Repairs & Maintenance

Emergencies - 24 hours

The aim of an emergency repair is to make safe, prevent further damage or harm to a tenant and if necessary assess further work which may be required. The following circumstances will normally qualify as emergencies:-

• There is a serious and immediate safety hazard.
• There is a serious and immediate health hazard.
• Your home becomes un-secure (unless due to lost keys or tenant damage).
• There is a serious and rapid damage occurring to your home.

All reported emergencies will be dealt with as soon as is reasonably possible and, as a general rule, within 24 hours of being reported to the Association. If you suspect a gas leak you should contact Transco and notify the Housing Maintenance Officer.

Urgent - 5 working days

A repair is treated as urgent if there is a failure to services which results in considerable inconvenience and discomfort to the tenant or where a repair is required to prevent further damage to the property. Sometimes an emergency repair may need to be followed up by an urgent repair to fully correct a defect. The following are given as examples of repairs which would normally be dealt with on an urgent basis:

• Reglazing a broken and previously boarded up window.
• Repair to a second defective toilet.
• Repair of a sole heating appliance.
• Re-instatement of lighting to a single room (not including a kitchen).
• Repair of a window lock.

Routine repairs are classed as those that pose no immediate danger and will not cause further damage to the property if left. The following are given as examples of repairs that would normally be considered as falling within a routine time scale:

• Repairs to fittings e.g. kitchen units, a w.c. seat or re-tilling.
• Repairs to skirting boards or architraves.
• Redecoration of an area which falls within the landlord obligations.
• Non-urgent repair work to gutters.
• Repair of a window lock.

Reporting a repair

There are several ways of reporting a repair:

• By telephone: The Association is open during normal working hours,9:30 am - 5:30 pm, Mon-Fri.
• Visit the Association during normal working hours, 9:30 - 5:30pm Mon-Fri.
• Write to the Maintenance Officer or Maintenance Assistant at the office.

• Your name, address, and daytime telephone number, or mobile phone number.
• An accurate description of the repair. It is helpful if you can give as much detail as possible to enable us to try and pinpoint the problems.
• Any details about when you are normally at home so we can gain access.(Look in part one of your DIY section for guidance on how to describe the repair).

Remember: the correct information will help to get your repair carried out more quickly.
If you are reporting a repair caused by criminal damage, please have the following details:-

• Date and detail of incident.
• Name of police station that you reported it to.
• Crime number.
• PC Number of Officer taking report.

To read the Spitalfields Housing Association Tenants Handbook please click the link below:

Tenant's Handbook