Right to Repair

As a tenant of Bridgewater Housing Association, you have a right, under the Scottish Secure Tenants (Right to Repair) Regulations 2002, to have certain small repairs that you report to us carried out within fixed time limits. These repairs are known as ‘Qualifying Repairs’ and are listed in the table at the end of this page. The value of the repair must also be estimated to be less than £350. You have the right to instruct an alternative contractor to carry out the work if it is not completed within these fixed time limits.  You may also have a right to financial compensation if we don’t get your repair done on time. If your repair is a ‘Qualifying Repair’, it will say so on the receipt that we send you when we instructed our contractor to carry out your repair.

Although we do our best to ensure that all repairs are carried out within specified timescales, some jobs are not completed on time. If this is the case, you may want to ask these questions, below.

When can I instruct an alternative contractor?

An alternative contractor can only be used if the repair you requested is a qualifying repair (this will be shown on your repair receipt you receive in the post as “Urgency: RIGHT TO REPAIR 1 DAY “, for example) and only if the contractor we gave the work to originally did not attend to your repair by the ‘Completion By’ date.  The original contractor has until midnight on the ‘Completion By’ date to attend to the repair.

How do I use the alternative contractor?

If you feel you have the right to appoint an alternative contractor, please telephone our Repairs Department and advise a staff member that you wish to appoint an alternative contractor and quote the job number that is shown overleaf on the customer receipt.  Our staff member will first ensure that the job qualifies as a ‘Right to Repair’, and then check whether the original contractor can attend to you immediately.  If not, we will give you the name and telephone number of our alternative contractor whom you can contact and instruct to carry out the qualifying repair.

Am I entitled to compensation?

If there has been an unacceptable delay completing your qualifying repair, you may be eligible to receive financial compensation for the inconvenience you suffered.  If your qualifying repair has not started by the target ‘Completion By’ date, you are entitled to a flat compensation payment of £15.  You can claim a further £3 for each working day beyond the ‘Completion By’ date until the repair is completed.  The maximum compensation is £100 for any single claim.

Please note that if you have any rent or other arrears with us, any compensation due will be first be used reduce these arrears.  The remainder, if any, would then be sent to you.  The alternative contractor is given the same amount of time to carry out the work as the original contractor was given.  You may be entitled to additional compensation if our alternative contractor fails to complete the repair by the new completion date.

What if I have a complaint regarding the Right to Repair scheme?

If you have complaint or a query way we are operating the Right to Repair scheme, or any other aspect of the Association’s repairs service, then please contact our Technical Team to discuss. Some more information about qualifying repairs is shown below.