How to take your landlord to court for repairs
Negotiate with your landlord
Start by talking to your landlord.
Negotiation gives you and the landlord a chance to deal with the problem without court action.
It does not mean you have to agree to delays or bad conditions.
But the judge will want to see that you tried to negotiate if you end up going to court.
Write to your landlord and tell them what you'd like them to do and by when.
If your landlord is trying to fix things, you could:
give them more time to fix things
ask to write off any rent arrears
ask for compensation
Ask your landlord for an agreement
Reaching an agreement out of court might save you time and money.
You could use our template in an email to your landlord.
[Use the subject: Repairs out of court agreement offer]
I'm writing to you about disrepair and bad conditions at [property address].
Because of this, I have suffered the following loss and problems: [give details of how the lack of repairs has affected you]
I will not take you to court if you do the works needed and pay me compensation.
The works needed are: [list everything that needs to be done to fix the problem].
I would like:
£xxx for what I’ve had to go through
£xxx for my financial loss
I would also like you to write off the rent I owe. [delete if you do not owe any rent]
I look forward to hearing from you within the next 10 days.
You can also send the letter as an email attachment or by post:
Word template: Repairs out of court agreement offer (docx 17kb)
OpenDocument template: Repairs out of court agreement offer (odt 11kb)
Alternative dispute resolution
You could use alternative dispute resolution (ADR) instead of taking legal action.
The court may tell you and your landlord to do this first.
You can use the court's free mediation service if you have started a money claim for less than £10,000. Mediation is when a professional helps you and your landlord agree.
Last updated: 26 January 2024
