ensure that the area around the repair is clear before the tradesperson arrives. This may also mean lifting carpets or other flooring, clearing work surfaces, emptying cupboards and taking down curtains or moving furniture away from the area. You are also responsible for re-laying or replacing such items when the work is complete. If you are a vulnerable tenant then you may be offered assistance with this.
For health and safety reasons, you should make sure that pets and children are kept away from the area while work is in progress.The tradesperson might decide that the water, gas or electricity supply to the property has to be disconnected to allow the work to be carried out. We will advise you of this as early as possible.
2. Pre-inspection
For all repair types, we want to make sure that the appropriate tradesperson attends, with the correct materials. To do this it may be necessary to carry out a pre-inspection. Pre-inspections are carried out before the repair is done, in cases where:
- you are unable to fully explain the problem
- it is not clear who is responsible for the repair
- measurements or other technical information is required prior to ordering the work
- we need to identify the source of the problem
- specialist materials or equipment may be required
Where we have arranged appointments to carry out repairs and have been unable to gain access we will recharge the tenant for costs & materials.
3. Follow-up visits
Post-repair inspections will be carried out on a random sample of completed repairs to ensure that the work has been completed to a high standard. We will also carry out follow-up visits where you tell us that:
- the repair work carried out has not rectified the problem
- the quality of workmanship was not acceptable
- there were any other failures in the delivery of our service
4. Information leaflets
Several leaflets are available to help you prepare for improvements to your home.