RemedyBridge free tools for tenants

Works out when a council or housing association in England must acknowledge and answer a tenant’s complaint under the Housing Ombudsman’s Complaint Handling Code (2024): at stage 1, acknowledge within 5 working days and respond within 10 working days of acknowledging (paras 6.2 to 6.4); at stage 2, acknowledge within 5 and respond within 20 (paras 6.11 to 6.15), each with the longest extension. It counts working days, leaving out weekends and bank holidays in England and Wales; a complaint received at a weekend or on a bank holiday counts from the next working day. Give the dates the landlord acknowledged or answered, if it has, to see whether each was on time. It says when the Code does not usually apply (private landlords, Wales). It never says what a complaint will achieve.

Works out the timetable the Pre-Action Protocol for Housing Conditions Claims (England) sets after a tenant’s letter of claim: the letter is treated as received two days after its date, the landlord should reply within 20 working days of that (paras 6.2 and 7.2(a)), the inspection should follow within 20 working days of the reply (para 7.4(a)), the expert’s report or agreed schedule within 10 working days of the inspection (para 7.4(b) and (d)), and the landlord’s full response within 20 working days of receiving it (para 6.3). Give the later dates as they happen to see each next date and whether each step was on time. It counts working days, leaving out weekends and bank holidays in England and Wales. The protocol calls these long stops, and they can be changed by agreement (para 9). Wales has its own protocol, with the same periods for the reply, the inspection and the report.

Works out the dates Awaab’s Law gives a council or housing association in England (the Hazards in Social Housing (Prescribed Requirements) (England) Regulations 2025, SI 2025/1042) to deal with damp or mould: investigate it, give the tenant a written summary, finish any safety work and start any further work. It counts working days from the day after the landlord found out, leaving out weekends and bank holidays in England and Wales, and says whether each date has passed. For an emergency hazard it gives the 24-hour rule; for other hazards it gives the position on Awaab’s Law Phase 2 from the site’s legal register. It says when Awaab’s Law does not apply (private landlords, Wales, shared ownership and long leases). It does not decide whether a hazard is significant, and a missed date is a dated failure, not an entitlement to anything.

Lists the evidence worth gathering about disrepair in a rented home, for the problems and the landlord given: what everyone should keep (dated photos, copies of every report, reference numbers, appointments and complaint letters), then what each problem needs and what each kind of landlord’s case needs. Problems: "damp" (damp or mould), "leak" (leaks or water ingress), "heating" (heating or boiler), "electrics" (unsafe electrics), "windows" (windows or doors), "pests" (pests or vermin), "structural" (structural or plaster). It asks for no personal details.

Gives the text of a letter for a tenant to send their landlord, with [bracketed] gaps to fill in: "first-report" to report a repair in writing for the first time, "chaser" when it was reported and nothing has happened, "complaint" to make a formal complaint under the landlord’s complaints procedure (citing section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 in England, or sections 91 and 92 of the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016 in Wales), or "awaabs-law" to ask a council or housing association in England to deal with a hazard under Awaab’s Law. The Awaab’s Law letter is given only to a tenant of a council or housing association in England with a tenancy (not a licence, shared ownership or a long lease). It never takes the tenant’s name, address or details: fill in the gaps with them. The letters state facts and make a request; they promise no outcome.

Answers tenants’ questions about repairs, damp and mould and disrepair in rented homes in England and Wales, from RemedyBridge’s published guides: what a landlord must repair and how quickly, Awaab’s Law, section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 and fitness for human habitation, reporting repairs, landlord complaints and the Housing Ombudsman, Environmental Health and HHSRS, withholding rent, eviction after a complaint, the pre-action protocol and evidence. It searches the quick answer and the questions and answers of every guide, and a glossary of 54 housing terms, and returns each answer with the link to its page. Use it for "what is", "who is responsible", "how long" and "what can I do" questions. It does not assess anyone’s situation.