March 19, 2020

COVID-19 – update for tenants

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Information

Dear Tenant,

Please be assured that K Letting are continuously monitoring the ever-changing circumstances surrounding the coronavirus to keep you our tenants, our employees and offices safe.

We are writing to all of our tenants today to provide you with information and guidance about coronavirus (COVID-19).

We are working hard to ensure that all of the services that you rely on remain in place, but some of our services will need to change if you or someone in your household is in self-isolation.

Please take some time to read this letter carefully, and keep it in a safe place so you can refer to it in an emergency.

We ask that all of our tenants adhere to the government’s latest medical advice which can be found here: Coronavirus (COVID-19): what you need to do

If anyone does need to self-isolate please ensure that you contact us immediately and we will email you specific instructions.

Keeping everyone safe and healthy is our main priority.

Our offices

Following the new guidelines given by government and advice we are receiving from The Scottish Association of Landlords, we have been carefully evaluating the current situation & as of March 18th, we are now working from home.

We believe this is the responsible action to take, allowing us to achieve the social distancing that health authorities believe is critical to slowing COVID-19’s spread. Working from home should reduce the chances of our workforce being struck down with illness and will enable us to maintain a sustainable level of service.

Most of our systems are cloud-based, so our team will all be working from home to ensure we can continue to provide as many of our services as possible. Our hope is that you should see very little difference in the way we operate.

We’ll do everything we can to respond as quickly as possible however there may be times where we cannot get back to you as quickly as we would like to.

Please note that we are no longer taking any face to face appointments.

Our contingency plan is as follows:

Our office phone number still works during opening hours. Whilst we are not at our office desks, the number has been re-diverted to our mobiles so we are able to answer from home. Our maintenance team is still available to help and assist with maintenance issues.
Routine inspections will be put on hold for now.
All maintenance will be closely monitored. For urgent maintenance, for contractors who are willing to continue offering their services, tenants must be at home to allow access. Once things return to “normal” any non urgent maintenance will be completed.

We will still be available on the normal email addresses (see below) and our online platforms will still be up and running. We ask that communications with our office are on email where they can be, however emergencies or where issues cannot wait, we will of course be happy to take your call.

Kirsty: kirsty@kletting.com
Sam: sam@kletting.com
Cerys: cerys@kletting.com
Emma: hello@kletting.com
Gillian: gillian@kletting.com

Repairs

If you need a repair to your property, please report this via FixFlo as normal here. If you have an emergency that cannot wait, please call us on 0141 611 9695.

You must let us know, when you are a maintenance issue, if you are self-isolating for one of the following reasons:

You or someone in your household has symptoms of coronavirus
You or someone in your household has been in contact with a confirmed case of coronavirus

This will enable us to deploy repair people in protective equipment to keep them, and all the other tenants they visit that day, safe.

Please note that we do always adhere to given timescales for repairs however during the on-going situation, maintenance contractors may face delays in getting to you. We will keep you up to date with the status of your repair.

Waste and recycling

Your waste and recycling collections should remain on the same day as normal.

However, if you or someone in your household has a suspected or confirmed case of coronavirus, please follow these steps:

Double bag your personal waste (tissues, disposable cleaning cloths, etc).
Store this separately from any other waste in your home for 72 hours.
After 72 hours, dispose of the waste via your refuse collections with the lid closed.

If no one in your household has a suspect or confirmed case of coronavirus, please put your waste and recycling out as normal.

Rent

Some people may be concerned about their financial situation over the coming days and weeks. If you are in this situation, we will do all we can to help you.

People affected by coronavirus who are concerned about paying their rent can claim Universal Credit from the Department for Work and Pensions which includes support for housing costs, if eligible. The UK Government has introduced some temporary changes to make this easier. The following website provides further information on applying for Universal Credit: https://www.gov.uk/universal-credit.

If a tenant is getting Housing Benefit or Universal Credit, but still can’t afford their housing costs, they may be eligible for a Discretionary Housing Payment (DHP). Further information on DHPs and how to apply is available at:
https://www.mygov.scot/discretionary-housing-payment/.

Tenants may also be able to get support through the Scottish Welfare Fund. Further information on how to apply is available on: https://www.mygov.scot/scottish-welfare-fund/crisis-grants/.

If you need support or advice about claiming benefits, or you think you will have difficulty making rent payments as a result of self-isolating, please call us on: 0141 611 9695.

Please note that we are happy to discuss potential issues you may have with rent and can set up payment plans to get you back on board with your tenant rent account. We ask that you keep in touch with us regularly to let us know your situation.

Communal areas within flats

It will be necessary for some of you to share communal spaces such as lounges, kitchens and bathrooms. Please be mindful of your flatmates during this period.

In the meantime, please continue following the Government’s advice:

Wash your hands more often – with soap and water for at least 20 seconds
Clean and disinfect communal surfaces after use
Avoid close contact with people who have coronavirus symptoms

If you get sick

The NHS has provided information about coronavirus, including how to protect yourself and what to do if you have symptoms, on its website: www.nhs.uk/coronavirus.

The main advice is to stay at home if you have either:

A high temperature – you feel hot to touch on your chest or back
A new, continuous cough – this means you’ve started coughing repeatedly

Do not go to a GP surgery, pharmacy or hospital if you have these symptoms.

If you feel you cannot cope with your symptoms at home, your condition gets worse, or your symptoms do not get better after seven days you should visit the website: 111.nhs.uk/covid-19.

The NHS advice is that you only call 111 if you cannot get help online.

Keeping up-to-date

Information and guidance about the coronavirus is changing every day.

For up to date news we recommend that you check www.gov.uk regularly.

For up to date information on K Letting, please check Facebook here or our blog here.

If you do not have access to the internet, please listen to official Government advice and guidance via news programmes on the radio or TV.

Contact us

If you have any concerns or questions about your home or any of the above non-medical issues, please get in touch with us by calling: 0141 611 9695.

The information contained in this letter is the current position. If the situation changes substantially, we will write to you again to let you know.

Thank you for taking the time to read this newsletter.

Take care and stay safe,

From The K Letting Team

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