Repairs and maintenance

Repair responsibilities

Your Tenancy Agreement states you have a duty to take reasonable care of your home. If you, a member of your household, or your visitors, cause damage to the property which is then repaired by the council, you may be liable to pay the costs of these works, plus an administration fee and VAT.

Our repair responsibilities statement sets out the council's approach with regard to exceptions to repair responsibilities.

Where possible, we will tell you if the repair is 'rechargeable' when you first report it to us and give you an estimated cost, which you will have to pay.

If the repair is required due to action by you, a member of your household or your visitors, and you do not tell us, but we find this out when the workman attends, you will still be charged for these works.

We have provided a comprehensive list of items below and identified who is responsible for doing repairs. 

Mould and condensation

The average person puts about 4 pints of moisture into the air every day from breathing, perspiration and everyday activities such as cooking, bathing and laundry. Moist air must be constantly removed from the home by using heating and ventilation. If it is not removed, mould can start to grow. Visit the damp and mould webpage for information on how to deal with mould and tips on how to prevent it occurring.

General household

Item(s) You Us
Routine cleaning, eg. windows, sanitary fittings, kitchen worktops, extractor fans and airbricks Yes No
Internal decoration Yes No
Wiping down condensation and mould Yes No
Temporarily moving furniture and lifting floor coverings to allow other repairs to take place Yes No
Garden maintenance if the garden is for your own use Yes No

Electrical

Item(s) You Us
Complete or partial loss of power and/or lights No Yes
Fuse box - re-set a tripped switch Yes No
Fuse box - repairs No Yes
Check/disconnect/reconnect electrics after a leak No Yes
Plug sockets and electrical circuits No Yes
Light sockets, switches and pull cords No Yes
Changing light bulbs, fluorescent tubes and starter motors Yes No
Smoke alarm - cleaning and weekly testing Yes No
Smoke alarm - battery-powered alarm* Yes No
Smoke alarm - mains-powered alarm No Yes
Carbon monoxide alarm* Yes No
Extractor fans No Yes
Door entry phone No Yes
Door bell battery Yes No
Internal TV socket Yes No
Electric cooker* Yes No
Other domestic appliances, including cables and plugs Yes No
Electricity meter Yes No

For electricity meter faults, contact your electricity supplier.

Gas

Item(s) You Us
Gas leaks Yes No
Gas installation repairs No Yes
Total or partial loss of gas supply No Yes
Annual service of gas installations and appliances No Yes
Gas cookers Yes No
Gas meter Yes No

For gas leaks, call the national Gas Emergency number, 0800 111 999. For gas meter faults, contact your gas supplier.

Heating and hot water

Item(s) You Us
Total or partial loss of heating and/or hot water No Yes
Radiators-bleeding air Yes No
Radiators-repairs No Yes
Storage heaters No Yes
Heating controls - setting and using Yes No
Heating controls - repairs No Yes
Relighting pilot lights Yes No
Immersion heaters No Yes

Waste pipes and drains

Item(s) You Us
Blocked toilet or waste pipe inside your home Yes No
Blocked gully that only serves your home Yes No
Blocked waste pipe stack or gully that is shared with another property No Yes
Blocked drain No Yes
Gully cover if it only serves your home Yes No
Drain covers and communal gully covers No Yes

Plumbing

Item(s) You Us
Total or partial loss of water No Yes
Leaking and burst pipes, any type of pipe No Yes
Temporarily containing leaks and clearing up spilled water Yes YNo
Stopcocks turning off the mains stop cock if you are away for a long time Yes No
Stopcocks repairs No Yes
Overflow constantly running No Yes
Cold water storage tanks No Yes
Toilets No Yes
Toilet seats Yes No
Baths No Yes
Bath panels Yes No
Sinks and wash hand basins Yes No
Showers - standalone (shower unit or cubicle) Yes No
Showers - over a bath Yes No
Showers - hose, handset, curtain and curtain rail Yes No
Disabled shower doors No Yes
Taps- sinks, baths and basins No Yes
Taps - outside Yes No
Plugs and chains in sinks, baths and basins Yes No
Washing machine and dishwater connections Yes No

External doors

Item(s) You Us
Adjust, make safe, repair and renew doors and frames No Yes
Locks and latches No Yes
Person locked in/out No Yes
Communal entrance door fob Yes No
Lost and additional keys and fobs Yes No
Door handles and letterbox covers No Yes
Other minor door fittings eg. knockers and numbers Yes No

