Important information about your repairs service
This page was created to provide information to customers about our new repairs contractors during Summer 2022.
For the latest information about repairs please visit our dedicated Repairs and Maintenance pages.
Updated: 13 July 2023
Your reshaped repairs service – July 2022
As part of our ongoing commitment to improve the service we provide, we’ve appointed three new repairs contractors.
The following contractors are delivering our voids and repairs service across our three geographic regions - the east, south and west:
- Morgan Sindall Property Services – east region
- Fortem Solutions – south region
- Ian Williams Limited – west region.
Find out which region you live in or which contractor delivers your repairs service
You're now able to report all repairs, but our new contractors will need time during the first two weeks to get their operatives in place and trained.
If you report a repair that isn’t classed as an emergency, you’ll still receive an appointment, but it will be booked in from Monday, 11 July onwards.
We really appreciate your ongoing patience, understanding and co-operation.
In-house repairs call handling
As part of these changes, we’re also pleased to announce that we’re bringing repairs call handling in-house, meaning when you call us to report a repair, you’ll be speaking to a Longhurst Group colleague in our Repairs Contact Centre.
Our team will field all customer calls relating to repairs and schedule appointments in a way that suits you, making the process more efficient and, most importantly, delivering a better overall experience for our customers.
Although your contractor has changed, the number you’ll need to call hasn’t. To report a repair to you new contractor from July 1, please call 0800 111 4013, choosing option 1.
FAQs
We appreciate that you may have a few questions about these changes and so we’ve included more information – including answers to some frequently asked questions and exactly what it means for you – below.
Our repairs service has fallen below the standards we expect and that you deserve so we need to reshape how it’s delivered. We’ve appointed three new contractors, each responsible for a different region, and we’re confident this will lead to an improved service.
We’re still working through a significant backlog of repairs and these may take longer than expected to complete. We appreciate this isn’t ideal and we’re working hard with our current and new contractors to ensure a return to our full service as soon as possible.
Although the contractor delivering your repairs service is changing, the way you report your repair to us isn’t – you’ll still call us on 0800 111 4013 and use option 1.
In the future, you’ll be able to report and track your repair with your appointed contractor via an online portal. As soon as this facility is available, we’ll let you know via our website and social media channels.
As mentioned, for the time being, we’re working through a backlog of repairs and are focussing on completing essential repairs first. The following are considered essential:
- Electrical faults
- Leaks or plumbing issues which may affect washing or toilet facilities or may cause further damage to a property
- No heating or hot water or partial heating loss
- Broken showers in properties with no other washing facilities
- Loss of water supplies
- Security issues affecting doors and windows
- Blocked drains
- Storm damage, such as loose roof tiles
- Making properties safe and secure following serious incidents
- Where there’s a risk to health or further damage to the property
- Repairing equipment that a disabled person relies on
- Damp and mould
- Trip hazards.
If you have any questions about an ongoing repair or if you feel it’s now more urgent and falls into one of the above categories, please get in touch on 0800 111 4013 or contact us.
Following the introduction of a new ‘Urgent’ category, the new contract will have the following three repair priorities:
Emergency (attended and made safe within four hours)
This is when your health, safety or security is at immediate risk, or the structure of your home could be harmed. Examples include an insecure door or ground floor window and substantial leaks that cannot be isolated or contained. A further routine or urgent repair appointment may be needed to complete any necessary repairs required after your property has been made safe.
Urgent (completed within seven calendar days)
Urgent repairs are where the repair isn’t an immediate risk but needs to be completed as a priority. Examples of urgent repairs include partial loss of electricity and lighting, a tap that cannot be turned on or off, and rodent infestations inside properties and internal communal areas owned by Longhurst Group.
Routine (completed within 28 calendar days)
Issues that don’t put your health, safety or security at risk or cause harm to the structure of your property. Most repairs fall under this category, including repairs to kitchen units, bathrooms, general electrical repairs, plumbing and containable leaks.
There may be instances, due to the complexity of the work or when new parts need to be ordered or made, that mean the repair can’t be completed within the above timescales. If this happens, you’ll always be kept informed.
Appointment slots will be Monday to Friday AM (8am to 12noon) and Monday to Friday PM (12noon to 5pm). There’ll also be an ‘Avoid School Run’ option (10am–2pm).
Appointments won’t be provided for communal repairs but will be completed within the priorities above.
Although this won’t be available from the start of the contract, text message reminders will be sent to you in advance of your appointment. You’ll also be able to track the operative on the day of a visit.
Where further works are required after an initial visit, operatives will leave details of a follow-on appointment. If the initial visit is an out-of-hours emergency, the Planning Team and the contractor will contact you the next working day to arrange a follow-on appointment.
Under the new contract, operatives will make two attempts to access your property to complete a repair. On each attempt, they’ll leave a calling card to let you know they’ve visited.
