TENANTS of Wiltshire housing associations are being offered help to 'force' their landlord to make repairs to their home.

DisrepairClaim.co.uk is urging tenants in council or social housing living in poor conditions to contact them to see if they are eligible to claim.

On its website, the company says: “If you’ve been affected by housing disrepair and a landlord who won’t listen, get in touch.

“Force your landlord to fix the issues and claim compensation. Find out if we can help today.”

In response to this story a spokesman explained further: “Housing conditions for many tenants across the UK have plummeted over the last 18 months. Recent reports from ITV and Channel 4 have highlighted the awful living conditions of thousands across this country, with their concerns falling on deaf ears. The team at DisrepairClaim.co.uk are trying, and succeeding, in battling this problem head on.

"This isn’t a case of trying to pry tenants away from going to their housing association first and sorting out their problems that way. We cannot act for anyone who hasn’t already informed their landlord about the problems. We help tenants who are continuously being ignored when asking for severe repairs in their home.

"Many may argue that this pushes the cost onto councils and housing associations, pushing up the cost of rent, but we put to those people – why do tenants deserve to live in mouldy, dangerous houses? Wanting safe, warm homes for UK residents should be welcomed, not vilified.”

The Manchester-based company says on its website: “Housing disrepair is a serious problem and can cause health issues to you and your family.

“Do you feel ignored by your landlord despite raising concerns about disrepair? If so, we can help. You don’t have to settle for poor living conditions!

“At DisrepairClaim.co.uk we can help you to get the compensation you are owed and have the repairs to your home completed.”

It says tenants can claim compensation for household repairs, pain and suffering, lack of quality of life and loss of amenity, and damages to cover any legal fees associated with the claim.

The Wiltshire Times has approached the National Housing Federation and Selwood Housing in Trowbridge for a comment.

DisrepairClaim.co.uk promises a “hassle-free service” and says it is fully regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

The company says tenants can make claims for defective boilers, damp or mould, faulty electrical wiring, leaking roof or gutters, defective or cracked windows or doors, wall cracks and structural issues and rodent infestation.

It says: “In most cases, a letter from our team will result in property repairs being completed by your landlord.

"However, if the case does need to go to court it could take between nine and 12 months to obtain the compensation.”

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story included references to and a review for DisrepairClaims.co.uk which is a completely separate company to DisrepairClaim.co.uk

Cold emails and calls were received from someone using the name Disrepair Claim, but the company in this article (DisrepairClaim.co.uk) only ever telephones a tenant after they have submitted an enquiry form on their website.

We apologise whole-heartedly for this mistaken identity.

We also mentioned the company takes a fee of 25 percent, but the correct website clearly states the No Win, No Fee varies, but is generally between 25%+VAT to 50%+VAT.

It also transparently says: "Please note: You do not need to use us to make a claim. You can bring your complaint up with the Housing Ombudsman directly, for free."

Again, we apologise for this misrepresentation.