Responsibility for repairs
Learn about how we approach repairs and maintenance. Find out what our shared responsibilities are, and how and when to report a repair or piece of maintenance needed in and around your home.
bpha recommend you take out home contents insurance as this can cover some of the issues mentioned below.
Some of the works listed as tenant responsibility will require you to have permission from bpha prior to carrying these out. This will especially be the case where the repair will damage existing components or alter the structure in any way.
We carry out a continuous programme of improvements to our customers’ homes to make sure we comply with the law and to meet modern standards as well as your expectations. To find out more, visit our planned maintenance page.
Please note: This is a guide for bpha tenants and does not include Shared Owners, Right to Buy or any other leaseholder tenancies. These customers are responsible for all their repairs. To find out more, visit the homeowners repairs and maintenance page.
Who is responsible for repairs to my home?
If you rent your home from us, we will carry out most repairs to your home except for ones that are your responsibility or repairs that due to damage caused by you, your family, guests or pets.
If you are a homeowner (leaseholder and/or shared owner), you will be responsible for most repairs to your home. Find out more details on home ownership repairs.
If you live in a block of flats that bpha own, we are responsible for repairs to the structure and communal areas, including any outside areas that bpha own.
Communal areas and external areas can also be owned or managed by third parties, including local authorities and estate management companies. They will be responsible for repairs in the areas they own.
Utility companies are responsible for carrying out repairs to utility meters for the home or block.
Who is responsible for repairs in communal areas?
If bpha owns or manages the communal areas around your home, we will be responsible for repairs. Where a managing agent or third party are responsible, we will work with them to make customers receive the standards of service agreed in the contract with them. More details can be found in our Neighbourhood policy below.
Once we are aware of a repair that we are responsible for the repair will be booked in with either our In-House Maintenance service or approved contractors.
Charges may apply to homeowners for repairs in communal areas. When this happens and the repairs are more than £250 per home, we will follow the process in Section 20 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985.
Repair responsibilities
Damage caused by you, your family, guests or pets would be your responsibility, regardless of information in the table below. You will be charged if we have made repairs and found this to be the case. This is covered in section 12 of our Repairs policy.
Below is a summary of our repairs policy and is not a full list. Please note, this applies to items supplied by bpha that we have responsibility for. You can read more in our Repairs policy.
Repair description/location |
Responsibility |
|---|---|
Your home’s structure |
|
| Foundations, roof, rainwater goods, walls, windows, external doors, floors, stairs and chimney stacks | bpha |
Repairs inside your home |
|
| Water supply and water pipes from the meter | bpha |
| Bathroom, WC and cloakrooms (provided by bpha): Sink, basin, toilet, bath, shower, extractor fan, shower pump, taps, waste, leaks, flooring, wall tiling, sealant |
bpha |
| Bathroom, WC and cloakrooms (customer installed, see section 14 of the Repairs Policy for more details): Sink, basin, toilet, bath, shower, extractor fan, shower pump, taps, waste, leaks, flooring, wall tiling, sealant |
You |
| Blocked toilet, bath, basin, sink and shower | You |
| Bath panel replacement | You |
| Toilet seat replacement | You |
| Plug or chain replacements | You |
| Shower hose, heads, riser rails and curtain replacement | You |
| Kitchen (provided by bpha): Kitchen cupboards, wall units, doors, worktops, sinks, taps and waste, leaks, flooring, wall tiling, extractor fan, sealant |
bpha |
| Kitchen (customer installed, see section 14 of the Repairs Policy for more details): Kitchen cupboards, wall units, doors, worktops, sinks, taps and waste, leaks, flooring, wall tiling, extractor fan, sealant |
You |
| White goods and/or appliances (provided by bpha and not gifted) | bpha |
| White goods and/or appliances (customers installed own or gifted) | You |
| Leaks from bpha provided white goods/appliances, pipework, roofs, rainwater goods, windows, walls | bpha |
| Leaks from customer installed white goods/appliances, fixture and fittings | You |
| Flooring (with the exception of the kitchen and bathroom) | You |
| Customer supplied fixtures and fittings | You |
| Pest control | You |
| Chimney breasts and flues | bpha |
| Fireplaces and fitted fires (provided by bpha) | bpha |
| Central heating systems (boiler, pipework, radiators, cylinders) | bpha |
| Bleeding radiators and adjusting pressure | You |
| Electrical wiring including consumer unit, sockets and switches | bpha |
| Fuses (RCD) | bpha |
| Electrical storage heaters (provided by bpha) | bpha |
| Smoke alarms and CO detectors (provided by bpha) | bpha |
| Private TV aerial, satellite dish or Wi-Fi | You |
| Light bulbs, fluorescent tubes and starter motors | You |
| Fuse box resetting of a trip switch | You |
| Major cracks and plaster repairs (walls and ceilings) | bpha |
| Minor decorative cracks and holes (walls and ceilings) | You |
