Argyle Housing Group - Important Information

The following are answers to some frequently asked questions we get in our office.

Inspections

We are obliged to inspect your property on a regular basis under the terms of our contract with the Council. So as not to inconvenience you too much, however, we come to visit you every 6 to 8 weeks. We organise the inspections area by area. If you are not in when we call it wastes a lot of our time which we could use to help you or other tenants. Please be aware that we do have keys to all properties and will use them to gain access if you continually obstruct us in inspecting your property. These inspections are a compulsory requirement imposed by the Council and we have to ensure compliance. If we are unable to inspect the property for a continued period of time we will inform the council, as well as gain access using our own set of keys.

Maintenance

Please ensure you report ALL maintenance direct to our maintenance department; instead of informing an Argyle property inspector, your representative at the council or contacting the landlord directly which will only prolong the maintenance issue. Please contact the maintenance office on 020 8742 7858, and provide a detailed report of the problem to the maintenance officer so they may accurately log your call and arrange for the appropriate tradesperson to attend your property. We try our best to send trades people to your property as soon as possible. However, depending upon volume of work it may take a few days for someone to attend and priority is given to real emergencies as opposed to matters of general routine maintenance.

Furniture & Household Appliances

Your property was provided with furniture at the request of the Council or yourself so therefore it may not be possible to remove items if you buy your own. Please contact our office BEFORE you order any new furniture or appliances as your Landlord may not have anywhere to store items already at the premises and may not wish them to be dumped. We will charge you for any items that are disposed of without permission. Removal, from the property, of furniture belonging to the landlord is at their discretion. If the landlord says a piece of furniture cannot be removed then it must remain in the property for the duration of your tenancy.

British Gas & Your Gas Provider

Every property managed by Argyle Housing Group has British Gas, or equivalent, gas insurance. If you have problems with your gas system, including the boiler, it is the responsibility of the insurer such as British Gas. To assist in this matter, and to ensure our maintenance team can monitor your problems, we will contact British Gas or their equivalent on your behalf in order for them to undertake the repair. If you have a problem with your boiler or plumbing please contact our maintenance team so we can make an appointment for a British Gas inspector to visit your property.

British Gas inspections are very difficult to predict. By default they have two call-out times a day. The first one is between 8am – Midday. The second time is between 1pm and 6pm. When an appointment time is set you must ensure you are available at your property for the entire time to ensure that the engineer can gain access otherwise a new appointment time will need to be made for you. If you are not present when the gas engineer attends then they will leave a card saying you were not present. Please ring us and provide any details on that card so we may make another appointment on your behalf.

Occasionally, British Gas or their equivalent will need to come and conduct an inspection of the boiler and your gas plumbing. These inspections are compulsory to ensure your property's gas insurance is up to date and valid. These inspections are sometimes requested by the Landlord which means we will contact you for an appropriate time. Sometimes, however, the gas company will contact you directly by mail. If this happens please inform our maintenance team as soon as possible. Failure to do so may impair our ability to assist you in the event something does go wrong with your gas service.

Garden Maintenance & Refuse

The outside of your property is also your responsibility. You have an obligation to ensure the upkeep of the property. This includes ensuring grass is cut and plants are trimmed and maintained to an acceptable level. This is not the responsibility of Argyle Maintenance staff.

Refuse and rubbish is also the obligation of the property tenant. Make sure you are aware of the council refuse pick up days and arrange to have your rubbish ready and waiting for their pick up. Rubbish should be placed in an appropriate rubbish bag.

Emergency Contact Number

In the event of an emergency please do not hesitate to contact us on 079 8974 3496. This number is to be used for emergencies like water flooding, fire, boiler failures only. The emergency number only comes online after our office has closed. Our office hours are from 8am – 5pm (Mon - Fri). For all other matters please contact us on the normal maintenance office number during our office hours.