Making a complaint about conditions in your flat or block (including condensation, mould, damp)

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A letter you can copy

What to do:

  • Copy and paste the text below into an email or document.
  • Replace any text [in brackets] with your own information
  • Include details {in curly brackets} if they are relevant, or remove them if they are not.
  • Send the email to your landlord, or print out the document and send it by post.
  • If you are sending by post, keep a copy for yourself and a record of the date that the message was sent.

[Your address]
[Today’s date]

[Name of your contact or landlord]
[Your landlord’s address]

[Your rent/tenant ID number]
{REF: any reference number you were given when previously raising this subject}

Dear [your landlord’s name],

I am a tenant of [name of your block or building] and I am writing to inform you about the conditions in my flat {and those of my neighbours}.

{There is a substantial problem with mould in [name of room rooms or block].}
{There is a pervasive damp problem in [name of areas affected, or all parts of the flat or block].}
{There is a considerable problem with condensation in [name of areas affected, or all parts of the flat or block].}

This has been ongoing since [month or year] and has resulted in [describe some of the effects to your flat – for example, peeling wallpaper, rotting floorboards or window sills, damaged furniture].

{It is also affecting the health of [myself and my family/flatmate/s], who are now [suffering from breathing issues/stress/allergies/etc].}

[Text for English and Welsh tenants: As you will be aware, it is the duty of the landlord under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, section 11 to keep accommodation in good order, and under the Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018 to keep rented accommodation free from dampness prejudicial to the health of the occupants. The Housing Health and Safety Rating System, introduced under the Housing Act 2004 also outlines hazards that landlords must address, and these include mould and damp.]

[Text for Scottish tenants: As you will be aware, the landlord of a Scottish secure tenancy (or a Short Scottish secure tenancy) under the Housing (Scotland) Act 2001 is required, by schedule 4 of that Act, to keep the house “in all respects reasonably fit for human habitation” throughout the tenancy.]

Please could you contact me at your earliest convenience to arrange a visit, during which I can show you the problem and discuss its rectification.

{To rectify this issue I would like you to consider [fitting extractor fans/replacing the windows with ones that can be opened/changing the heating schedule so that there are fewer extremes of hot and cold]}

I look forward to receiving your reply as a matter of urgency, but by [date, two weeks in the future] at the latest.

Yours sincerely,
[sign your name]
[print your name]


If you don’t get an answer within two weeks

Related guides

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Tools you can use

Contacting your landlord

Tips and letter templates to help you communicate with your landlord when there’s something wrong, or you want to find out more.

Reference

What is the Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018?

What does ‘fitness for human habitation’ mean? It’s the name of a law that protects tenants from having to live in properties that are unsafe or unhealthy.
Two doors with a staircase between them. Photo by Nick Chalkiadakis Two doors with a staircase between them. Photo by Nick Chalkiadakis

Tools you can use

Making a formal complaint

If you have made a request to your landlord and you’re not getting results, then what can you do next to get things fixed?
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Guide

There is condensation in my flat

Condensation is a common problem in tower blocks, and it can add to issues with mould or damp.
Image by Andrew Buchananan - paint flaking off a wall Image by Andrew Buchananan - paint flaking off a wall

Guide

There’s damp or mould in my flat

Damp and mould do more than ruin the look of your flat: they can also cause health problems. It is your landlord’s responsibility under law to ensure that your home is safe to live in.
Image by Pete Birkinshaw - a mushroom growing on a damp carpet near a wall Image by Pete Birkinshaw - a mushroom growing on a damp carpet near a wall

Guide

Water is leaking from another flat

Leaking pipes are a problem in any type of home, but in a tower block you are also at risk of water leaking into your flat from the units above or to each side of yours.