Unfortunately the team at Middletons cannot be here 24 hours a day 7 days a week.  Our colleagues and our contractors have a home life too, so please help us by ensuring that you are experiencing a true emergency and that the issue cannot wait until our office is open. Please remember that if a contractor is called out as an emergency when a repair is not justified, you will be liable for all costs.

An emergency is any situation that could cause danger to yourself or others.

Advice on how to deal with common issues that can occur out of hours is listed below.

To report a Gas Leak call Cadent on 0800 111 999.  For further information see https://cadentgas.com/emergencies/smell-gas

To report a water/drainage/sewage issue contact Severn Trent Water on 0800 783 4444

Lost Keys

Spare keys can be collected during working hours if we have a set, which is not always the case. If you are locked out when the office is closed, please contact a locksmith to let you back in.  If the locks require changing you will be responsible for the cost of this and for providing us with two copies of any new keys.

Leaks and Water Ingress
Leaks are not classed as an emergency unless causing major damage or running through electrical fittings.

If there is a leak coming into your property from above you must make the occupier aware immediately so they can arrange for a plumber to resolve the problem or switch off their water. Let us know of any damage to your property and please use a bucket to collect any water and minimise damage.

Gas Leak
If you smell gas or suspect a CO (carbon monoxide) leak you must call the national supply service on 0800 111 999, they will attend immediately and investigate the problem. Please ensure you contact them as soon as possible if a fault is detected and follow their instructions.

Electrical Supply
If you lose power to the whole of your property please check in the first instance that the problem is not a supply issue. You should see whether your neighbours have the same problem.

If the problem is with your property only - check the fuse box in the first instance a fault or faulty appliance may have caused the circuit to trip. Do not use the faulty appliance. If the appliance belongs to the landlord please inform us during office hours, so that it can be replaced or repaired. If it is a light bulb that needs replacing this should be carried out by the tenants.

Roof Leaks

Please notify us as soon as possible of a roof leak, and collect water in a bucket to limit any damage. Contractors cannot access the roof while it is raining so they will need to wait until the rain stops to attend and action any repairs. Roof leaks cannot be looked at out of hours, when it`s dark or in bad weather. The priority is to collect the water to minimise damage.

Broken Windows
If a window is broken or badly damaged, a glazier is not likely to be able to repair this out of hours. The normal course of action is for this to be boarded up or temporarily covered with wood/card/etc.

Frozen Pipes
Pipes which come into your property from the outside of the building can freeze during the winter, this can also happen internally if your property gets very cold. Please ensure the heating is left on a low regular setting if you are not at your property over the winter to avoid pipes freezing. 

If a leak from your property is detected, switch off the water supply at the stop cock to prevent any further damage.

Heating

If your heating stops working altogether, first check the pressure, there is a dial on the front of your boiler to show this. Your boiler needs the pressure topped up from time to time and it should be around 1.5. There are instructions online (and videos on YouTube) for every make of boiler if you have not done this before. Please do not over pressurize the boiler because this can burst the expansion vessel.

If your radiators are heating only partially and feel cold in areas they may be holding pockets of air and can be ‘bled’ to resolve the problem. This just involves letting a little air out using a radiator key.  Turn your boiler off, turn the key in the radiator and allow the air out before closing and resetting the boiler. You may need to top up the pressure to let more water into the system again. Only carry this out when the radiators are cold.

It is always worth resetting (or switching your boiler off and on again) if there is a problem. We do not consider loss of heating to be an emergency in itself. If you contact a plumber out of hours due to a boiler breakdown you will be liable for any out of hours charges that apply.  We will attempt to get your heating looked at soon as possible, but finding a contractor in the winter cannot always be instant so you may need to be patient.

Smoke Alarms
If a smoke alarm is beeping intermittently then you need to change the battery, mains wired alarms also have batteries. You may need a flat screwdriver to open the casing, if there are not instructions on the unit, you can find the manufacturer’s guide online.