Help, My Hot Water Burst!!!

Following last weeks blog where we spoke about general maintenance and the responsibilities of the lessor and lessee, this week we are looking at emergency maintenance.

With the current flooding events in SEQ and Northern NSW, we saw an influx of emergency calls come through the office. So how do we handle emergency maintenance?

Firstly, it is very important that if the emergency is life-threatening please always phone 000!! The safety of our clients is our top priority and in some circumstances 000 is the only number you should call.

When you begin your tenancy, your agent should provide you with emergency contacts for an electrician and a plumber. This should be outlined to you and is also found in your lease agreement.  If urgent or life threatening repairs are required at your property you should immediately call your property manager or call one of the nominated emergency trades. If it is after hours, skip the call to the property manager and immediately call the emergency trade. It is also a good idea to email your property manager so there is a record to follow. You should also turn off electrical supply or water supply or both at the mains to prevent further damage/danger.

 If neither the property manager nor the emergency trade can be contacted, the tenant can arrange for a qualified person to carry out emergency repairs to a maximum value of 2 weeks rent. Please note, if it is found that the repair is not an emergency some fees and charges may come back onto the tenant. So that this doesn’t happen, we provide our tenants with a list of possible urgent/emergency maintenance as reference.

Urgent/emergency maintenance covers dangerous situations that could endanger people or property, including the below occurrences:

-         Burst water pipe

-         Blocked or broken lavatory system

-         Serious roof leak

-         Gas leak

-         Exposed wiring or electrical fault

-         Flooding and serious flood damage

-         Fire, storm or impact damage

-         Severe structural damage

-         Failure or breakdown of gas, electricity or water to the property

-         Failure of breakdown of an essential service or appliance on the property for hot water, heating or cooking

-         Fault or damage that renders the property unsafe or unsecure

-         Fault or damage that is likely to cause injury or death to a person, cause further damage to the property or unduly inconvenience the occupants of the property

-         Severe fault to staircase, in a stairwell, lift or other common area of the premises that unduly inconveniences the access or use of the property.

Here’s what the RTA has to say in regards to Emergency maintenance and repairs.

DISCLAIMER - The information provided is for guidance and informational purposes only and does not replace independent business, legal and financial advice which we strongly recommend. Whilst the information is considered true and correct at the date of publication, changes in circumstances after the time of publication may impact the accuracy of the information provided. Property Boutique will not accept responsibility or liability for any reliance on the blog information, including but not limited to, the accuracy, currency or completeness of any information or links.