HOUSING ASSOCIATION FROM HELL (Housing Associations in general)

Member Name: sillygilly

Product:	Housing Associations in general
Date:	12/10/01 (179 review reads)
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I live in a quiet country village in Cambridgeshire, until twelve months ago, the houses were owned by the local council, but then it changed over to a local housing association.

I much preferred it when the council owned it, to now when the housing association own it. I have had a lot of trouble getting repairs done, especially six months ago, when they came to my house to put a new radiator in, when they'd finished they said could they service my gas boiler, as the twelve monthly service was due.

I said yes they could, so when they had finished they said everything was fine and went.

The next morning I turned my hot water and heating on via the switch in the kitchen and carried on with doing the breakfast and washing the pots.

An hour later I went into my front room to get the paper, and the whole room smelt of gas, I immediately phoned the Housing Association and told them about the smell, a while later they sent one of there gasmen round, who took it all apart and found that a screw had not been put back right, when they serviced it, and so it caused a leak, he fixed it and off he went.

After luch I put the hot water oon again and never thought nothing about the gas leak, as it had been fixed. I later went into the room again and couldn't believe it, the room smelt of gas again.

I phoned them up again, and they sent the same gasman round to fix it, he took it all apart again and found another gas leak but from a different source, he said whoever serviced it had made two mistakes causing two gas leaks.

I wrote several strong letters to the housing association asking them to find out why there workmen could to a job so incompetantly and almost kill me and my family.

I must have phoned them twice a week for almost 3 months before they replied to my letters.

When the letter finally arrived I was disgusted with their reply, they said it had been properly checked by their servicem
en, and at the time there was no leaks whatsoever, and that the one who fixed the leak said that the second time he came round, all that the smell of gas was, was the remains from the first leak, which was lies as he actually showed me where the leak was.

I know it was all covered up, but its my word against there's. I wouldn't have minded as much, if they'd apologised to me, but they never even said sorry for almost killing me.

I am due to have all new windows fitted this month, I dread to think what they could do.

I had a new back door put on, but its been nothing but trouble from day one, it jams when you close the door, everytime it rains, it runs in under the door.

I have given up bothering about it now, I have had them round so many times, and it still rains in and jams, I just can't be bothered having them round again, as I think whats the point, everything they come round, all they do is just bodge it up.

People knock the council but I wish it was back under there ownership. I didn't have these problems when they were running the show.

The thing is though Housing Associations normally do repairs quickly and to a high standard, but something has gone wrong with these lot, I think its down to employing cheap shoddy firms to do the work.

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