(1) During Inventory check-in, it's Beth who was hurrying up and loosing patience and later she left the house rudely.
(2) For checkout I did requested for full checkout report but they provided just two page document ( and around 10 photos) because they do not use any independent surveyor and money goes in their pocket.

(3) Here is the email which I sent to Walmsey in regard to boiler issue:

Hi Sian,

I am writing to inform you that my elder son has fallen ill since this morning due to the boiler issue. And I am unable to sleep since Saturday night and now fully exhausted as I have to wake up all night every 1-2 hours to reset boiler.

Its a shame that you and your agency is not doing enough to get the issue sorted immediately. The worst bit is we have keep poking you every day and then also you don't do anything and never followup.

My wife has been following up since last week to get it sorted. We made you aware that the boiler is not working at all on Saturday, 5 Nov 2016. We called you more than 4 times on Saturday to followup but you called up in evening to inform that contractor won't be able to come that day for repair and requested to wait until Monday. You told us to manually reset the boiler whenever it goes off. I have to wake up after every 1-2 hours whole night to reset it. And then my wife does the same during daytime. My whole family slept without heating on Wednesday Night and this is what will going to happen today as well.

I have full rights to know why its been delayed and yet not fixed. I am not in position to go to work tomorrow and would like to know who will going to compensate me for that.

I will going to raise a formal complaint at Reading Council tomorrow against the Landlord and Walmsey for negligence of the health and Safety.

Please share the contact details of point of contact for next level of escalation.


(4) And reply from Walmsey:

Good Afternoon Divya,

I understand it is difficult time when the boiler is not fully functional, however you must appreciate that you will experience maintenance issues like this regardless if you are renting or own the property.This time of year it is difficult arranging for a contractor to attend within the same day as the report, as you can imagine this time of year there are a lot of boiler break downs and the contractors are fully booked for weeks at a time.When I first received the report on 4th November, an engineer visited the property that evening which was an out of hours appointment.I chased an update for you on Saturday morning and the contractor informed me that he was looking into the part and cost required, this is not easy especially as a lot of the suppliers are closed over the weekend.Saturday afternoon when your wife called, and informed me that the boiler was not working again, I called the contractor again. After a few phone calls back and forth, you spoke with the contractor directly and he advised you how to reset the boiler in order for you to have heating and hot water over the weekend.I chased the quote on Monday and received it later on that day in which I sent over to the landlord for approval. I then received the email from the landlord on Tuesday and gave the contractor the go ahead. He ordered the part and I booked this in directly with your wife for Thursday afternoon once the part had been received. Unfortunately, the contractor got stuck on an emergency all afternoon and I called your wife to ask if he can attend Friday morning (this morning). She was very understanding and said of course that was fine, she then thanked me for all my help and getting it sorted.I understand over this time, you have had to reset the boiler in order to get hot water and heating at the property and this was inconvenient for you however I do believe that I acted in a professional and efficient way to get this sorted for you. I spoke with your wife throughout the entire week to keep her updated and she never expressed any frustration or anger to the situation.You are welcome to contact the Council if you feel that this is necessary, however I believe I acted within a reasonable time.



(5) Here is text from the email which Lauren sent me when I asked to justify the deduction, and after receiving this response I raised the dispute:

The property is only in need of a minor clean at £27.50 for the hour.I believe that my colleague Sian has responded to you regarding the decking.If we cannot come to an agreement we will have to go to dispute with the TDS (Tenancy Deposit Scheme) this can be a very lengthy process.Please let me know what you would like to do moving forward.
Kind regards
Lauren

(6) Summary:
I hope it enough to prove who is manipulating and who is telling the truth.

Thank you for your feedback on our processes and tenancy experience. Although negative comments are never pleasant to hear, we take them on board with the hope to improve our service if we feel it is necessary. We cannot change a personal opinion but equally cannot agree with all comments made by the individual.

The purpose of the inventory check in is to start the tenancy with an accurate document which can be used to assist with a smooth return of deposit and termination of tenancy. This intention was reflected by the length of time Beth spent with the individual during the check in appointment, prior to check in tenants are also advised of the potential time scale which varies quite considerably for each case. The document compiled for this particular property consisted of 30 pages of text and approx. 189 photographs, any further notes are respectfully added should it be deemed necessary and it is for this reason we attend to ensure nothing is missed.

A written report and various photos were indeed taken at check out, the considered short length of this document purely demonstrates the findings were considered minor and infact a reflection on how well the property was left by the individual. The proposal under discussion at this point was £27.50, this was to cover a final clean to areas which had been innocently overlooked. The tenant refused this and we advised we would have to refer to the landlord for his opinion however the tenant did not wish to wait and raised dispute without warning. After discussions with the landlord over the weekend he agreed to absorb the cost as a final sparkle clean was planned before the next tenancy and amicably conclude the scenario. With this in mind, I wish to confirm this individual has received a full deposit return and try to encourage that negative feedback is given only when the decision is final or unresolved.

With regards to the maintenance issue of heating/ hot water during the tenancy, as with all issues, time is needed to resolve them. The particular circumstance mentioned was due to a broken thermostat, a common fault and was promptly tended to by the contractor who ordered the appropriate parts. It was advised the tenants should not set the boiler to the max. temperature as this would cause the system to short circuit and shut off. Each day, the contractor willingly returned to reset the system, despite the fact this advice was not followed as the tenants were not comfortable to do this. To our knowledge the Council has made no contact to validate any poor practice on our part.

Our fees will always remain competitive and we strive to offer and address any concerns made. We appreciate that moving home can sometimes be a high stress situation but the tenant has expressed quite aggressive approaches to us on more than one occasion and feel this could have exacerbated the situation when meeting with Beth at check in. Furthermore the negative comments made about Beth were discussed internally and after speaking with the tenant on the phone, we understood to be resolved and closed.

Lastly, it is important to note that notice was served during a time which all maintenance was resolved and understood to be due to other reasons not connected to the relationship with Walmsley lettings.

We wish the individual all the very best for the future and hope that some of the responses have addressed the comments made.