Isolation procedure multiple flats

[studentspark]

Large house. with 4 self contained flats. Improvement needs to be made to the shared MET.

All flats on switched fuses, feeding CU's in the individual flats.

Just wondering what others do when it come to switching off the supply to multiple flats.

Obviously you inform them. Do you get them to switch off such things as boilers, computers, then ask them to switch off their CU. Or do you want to confirm this yourself

Do you use a permission to work type form, or some disclaimer from damage

Basically covering you back, because you will now become responsible in their minds for anything that fails in the flat for the next 6 months.

I presume most electrical items are unlikely to be damaged from a loss of supply (Computers etc. you might loose unsaved work)
So the sudden loss of power will not be an issue. But you would not want to switch it back on if it was under some load
Thanks

 

[EFLImpudence]

Who hired you to do the work?

There will be a management company? Either a separate company or run by the tenants, themselves.

 

[studentspark]

I did some work for one of the owners of the flats (These are all owner occupied, Leasehold) and noticed the MET is a bit poor
It's a small job to put right, literally 1 minute, but obviously I can't disconnect whilst the flats are energised. No management company, just the owners.
One of them is taking and interest in the condition of the property as he wants to let it.

 

[EFLImpudence]

If it is leasehold, then someone else will own the freehold and would, I presume, be responsible for the communal parts.

As it is such a small job, I would tell the flat owner to contact whoever that is - not worth the liability for you.

I think that's right.



Oh, I see you have moved to London.

 

[JohnW2]

There will be a management company? Either a separate company or run by the tenants, themselves.

If it is leasehold, then someone else will own the freehold and would, I presume, be responsible for the communal parts. ... As it is such a small job, I would tell the flat owner to contact whoever that is - not worth the liability for you.

I think you'll find that such is not necessarily true, particularly of houses converted into flats in, for example, central London.

Particularly if it is (what is left of), say, a 999-year Lease, I think you will find that the owner of the Freehold (who, in central London, is quite likely to be 'The Crown' or the Duke of Westminster) has absolutely no responsibility for anything - and, indeed, the fact that ownership is Leasehold will probably not be very relevant for many generations to come. In such cases, I think you will find that (for 'converted houses') the (Leasehold) owners of the flats are likely to be jointly responsible for anything/everything 'communal'- and that will be defined in their Leases.

However, as you also added to your comments "I think that's right" - which, by implication, means that I may be wrong . I'm no lawyer (but I do know people who are Leasehold owners of the sort of flats {in London} which we appear to be talking about)!

Kind Regards, John.

 

[EFLImpudence]

Yes, but if the flat owners are jointly responsible for maintenance of the building then they will be the management company and so will have to jointly agree to have the supply switched off.

 

[JohnW2]

Yes, but if the flat owners are jointly responsible for maintenance of the building then they will be the management company and so will have to jointly agree to have the supply switched off.

Sure, that's what I was implying - but without using the phrase 'management company'. In such a situation there would really be no alternative to what studentspark said that he would 'obviously do' - i.e. talk to the (Leasehold) owners of the four flats.

However, the main issue of his OP didn't seem to be so much about 'legalities' but, rather, was him asking what he should advise those owners about switching off things in their flats when he was going to de-energise their supplies.

Kind Regards, John

 

[EFLImpudence]

Yes, but that is my point; it is not up to Studentspark to contact everyone but the tenants to organise it amongst themselves and then employ him.

 

[JohnW2]

Yes, but that is my point; it is not up to Studentspark to contact everyone but the tenants to organise it amongst themselves and then employ him.

Yes, I suppose that's true.

However, as I said, although you introduced the question of who should instruct/employ him, what he was actually asking for advice about was what advice to give to the various flat owners as regards what they should turn off before he de-energises their installations.

It does seem to be a slightly odd question for anyone (who undertakes electrical work) to be asking, since it surely arises whenever an electrician goes near any main switch/switch-fuse/whatever, and seems no different when there are four flats involved than if it is just a single dwelling.

Kind Regards, John

 

[studentspark]

It does seem to be a slightly odd question

Yes i'm good at slightly odd questions.

I was thinking more about how formal people are with the need to de energise.
Its very straight forward when you are working in a single property. I like too check everything, and shut down the boiler for example by the boiler controls, not just flick of the main switch.
That might be a waste of time , but it feels the right thing to do for me.
But when you have to switch off supplies to other flats you are not working on, would you go round each flat and de energise everything, or tell them the powers going off, and leave it to them

Was just wondering what other people do

 

[JohnW2]

Yes i'm good at slightly odd questions. .... I was thinking more about how formal people are with the need to de energise. Its very straight forward when you are working in a single property. I like too check everything, and shut down the boiler for example by the boiler controls, not just flick of the main switch. ...

Fair enough, but you probably don't go around shutting down their computers/ whatever (at least, without first discussing with them), do you??

As I implied, I'm not really sure how/why it is significantly less "straightforward" when there are four households than when there is only one - you just have more people to talk to about what needs to be (or ideally would be) turned off, and when, don't you?

Kind Regards, John

 

[studentspark]

Yes you are right, Im just overthinking, or is it under thinking Not a big deal is it.

 

[securespark]

Dunno about today but a decade ago, Sky boxes could be a b@$tard to get going after a power outage.

 

[JohnW2]

Yes you are right, Im just overthinking, or is it under thinking Not a big deal is it.

Well, as I said, I personally wouldn't regard it as much of a deal. Indeed, in the past, family members started 'flying the nest' and there were therefore several people living in different corners of my (large) house, I had to warn/advise several people if I was going to turn off their electricity supply, in much the same way as would have been the case if there were in separate flats within a building.

Kind Regards, John

 

[JohnW2]

Dunno about today but a decade ago, Sky boxes could be a b@$tard to get going after a power outage.

I think that can still be an issue, but it's the consequence of having been 'powered down' whether by its on/off switch, someone operating a 'Main Switch', a 'power cut' or whatever - so, if the power has to be switched off, there's not much one can do about that.

Kind Regards, John