Annexe consumer unit - must it be in annexe?

[Paul-in-Sussex]

Over the last twenty odd years it has tripped maybe four times. I just tap on the door and they reset the trip. Job done.

 

[Murdochcat]

Over the last twenty odd years it has tripped maybe four times. I just tap on the door and they reset the trip. Job done.

so no access then.

no EICR either ?

 

[Paul-in-Sussex]

Over the last twenty years it has tripped maybe four times. I just tap on the door, they reset it and away we go. No problems.

 

[Murdochcat]

so no access then.

no EICR either ?

 

[Paul-in-Sussex]

Sorry missed last post above. No access strictly speaking though that isn't an issue in this case.

No reports.

 

[Murdochcat]

Over the last twenty years it has tripped maybe four times. I just tap on the door, they reset it and away we go. No problems.

thats completely irrelevant

 

[Murdochcat]

Sorry missed last post above. No access strictly speaking though that isn't an issue in this case.

No reports.

it’s not up to you whether it’s an issue or not

no reports is an issue

 

[JohnW2]

I live in the annexe, main house is occupied by the property owner.

That rather moves the goalposts from what I had (incorrectly) assumed.

I am OK with the CU being in the main house as it rarely trips and owner doesn't go on holidays etc.

Yes, but, even if he doesn't go on holidays, I presume that he is not in the house 24/7 for 365 days every year?

Really I am asking as a point of law.

As you have been told, for the last two or three years the law has required that the landlord has regular inspections ("EICRs") undertaken, provide copies of the reports to the tenant and arrange for any remedial work indicated on the report as being required (given a 'code' of "C!" or "C2") to be undertaken within 28 days of the date of the report. ... and you have also been told that, given that you do not occupy the house which contains the CU, most people undertaking the inspections would indicate that the location of the CU 'had to be improved' (i.e.moved into the annexe) It sounds as if none of that has happened, in which case the the landlord would already be in breach of the law.

The politics here are difficult but suffice to say the owner isn't able to make these decisions himself. Those who do make his decisions want to do a vast amount of work to both properties (ceilings down etc) over a number of days. This is in no-one's interest except those that make the decisions, £££ ...

If, in legal terms, the owner of the house (your landlord) does not have the 'capacity' to make these decisions himself, then someone should have been appointed, either by prior arrangement by himself or by a Court, to make decisions on his behalf, as described in the Mental Capacity Act. I can't see that it would be acceptable in law for a landlord not to have the capacity to understand and/or comply with the requirements imposed on landlords by law - if no-one has been appointed to act on his behalf, a Court would ultimately intervene on his behalf.

Before taking this further I need to know my position - I need to know if moving the CU / meters out of the main house is a matter of law or just a 'nice to have' situation.

"Your position" is that you are the tenant, and that none of what we are discussing is 'your problem. It's entirely the responsibility of the landlord to comply with the legal requirements imposed on landlords in the private rental sector.

I've been here twenty odd years and it suits me fine - not perfect but agreable enough - now everything is a problem, not with owner mind but his 'carers'.

You may be happy with the situation but, as above, the issue will arise when the situation is brought into compliance with the law, and an electrical inspection is carried out which very probably will require that the CU be re-located within 28 days. However, again, that is not your problem. If the inspection is not undertaken then that non-compliance with the law will eventually result in 'action'.

Kind Regards, John

 

[foxhole]

If the annex can or is occupied it can attracts council tax, just had a visit from assessment officer as my bungalow has an annex which came to the councils attention during my purchase .

 

[JohnW2]

If the annex can or is occupied it can attracts council tax ...

I strongly suspect that the OP is, and has been, paying council tax for the annexe, which has apparently been his home for 20+ years.

Kind Regards, John

 

[ebee]

If the landlord became temporarily disabled say , for example, by illness then do you have access (say for example do you have a key to enable entry to gain access to the consumer unit)?

Or, put it another way. if the landlord suddenly dropped dead and moments later your wiring caught fire then would you be able to go quickly to the consumer unit and isolate the electrics?

 

[Murdochcat]

I strongly suspect that the OP is, and has been, paying council tax for the annexe, which has apparently been his home for 20+ years.

Kind Regards, John

Or the OP is the landlord , has had an EICR done and is trying to get an unsatisfactory report questioned ...............

 

[ericmark]

I have the reverse, the consumer unit, boiler, electric meter, is in the annex, we feel anyone sleeping in the annex is not difference to sleeping in any other bedroom. As to an EICR I can write one out if I want to, can't see what difference it would make? Be it the room we at the moment use as a dinning room, or a room in the annex some one could live in that room without ever having to be with us, so question is when is some one a guest, lodger, or tenant?

I can't replace the DNO fuse myself, so can't see how anyone must be able to replace any other fuse or reset a breaker, if there was a legal requirement to be able to re-set, then we could also replace the DNO fuse.

I am sure I could fit a current transformer in the CU so I could independently monitor electric power used in annex, however I could not monitor the heating used in the annex, we have been fighting now for 4 years to have the annex as part of the main house for council tax, seems only way is to remove the doors and windows and fit garage doors.

The electric meter is in the annex, so there needs to be access to read the meter, it is not smart, so only way the read the meter is to go into the annex.

A google difference between lodger and tenant gets

In the simplest terms possible, a tenant and a lodger are distinguished by the fact that a tenant (or a contract holder) is a person that rents out the whole property from a landlord, while a lodger is someone who occupies a room in the home where the landlord lives.

So it would seem from that you are a lodger, so the landlord rules likely don't apply? To separate out the electric and heating could mean it is no longer considered as one property, this has been our argument.

Not only the house but the garden, drive etc, is shared, it was a granny flat at one point, why it was every considered as an independent property we have no idea, we did not realise it attracted a separate council tax until after we bought the property, it was listed as a detached house, and clearly if two separate properties it would be semi-detached.

 

[Paul-in-Sussex]

Hi all
Many thanks for all the input - on a bank holiday.
To close this out - essentially if I have unimpeded access to CU all is OK. CU doesn't have to be 'within' annexe so long as I can access it whenever I feel the need.

So the CU could be on the wall outside in a lockable cabinet? This would save ripping down the ceiling in the annexe as all wiring could be accessed from the 'other side' - back wall of main house.

Please tell me if my thinking is correct so I can tackle landlords lawyers with hard facts.

Thanks again for your time, patience and expertise.
Paul

 

[Murdochcat]

Hi all
Many thanks for all the input - on a bank holiday.
To close this out - essentially if I have unimpeded access to CU all is OK. CU doesn't have to be 'within' annexe so long as I can access it whenever I feel the need.

So the CU could be on the wall outside in a lockable cabinet? This would save ripping down the ceiling in the annexe as all wiring could be accessed from the 'other side' - back wall of main house.

Please tell me if my thinking is correct so I can tackle landlords lawyers with hard facts.

Thanks again for your time, patience and expertise.
Paul

first your landlord needs to get an EICR done and give you a copy …

this must be a private arrangement or else the LA would have chased all this up