Boiler Emergency Help Please!

[Smowball]

My son lives with his gf in a private rented house. The boiler packed up so the estate agents sent a plumber. He looked and said the fan had gone and he would report to office. They then get a call saying the part can't be got till nxt Tuesday!! So they have no hot water or heating. They've called estate agent back who say there is nothing they can do and they wont contact owner. They have a baby and she has a little boy too which they can't Bath and son starts new job Monday and can't even have a shower! What can they do?? Estate agent is now shut!

[murraymints]

come and stay at yours !! or claim insurance for stay in alternative accommodation ? my insurance pays for that !

[murraymints]

can't understand why Agent would not contact owner..does your son not have that info ?

[Smowball]

I'm 3 hrs away Minty I'm afraid. No son has only just moved in with her. She says she's always just dealt with the estate agents themselves and doesn't know the owners details. Surely they have to do something?

[murraymints]

would energy providers do an emergency call out..bill the owner ? what home and contents cover do they have ?

[douglas9401]

The agent won't contact the owner because the owner pays the agent to deal with stuff and in any event is unlikely to keep boiler spares.
Maybe go to friends or neighbours for washing for a couple of days?

[murraymints]

home emergencies cover on insurance would cover it ! have that ?

[Islay]

I don't understand what you think contacting the landlord would do?
If the part won't be here until Tuesday the landlord will not be able to get it any quicker.
This is not just a rental thing, when we owned our house and the heating broke down we were without hot water and heating for a week whilst they sourced the bit.
They can book into a hotel and try and claim the money back from either their insurance or the agents but I guess they would have had to have had permission before going to the hotel.

[Smowball]

Because the agent might be trying to save the owner money by not doing it as an emergency when the owner in fact might think otherwise and want it sorted asap

[murraymints]

little they can do without the landlord's go ahead then ..unless they can finance a stay in a local hotel themselves...or have suitable insurance cover

[douglas9401]

Things always seem worse to the people directly involved but it's really more of an inconvenience than an emergency from the outside.

[bednobs]

i also dont really understand how contacting the landlord would even help - it's saturday today and they only have to make do till tuesday. they will just have to cope. These things just happen from time to time. What's wrong with washing?

[bednobs]

ps if the landlord pays the letting agent to do the job, im not surprised they are not calling hm/her

[Prudie]

If the spare isn't available until Tuesday then classing it as an emergency wouldn't help would it? I'd find it awful but boiling kettles etc would have to do, if they can afford then maybe one night in a B&B or cheap hotel could at least get them a shower.

[Mamyalynne]

Hot soapy flannels all round and an extra cardie if chilly at night.

I'm sure they'll cope for a few days.

[gingejbee]

Depends on the age of people affected....oldies will see it as an inconvenience - younger people will think it's the end of the World!

[EDDIE51]

If it was a council house all that they could do would be to provide a plug in electric heater until the boiler is fixed. You would just have to put up with no hot water.
This has happened to me and others in my family several times.
What could the owner do? unless he has a spare boiler hanging around?
Do what we did for at least 15 years, run a bath with cold water and put in boiling water from kettles until it is warm enough.

[bhg481]

I'm afraid to us old fogies it's nothing new; we go back to the days before constant hot water on tap. You just have to boil kettles and have a shallow bath for a day or two - inconvenient but that's life.

[Smowball]

Fair points everyone - they'll just have to muddle through.

[melv16]

Boil kettles and put the water in a watering can. That's what I did when our boiler packed in last winter.