Hello forum members.
Ok, so I'm living with my mum in a privately rented house through estate agents and last year, we had problems where we found the gas and electric to be unsafe for many reasons. The boiler had to be replaced and fitted with a new (and accessible) flue and an RCD board had to be fitted as there previously wasn't one. (The landlord wasn't very pleased with being caught out with all of this and initially refused to do it.)
However, there still isn't any earthing on any electrics in the house or on the gas meter. We have been told that there's also a 'live' and exposed wire running down from the immersion heater tank into the kitchen underneath it to the boiler. Now, the estate agents have told us before that there isn't any 'safety standard' for electrics that have to be enforce like with gas because certificates aren't required. All the landlord has done to address the earthing problem is to replace the light fittings with plastic single bulbs and left it like that, the house also needs rewiring.
The landlord is unreasonable, he's a self employed 'gas fitter' and he faked our service certificate for the old boiler, passing it even though he hadn't been near it when he claimed to have serviced it and the flue was boxed in and inaccessible. We had a gas leak as soon as we moved in 2 years ago, but don't know whether that was connected to the neglect by the landlord (he certainly wasn't bothered.)
So my question is, is there any way to enforce this as a (potential?) safety issue, I don't know anything about electrics, but the earthing came up on the inspection report as an important aspect to be fixed and it hasn't been done.. We have a shower fitted (by the landlord who isn't a trained electrician) and that hasn't been earthed and in the manual, it says 'do not use under any circumstances without earthing.' If this is an urgent matter that needs immediate attention, how do you recommend doing so? We can't afford to take him to court and Health and Safety have said that they can't help unless there has been a fatality (which luckily there hasn't!)
Any help will be appreciated, thank you.
Ok, so I'm living with my mum in a privately rented house through estate agents and last year, we had problems where we found the gas and electric to be unsafe for many reasons. The boiler had to be replaced and fitted with a new (and accessible) flue and an RCD board had to be fitted as there previously wasn't one. (The landlord wasn't very pleased with being caught out with all of this and initially refused to do it.)
However, there still isn't any earthing on any electrics in the house or on the gas meter. We have been told that there's also a 'live' and exposed wire running down from the immersion heater tank into the kitchen underneath it to the boiler. Now, the estate agents have told us before that there isn't any 'safety standard' for electrics that have to be enforce like with gas because certificates aren't required. All the landlord has done to address the earthing problem is to replace the light fittings with plastic single bulbs and left it like that, the house also needs rewiring.
The landlord is unreasonable, he's a self employed 'gas fitter' and he faked our service certificate for the old boiler, passing it even though he hadn't been near it when he claimed to have serviced it and the flue was boxed in and inaccessible. We had a gas leak as soon as we moved in 2 years ago, but don't know whether that was connected to the neglect by the landlord (he certainly wasn't bothered.)
So my question is, is there any way to enforce this as a (potential?) safety issue, I don't know anything about electrics, but the earthing came up on the inspection report as an important aspect to be fixed and it hasn't been done.. We have a shower fitted (by the landlord who isn't a trained electrician) and that hasn't been earthed and in the manual, it says 'do not use under any circumstances without earthing.' If this is an urgent matter that needs immediate attention, how do you recommend doing so? We can't afford to take him to court and Health and Safety have said that they can't help unless there has been a fatality (which luckily there hasn't!)
Any help will be appreciated, thank you.