Internal doors

Item(s) You Us
Internal doors and ironmongery (handles, hinges etc.) Yes No
Internal fire doors and ironmongery (handles, hinges etc.) No Yes
Internal door frames No Yes
Internal door architraves Yes No
Adjusting doors after laying new lino, carpet etc. Yes No
Sliding doors on built-in wardrobes provided by us No Yes
Doors on outbuildings that are part of the dwelling No Yes
Doors on other outbuildings and sheds in your garden Yes No
Doors on storage and bin sheds in communal areas No Yes
Garage doors No Yes
Lost and additional keys (any type of door) Yes No

Carpentry

Item(s) You Us
Floorboards No Yes
Stairs, banisters and rails No Yes
Kitchen units and worktops* No Yes
Skirting boards Yes No
Window boards and internal window sills Yes No
Bath panels Yes No
Shelves, curtain rails, coat hooks and other personal items Yes No

Fences and gates

Item(s) You Us
Fence bordering something that is not another garden, eg. a road, alley, park or school No Yes
Fences that divides 2 back gardens - first panel ('privacy panel') No Yes
Fence that divides 2 back gardens - all except the first panel Yes No
Fence that divides 2 front gardens Yes No
Metal gates No Yes
Wooden gates shared with other residents No Yes
Wooden gates for your exclusive use - the wood in the gate No Yes
Wooden gates for your exclusive use - hinges, latches, locks and other ironmongery Yes No

Windows

Item(s) You Us
Boarding up broken glass No Yes
Reglazing due to an act of crime No Yes
Reglazing for all other reasons Yes No
Window cannot be opened/closed No Yes
Window repair/adjustment No Yes
Window ironmongery (hinges, handles, locks, restrictors etc.) No Yes
Lost and additional keys Yes No
Cleaning and lubricating catches, hinges etc. Yes No
Window board and internal sill Yes

No

Ceilings, floors and walls

Item(s) You Us
Ceiling bulging or collapsed No Yes
Plaster repairs that are caused by normal thermal movement (eg. filling hairline cracks) Yes No
Floor tiles - minor repairs (up to 10 tiles or 1 square metre of sheet flooring) Yes No
Floor tiles - larger repairs (more than 10 tiles or 1 square metre) No Yes
Lino - bathroom, kitchen and hallway* No Yes
Lino - other rooms Yes No
Other floor coverings (carpets, laminate, block wood etc.) Yes No
Lifting and replacing floor coverings to allow us to do another repair Yes No
Wall tiles - minor repairs (up to 10 tiles) Yes No
Wall tiles - larger repairs (more than 10 tiles) No Yes
Wall vents and airbricks - keeping them unblocked Yes No
Wall vents and airbricks - repairs No Yes
Fireplace grates, tiles and flues No Yes
Painting and wallpapering Yes No
Coving Yes No

Roofs and guttering

Item(s) You Us
Roof leaks No Yes
Slipped, broken or missing tiles No Yes
Fascia and soffit boards No Yes
Gutters and downpipes - repairs and clearance No Yes
Chimney repairs No Yes
Chimney sweeping Yes No

Paths and paving

Item(s) You Us
Paths that lead directly form the street to your front, side or back entrance door No Yes
Any other path Yes No
Patios, driveways and hardstandings Yes No

Other outdoor repairs

Item(s) You Us
External brickwork to dwellings and boundary walls No Yes
External rendering No Yes
Outbuildings that are part of the dwelling No Yes
All other garden outbuildings Yes No
Storage and bin sheds in communal areas No Yes
Keeping the damp proof course and airbricks free of obstruction Yes No
Washing lines - communal No Yes
Washing lines - not communal Yes No

Pest control

Item(s) You Us
Rats No Yes
Mice No Yes
Squirrels No Yes
Cockroaches No Yes
Wasps* Yes No
Bees - mortar bees No Yes
Bees - all other species Yes No
Fleas Yes No
Bedbugs Yes No
Ants - pharaoh ants No Yes
Ants - all other species Yes No
Woodworm No Yes
Other pests Yes No

 

Leaseholders

Hillingdon Council leaseholders have separate repairs and maintenance responsibilities in their properties and should refer to the Leaseholders factfile for details.

Download the leaseholders factfile