Edinburgh couple has 'lucky escape' as ceiling collapses after leak in ceiling not fixed

The couple said they were forced to live with a huge hole and leak for months.

A couple whose kitchen ceiling collapsed months after they reported a leak has said they had a 'lucky escape'.

Cleo Black and her wife Kalyani Singh were terrified when the ceiling in their rented flat caved in while they were lying in bed last October - minutes before Kalyani was due to get up for work.

The couple who have lived in the Edinburgh flat for two years had first reported the leak in June but due to the failure to repair it, they were left living in unsafe conditions for months as the water caused issues with their electricity.

After they contacted DJ Alexander an emergency repair team came and covered the hole with a piece of chipboard. But the couple said dirty water continued leaking into the kitchen and they lived in constant fear of accidents while the water continued to short out the breaker for all of the electrical outlets. 

The couple were left with a huge hole and 20kg of debris in their kitchen but the ceiling still wasn't repaired for another two months - and the leak wasn't fixed for another month.

The couple's kitchen was covered in debris after their ceiling 'collapsed', months after a leak was reported

Cleo, 28, told the Evening News: "We were in bed when we heard this noise and at first we thought it was our cat. But the ceiling had collapsed. It was early in the morning so my wife was just about to get up for work. It was lucky that she wasn't up and about, the ceiling could have landed on her head. It was so scary. We had all this rubble all over the kitchen. It wasn't safe to leave it so I cleared it up myself.

"There was no way to report it at the time because the letting agent doesn't have an emergency contact number for repairs so we had to wait until the office opened. By then it was four months after we had reported the leak. Even after that, at no point did they do a full clean up all the dust and particles. That was a worry for us as my wife has asthma. After they put up the chipboard over the hole we still had water leaking through into the kitchen.

"We couldn't use our hob or oven as the leak was directly above causing issues with electricity. It was a fire hazard. With the leaking water, we were scared of getting an electric shock. It caused us a lot of anxiety and stress."

Cleo added: "The leak was unsanitary and created unsafe living conditions. We felt completely ignored by the letting agency which caused more stress."

It was only after the ceiling collapsed that DJ Alexander found the leak had come from the upstairs neighbour's flat. The agent claimed they couldn't access the property until then to check because the neighbour's landlord had denied the leak was coming from the upstairs property.

Support worker Kalyani, 27, said: “This has kept us constantly stressing over the condition of our house every day and we had to eat takeaway as we couldn't cook, that put a strain on our finances too.

"When the ceiling collapsed while we were in bed it was traumatic and terrifying. DJ Alexander could have easily avoided this if they had responded in a timely manner. ”

Cleo and Kalyani had a 'lucky escape'

Following a protest on Wednesday outside DJ Alexander offices supported by tenant union Living Rent, the couple have won compensation of £2.250. Cleo added: "It means we won't have to pay rent for three months. We're happy that they recognised the terrible situation they put us in."

Izzi Brannen, member defence organiser for Living Rent says: 

“It is unbelievable what landlords think they can get away with. To have constant water dripping in your flat is horrible enough, but then to be ignored to the extent that your ceiling collapses is shocking behaviour.

Time and time again landlords show their true colours by behaving as if they are above the law. No one should be forced to live in a leaky home, let alone with a collapsed ceiling. It is appalling that Cleo and Kalyani were forced to put up with this for so long. 

The Scottish government needs to legislate to ensure that landlords who fail to do repairs are penalised. This government must do more to protect tenants and provide high quality, affordable, accommodation.”

A spokesman for DJ Alexander Scotland said: “This was a complicated situation when a leak from an upstairs property (managed by another agency) caused damage to the flat. We met the tenants today who requested compensation and we fully compensated them and apologised for any inconvenience caused.”