Tenant on 4th Floor with Toddler Seeks Advice After 3-Week Lift Outage
A tenant on the fourth floor with a toddler faces severe challenges due to a three-week lift outage, impacting daily life and an upcoming move. They question health and safety breaches and liability for moving costs. An expert advises contacting the landlord, noting that lift repairs can be delayed by funding or parts issues, and the management company's primary communication is with owners.
A tenant on the fourth floor with a two-year-old toddler has been without a functioning lift for over three weeks, severely impacting their daily life and ability to shop for essentials. The lack of communication from the management agency regarding repairs, described only as «extensive damage», has led to concerns about health and safety breaches.
Elderly parents with mobility issues cannot visit or assist with childcare. The tenant is also worried about moving out in 5-6 weeks without a working lift and seeks clarification on whether the management company is liable for associated moving costs, such as hiring a company to move belongings down stairs.
Aisling Keenan, a property managing agent, advises that the tenant's contract is with the landlord, who should be the primary contact for maintenance issues and compensation. While the Owners’ Management Company (OMC) is responsible for timely repairs of common areas like the lift, delays can occur due to funding issues, the need for owner approvals, or the obsolescence of parts, especially for older lifts requiring full replacement. The OMC's main communication duty is to owners, not tenants, though it must take reasonable steps to address the issue.