Emergency Plumbing for Landlords & Agents

What counts as a plumbing emergency in a let property?

For a landlord the test is simple: will waiting until the morning make the damage bigger, or leave the tenant without something the law says you must keep working? Water coming through a ceiling, a burst pipe, a toilet that will not flush in a one-toilet flat, and a boiler that has stopped in cold weather all pass that test. A dripping tap or a slow basin waste usually does not.

In England, section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 puts the repair of installations for water, gas, electricity, sanitation, space heating and heating water on the landlord for most tenancies of less than seven years. The Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018 adds that a problem with the supply of hot and cold water can make a home unfit to live in. Neither sets a fixed number of hours, which is why the question tenants ask most is covered in how long a landlord has to fix a boiler.

If the tenant has no heat or hot water, our no hot water repair visit is usually the fastest route to a working flat.

If a tenant smells gas, they should open windows, turn off at the meter if safe, avoid switches, leave the property and call the National Gas Emergency Service on 0800 111 999 straight away, not us and not you. The gas network makes it safe first; a repair follows.

How the visit works when you are not there

Most landlord call-outs happen without the landlord present. Before we set off we confirm three things: who pays, who can approve a price, and how we get in. If the tenant is home we deal with them directly. If a key has to come from an agent’s office or a key safe, add it in the details box when you send your number.

On site the engineer stops the damage first. That can mean closing the stopcock, isolating a boiler, or capping a pipe. Then we phone you with what has failed and what it will cost to put right. The tenant is never asked to approve or pay for your repair unless you have told us they should.

Flats bring their own problems. A leak may come from the flat upstairs, or from a riser the freeholder is responsible for. We note where the water is actually coming from, which helps when you need to deal with a managing agent; there is more on that in plumbing emergencies in a block of flats.

What a landlord call-out usually costs

Getting an engineer to the property is the £60 call-out, at any hour. The repair price is agreed with you on site before any work starts, and there is a full breakdown of our emergency plumber costs on one page.

As a guide to the wider market in London, simple jobs such as replacing a toilet fill valve, a leaking isolation valve or a short run of split pipe tend to land in the low hundreds of pounds including parts. Boiler parts such as a diverter valve or fan usually cost more because the part itself is dearer. Anything that needs a second visit for a part is quoted as a whole before we start.

Gas work, certificates and paperwork

Gas work is carried out by Gas Safe registered engineers. Tenants and agents can check any engineer’s card against the register; our guide to checking the Gas Safe Register shows how.

An emergency boiler repair is not the same as the annual gas safety check. Under regulation 36 of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 each gas appliance and flue you provide needs a safety check at least every twelve months, with a copy of the record given to existing tenants within 28 days of the check and the record kept for two years. If a breakdown shows the check is overdue, book one separately.

For insurance, keep our written note together with photos from the tenant. Escape-of-water policies usually want to see that the leak was stopped promptly, and how an escape of water claim works sets out what insurers ask for.