Your tenancy agreement
If you rent one of our homes, you’ll need to sign a tenancy agreement before you move in. There are different types of tenancy agreements and we’ll tell you about yours. This is an important document that’s the contract between you and us so you should make sure you read and understand it before signing. Please call us on 0300 555 0500 if you need help with this. (Text relay: 18001 0300 555 0500).
Your online account
When you become one of our customers, you can register for your online account. You'll have instant access to lots of information relating to your home and you’ll be able to use a wide range of services 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This includes viewing your statements, applying to keep a pet and reporting a problem with a neighbour or in your community.
Costs
It’s important to be aware of all the costs of running a home. This includes electric, gas, water and council tax, as well as your rent and service charges. Visit our Rent and payments page for information on service charges and payment options. If you’re having money worries, visit our Benefit advice page for guidance on how to get help.
Letting standards
We have a duty to make sure our homes meet the minimum standards for housing as set out in the Government’s Decent Homes Standard. This means they must be in a reasonable state of repair, have reasonably modern facilities and adequate heating. They must also be secure, safe and reasonably clean. You can find out more about the conditions and standards you can expect in our guide to the standard you can expect when moving in.
Safety in your home
It’s a requirement of your tenancy agreement that you give us access to your home so that we can carry out our safety inspections and servicing. This is to help keep you safe.
Our Gas Safe registered contractors carry out annual checks to make sure the gas appliances we installed in your home are working correctly and are well maintained.
If you bought and fitted an appliance yourself (e.g. a gas cooker or gas fire) it’s your responsibility to make sure it’s serviced every year.
If you smell gas in your home or a communal area, you should contact the National Grid’s Gas Emergency Number immediately on 0800 111 999.
We also carry out electrical inspections every five years, and we perform fire door checks in flats. We work with asbestos consultants to regularly survey all homes, and we carry out water hygiene checks where needed.
Most of our homes now have mains powered smoke and carbon monoxide detectors and will be checked by us during our annual gas safety check. If your detector is battery powered, you’re responsible for replacing the batteries. We recommend that you check these on a weekly basis. Please contact us if you’re unsure which type you have.
You can read Fire safety in your home [pdf] for advice on how to reduce the risk of fire in your home.
For more information about asbestos, gas, electric, water hygiene, lift maintenance and fire safety in the home, visit our Home safety page.
Contents insurance
You are responsible for insuring the contents of your home. We don’t cover your contents as part of your tenancy agreement.
Contents insurance is designed to help protect your possessions. No matter how careful you are, there’s always a risk that your belongings could be broken, damaged, or stolen. Contents insurance can help provide peace of mind should something happen to them.
We work with Thistle Tenant Risks who provide the My Home Contents Insurance Scheme designed for tenants living in social housing. Leaseholders are also eligible to apply.
The scheme can offer you insurance for home contents including furniture, carpets, curtains, clothes, bedding, electrical items, jewellery, pictures, and ornaments.
You can find out more information or request a call back by visiting My Home Contents Insurance or by calling Thistle Tenant Risks on 0345 450 7288. You can work out the value of your home contents using their handy online calculator.
You can also find out more information about the scheme by signing in to your online account or requesting an application pack by contacting us.
You can also request a call back from a member of the My Home Contents Insurance team.