Who changes and pays for light globes?
- Thread starter belleran
- Start date
Hi belleran
This is from the Victorian Department of Human Services / Office of Housing website (my underlining):
http://www.housing.vic.gov.au/living-in-housing/maintenance-and-improvements/report-maintenance
Report maintenance
If something is damaged or broken in your home, you can call the Housing Call Centre on 13 11 72 to get it fixed.
You can also make a non-urgent maintenance request online.
When you are explaining what is broken, try to give us as much detail as you can. The more we know about the problem, the easier it will be for us to fix it quickly.
The time it will take to complete your repairs will depend on the type of repairs that are required.
There are some things you are responsible for, like replacing light bulbs, but if there is a reason you cannot do these things, you can contact the Housing Call Centre.
Looking after your garden and general house cleaning are also things you must do yourself.
Hope this helps
Kristine
This is from the Victorian Department of Human Services / Office of Housing website (my underlining):
http://www.housing.vic.gov.au/living-in-housing/maintenance-and-improvements/report-maintenance
Report maintenance
If something is damaged or broken in your home, you can call the Housing Call Centre on 13 11 72 to get it fixed.
You can also make a non-urgent maintenance request online.
When you are explaining what is broken, try to give us as much detail as you can. The more we know about the problem, the easier it will be for us to fix it quickly.
The time it will take to complete your repairs will depend on the type of repairs that are required.
There are some things you are responsible for, like replacing light bulbs, but if there is a reason you cannot do these things, you can contact the Housing Call Centre.
Looking after your garden and general house cleaning are also things you must do yourself.
Hope this helps
Kristine
If the tenant is a pathetic, impractical victim of the universe - the bulb stays broken.
If they have half a brain, have a clear vision of the future which doesn't involve them in being a tenant forever and who will get ahead in life - the tenant will.
With the only type of bulbs available to purchase into the future being the more expensive type, I think these would now fall into "regular" category. When these bulbs first were available they did cost over $10 but can now be bought for a few dollars each, so I think they are now "normal" light bulbs.
We have never had a tenant who has asked us to replace bulbs during a tenancy. We have had tenants leave empty sockets a few times. It is not something I worry about, but if I had to pay $10 per bulb, I would be taking it from the bond if they left several sockets empty.
The only time I would not ask it of them is for a couple of "specialty" bulbs in one property. If they left and those bulbs were not working, we would just buy new ones (three in total in one house). If they broke during the tenancy, and asked us to pay for a replacement, I would see what sort of mood I was in, but to be honest, I just don't think our tenants would ask us.
Can't help agreeing with you, here. Even on the few occasions when I've been a tenant, it wouldn't have occurred to me to call the PM about a broken light bulb - specialty lightbulb or not.
.....aahhh, the grandaddy of 'em all - fear of litigation, better than the fear of God.
Right then, now you put it like that, I'm definitely going to be changing all of those bulbs.
This subject of changing light bulbs would surely have to qualify as being truly pathetic. I agree with your comments Marc - victims of the Universe. 30 posts over who changes a light bulb. Wasn't there a joke about this subject ??
Sunfish's idea of sitting back and collecting the fully franked dividends looks OK from this angle.
I had a tenant who insisted I change the light globes. I told her it was her responsibility.
Next phone call was from the PM telling me there was an electrical fault and tenant wanted an electrician to be called. Claim was that tenant had tried to replace the globe but it didn't work, she claimed there was something wrong with the socket.
In the meantime the tenant gave notice and moved out, so I went to investigate, tenant claimed she had bought replacement globe and left it on the bench, which she had.
Problem...Tenant had bought screw in and the light socket was bayonet.
Daz what was that about following Sunfish way of investing......
Chris
Next phone call was from the PM telling me there was an electrical fault and tenant wanted an electrician to be called. Claim was that tenant had tried to replace the globe but it didn't work, she claimed there was something wrong with the socket.
In the meantime the tenant gave notice and moved out, so I went to investigate, tenant claimed she had bought replacement globe and left it on the bench, which she had.
Problem...Tenant had bought screw in and the light socket was bayonet.
Daz what was that about following Sunfish way of investing......
Chris
Hi Chris, I thought I just wrote it above ?? Here it is again...
Fantastic - this always intrigues me. Tenants states "there is an electrical fault" and then directly after requests an electrician at someone else's expense to check whether or not "there is an electrical fault"...cracks me up.
Tenant had bought screw in and the light socket was bayonet.
Nice one. As Marc said - victims of the Universe.
What happens if you have lighting fixture and was broken when the tenant tried to change the bulb. Will you be asking the tenant to pay for the damage if you told them its their responsibility to change it. Cause some of them can be hard to work out.
Just asking as I personally haven't touched any lighting fixture to change bulbs in case i damage it. good thing none have blew on me yet!
Just asking as I personally haven't touched any lighting fixture to change bulbs in case i damage it. good thing none have blew on me yet!
I second this. For most items needing a tradie I tell them that if it is tenants fault, (or no problem at all, just a stupid tenant) the tenant pays for it.
We have never had any issues, but with our places now having spit systems, we do put a clause in saying that if a call out is needed and the fault is simply that the filters have not been cleaned (as specified in the lease) then it is their cost.
Dazz mentioned the number of posts on this "problem" as if this somehow indicates the level of problem that light globes cause. I have never had any issues with light globes, except when a tenant leaves (happened in January) and no bulbs in two fittings (nine bulbs required in total). It still only cost me probably $1 per bulb (Ikea bulk globes) so it is hardly a biggie.
It seems that it is not really a problem for most landlords, with tenant and/or landlord angst level very low in this regard.
You're joking, right?
Seriously. You've never changed a lightbulb? It really isn't rocket science. Even my 2yr old DS has figured out how to remove and replace the bulb in my bedside lamps.
I agree, it's not rocket science, however this reminds me of the first tenant we had in the IP at the back of our PPOR. This guy was so heavy handed and useless. We only kept him for six months, because he would break everything he touched.
Anyway.......he tried to change a bulb. He broke the whole fitting. Just pushed it into the gyprock somehow. It wasn't a biggie, cause Hubby is an electrician by trade, so he just fixed the damn thing AND, if I recall rightly, checked to see if any others needed doing while he was there. I had totally forgotten about this.
read it carefully, not that i haven't changed a light blub. for instance my lamp it's easy to do. but with light fitting, i dont know how to take them off to get to the light blub. there may be screws to undo or what not. hence if i'm on a chair holding the light cover it may slip out of my hand and break into pieces. or use too much force and it just crack cause its so old.