| Curtain pole, rail or track supply or replacement | You |
| Internal door replacement and repair (kitchen and bathroom only) | bpha |
| Internal door replacement and repair (all other rooms and cupboards) | You |
| Doorbell replacement or fitting (including batteries) | You |
| Handles and latches on inside doors and cupboards | You |
| Letterbox repair or replacement | You |
| Letterbox repair or replacement (external fire door) | bpha |
| Painting and decorating | You |
| Stain blocking following a leak | bpha |
| Mist coating to new plasterwork | bpha |
| Damp treatment | bpha |
| Mould treatment (minor) | You |
| Mould treatment (moderate and higher) | bpha |
| Window replacement and repair (handles, glazing and mechanisms) | bpha |
Repairs outside your home (excluding structure and communal areas) |
|
| Rear garden boundary walls, fences and gates that lead onto public footpaths or publicly accessible areas | bpha |
| Rear garden boundary walls, fences and gates that form part of your property and border a neighbour’s property (or privately owned land) | You |
| Front garden boundary walls, fences and gates | You |
| Garages and property specific brick-built stores (excluding sheds) | bpha |
| Sheds, garden rooms, greenhouses and other temporary outbuilding structures (even if gifted when accepting the home) | You |
| Paths and walkways where shared or main access to property | bpha |
| Patios, paved external areas, including driveways (bpha supplied) | bpha |
| Patios & paved external areas, including driveways (customer installed or gifted) | You |
| Unblocking of external waste pipes | bpha |
| Solar panels (provided by bpha) | bpha |
| Solar panels (customer supplied) | You |
| EV chargers (provided by bpha) | bpha |
| EV chargers (customers supplied) | You |
| External painting (cyclical painting programme) | bpha |
| Washing lines or rotary dryers (private) | You |
| Window frames and cills | bpha |
| Dustbin replacement | You |
| Gardens, including hedging and trees | You |
Repairs outside your home (excluding structure and communal areas) |
|
| Pest control (communal areas) | bpha |
| Painting and decorating (communal areas) | bpha |
| Passenger lifts (blocks) | bpha |
| Flooring (communal areas) | bpha |
| Door entry systems (communal systems) | bpha |
| CCTV (communal systems) | bpha |
| Alarms and warden call systems (communal systems) | bpha |
| Unblocking of external waste pipes (including communal stacks) | bpha |
| TV aerial, satellite dish or wi-fi we have fitted for communal use. | bpha |
| Solar panels provided by bpha (communal roof) | bpha |
| EV chargers provided by bpha (communal areas) | bpha |
| Communal appliances/white goods supplied by bpha (communal areas) | bpha |
| Washing lines or rotary dryers (communal areas) | bpha |
| Communal boundary walls, fences and gates that lead onto public footpaths or publicly accessible areas | bpha |
| Barriers and gates (communal areas) | bpha |
| Trees for which bpha are responsible (communal areas) | bpha |
What repairs do I have to carry out in my home?
If you rent your home from us, we will carry out most repairs. You should carry out basic maintenance and cleaning to your home to keep it in good condition. Examples include, but is not limited to:
- Unblocking sinks or toilets
- Wiping away condensation
- Cleaning of tile grout
- Bleeding radiators
- Replacing light bulbs
- Painting and decorating and
- Dealing with pests.
If you are a homeowner, you will be responsible for most repairs to your home. You can find information about repairs to your home in your lease.
We understand that sometimes it is difficult for customers to do maintenance themselves. If this applies to you, please tell our repairs team and they will see what they can do to help. If you have bought items yourself, you will be expected to repair and replace them at your own cost. You will be responsible for any damage you, a member of your household, guests or pets cause. In cases of deliberate damage, we may take action to make sure that the situation does not happen again, which could include legal action.
We may decide to recharge you if we come to your property and carry out repairs that are not our responsibility. Read more about how much this could be in section 12 of our Repairs policy.
We will always listen to you to understand the circumstances before we make any decisions about recharges and will make our decision based on your individual case.
Who is responsible for the repair of major components that I have replaced in my home, at my cost?
Before changing any existing major component in your home like a kitchen or bathroom, you must get permission from bpha. Please send your request to replace a major component in writing to us via an email, letter or request via your my.account. This will then be reviewed by a bpha colleague and considered for approval. You are not allowed to replace major components within your home without permission being granted.
If we approve your request, all works must be undertaken by a qualified Gas Safe or NICEIC regulated contractor and certification must be provided to bpha. You are expected to follow any other conditions related to the permission being granted. We will normally set out the repair responsibility requirements within an individual permission request response, however where this is not provided then we will follow the process in section 14 of the Repairs policy.
How will you know who to send out, and how long will it take?
Please visit the Repair diagnosis & timescales page to find out how we diagnose repairs and when you can expect a repair to be completed.