If they’re unsuccessful on the second attempt, the contractor can refer the job back to us to confirm that the repair doesn’t pose a health and safety risk before approving the cancellation. You’d then have to contact us again to re-book the work.
To coincide with the launch of the new contract, we’ll be handling all your repairs calls through our newly established in-house Repairs Contact Centre.
We’ve also appointed a new, specialist out-of-hours call handler, called Appello, who handle all emergency repair calls outside our normal office hours (Monday to Friday, 8.30am to 5pm).
Yes – as ever, we really want to hear your views. Your feedback helped shape this new contract and will continue to inform the service you receive.
After all repairs have been completed by the contractor, we’ll send you a satisfaction survey via text message to rate your experience of the service you’ve received. Replies will be charged at your standard network rate.
Our online engagement platform, The Hub, provides a forum for customers to have their say. To get involved, you need to create an account by visiting: thehublonghurstgroup.uk.engagementhq.com
Interim contractors
As part of our ongoing efforts to improve the service we deliver to you, we appointed additional interim contractors on 1 February 2022.
Their appointment was intended to improve our performance in preparation for the handover to our permanent contractors on 1 July 2022.
The interim contractors will not be taking on any new repairs after July 1, but will be completing any outstanding work.
The interim contractors are:
- Novus Property Solutions LTD
- T.M. Browne LTD
- Foster Property Maintenance LTD
- Matt Fearn Property.
All operatives will carry a letter of authorisation from Longhurst Group, their own company ID and will always adhere to all current Coronavirus guidance.
If you’re ever unsure about an operative’s authenticity or have any concerns, please call us on 0800 111 4013.
Repair priorities
Following the introduction of a new ‘Urgent’ category, the new contract will have the following three repair priorities:
Emergency (attended and made safe within four hours)
This is when your health, safety or security is at immediate risk, or the structure of your home could be harmed. Examples include an insecure door or ground floor window and substantial leaks that cannot be isolated or contained. A further routine or urgent repair appointment may be needed to complete any necessary repairs required after your property has been made safe.
Urgent (completed within seven calendar days)
Urgent repairs are where the repair isn’t an immediate risk but needs to be completed as a priority. Examples of urgent repairs include partial loss of electricity and lighting, a tap that cannot be turned on or off, and rodent infestations inside properties and internal communal areas owned by Longhurst Group.
Routine (completed within 28 calendar days)
Issues that don’t put your health, safety or security at risk or cause harm to the structure of your property. Most repairs fall under this category, including repairs to kitchen units, bathrooms, general electrical repairs, plumbing and containable leaks.
There may be instances, due to the complexity of the work or when new parts need to be ordered or made, that mean the repair can’t be completed within the above timescales. If this happens, you’ll always be kept informed.
Heating servicing, repairs and installations
We’re delighted to have appointed Aaron Services to deliver our heating servicing, repairs and installations contract.
This contract covers all our geographical regions and all property types except for leasehold of the elderly properties.
The contract came into effect on Friday, 23 September 2022 and will run for the next three years – plus a further two years if its successful.
This procurement and contract award only covers our general needs stock and doesn’t include our leasehold for the elderly properties due to the short period of time for mobilisation.
However, we’ve worked with Aaron Services to ensure the services required within the contract are provided to these customers on an emergency basis for a period of up to 12 months.
How can I report a repair?
While the contractor has changed, the way customers contact us about the service will remain the same. If you have a query relating to heating, repairs or installations, please continue to call 0800 111 4013 and select the appropriate option.
Aaron Services will handle all calls from customers outside of our normal office hours (8.30am to 5pm).
Heating repairs priorities
Emergency
Attended to within two hours and made safe within 24 hours.
This covers any fault that endangers the health and safety of customers and/or those living nearby. This can include gas leaks, carbon monoxide and/or smoke detector activation, electrical fittings or installations coming
in contact with water, defects that could cause a fire, burst pipes and tanks, water penetration or failure of heating and/or hot water systems where it's the only source of heating/hot water in the property.
Urgent
Completed within 72 hours
This covers issues such as water leaks where damage is not apparent, overflowing cisterns or water-filled expansion tanks, failure of heating systems and/or hot water systems where it is not the only source of heating/hot water in the property and partial heating loss.
Routine
Completed with 14 calendar days at a convenient time for
the customer.
This covers all work of a non-emergency or urgent nature, planned works and all other works.
Appointments will offered in either morning or afternoon (AM/PM) slots.
Dealing with your enquiries
We’re extremely busy dealing with customer queries at the moment and, as a result, it may take us longer than usual to get back to you.
We’ll continue to keep you updated when we can, however, we may not be able to meet the timescales set out in our service standards. We really appreciate your continued patience and apologise for any inconvenience caused. We're confident that the changes we're making will help us to improve the service that you receive in the future.