Interview 09
Transcript from interview with survey respondent, Irati. The interview took place via Zoom, at Irati’s preference. Text has been redacted in cases of personally identifying information (of the interviewee or others they know), irrelevance, and the interviewees asking for certain topics not to be recorded.
| Me | So like how have I been starting these these interviews is with some more general questions, just so I can get a better understanding of like the house or like property we were living in that had a dam; problem. So like when were you living there? Who were you living with? Where was it? So do you wanna start by telling me a bit about where you are living? |
| Irati | Sure. So I’m living in a two bedroom flat in south Peckham with my partner. We’ve been living here since wait – so we moved in in 2020. One. Okay. So we’ve been here a year. What are we, what are we now? August 2022. So in July 2021. So it’s been like a year and a couple of months. Anything else on like background info? |
| Me | No, that’s good. So you rent privately, right? |
| Irati | Yeah, it’s privately. And it’s with, it’s like managed by Roy Brooks. But our landlords, our landlady apparently lives in Saudi Arabia. So… yeah. |
| Me | So you moved in like around a year ago. Were you aware of the damp problems when you first moved in or was it something that it took a while for you to notice? |
| Irati | No, I don’t think that we were aware and I think… I think we probably became aware within like a few months, but there were no communications about the fact that there was a damp issue. I think what happened was that there was like a section of the bedroom that we never looked inside. It’s basically like, if there’s there’s a window in the bedroom and if you kind of like properly put your head into the window frame and you can see that, like there’s a lot of damp, but because that was an area we didn’t really look at, or didn’t really clean, I think, when we were first in the flat, we didn’t really notice. But that’s the first time me or Mond like picked up on the fact that there was like a damp issue, cause it was like sort of this area was like speckled with black dots. And then I think it also started happening along that same wall. And then it was like very, very obvious just to the naked eye, but that was like a few months into living here for sure. So no, we hadn’t heard about the damp issue. |
| Me | And you’re talking about the bedroom, is it mainly confined to the bedroom or do you feel like it’s in other rooms as well? |
| Irati | It is just the bedroom. And we know that right upstairs is the neighbour’s bathroom. So it makes sense that it’s that area. |
| Me | And did you notice it because it started to spread from this one area? Or was it something say, that became more apparent in winter or after it rained? |
| Irati | Yeah, I think – I mean coming back to the last question. So we moved in in the summer and it was quite hot and we didn’t really notice the damp. So that also probably makes sense that it started sort of appearing when the weather was getting colder or when it was a bit rain-y-er. But it has always been confined to the window. And again, it’s sort of like that window area, and then just the wall next to that window. It hasn’t – oh, and a little bit of that roof as well, but it’s very much like that corner. And it hasn’t really spread beyond that, but also we’re like quiet on top of cleaning it. Well Mond does, I’ve never cleaned that area before, but he’s quite on top of like cleaning it, like bleaching it. And so we sort of never let it get out of control and I don’t even know how far it would spread if we did. But it definitely does have to do with the window, cause that window gets really, really wet. In the winter when it’s rained there’s like a small sort of pool of water that kind of like puddles, right where the window is when it’s rained. So I think that’s just like quite a damp area in general. It’s like the windows. And then also that the bathroom upstairs. There’s just like a lot going on, which means that that area gets quite damp and gross. |
| Me | When you say like there’s water pooling, is that inside or outside? |
| Irati | Inside. So if you’re like at the window, you’re in the bedroom, you look at the window, the window’s in front of you and there’s just like, kind of like a small line of water, that’s there sort of like after it’s rained, I think. So water does definitely find a way to get in. Or I don’t know if that’s like the condensation more than the rain, which I suppose that it is. Um, but then yeah, I think that like the stuff with the wall and the roof, that’s more the upstairs bathroom. |
| Me | And you talked about Mond cleaning it a lot. Would you say like he’s more bothered by it than you are, or just he enjoys cleaning more? |
| Irati | I think that he’s definitely more like on top of things. And he’s quite obsessive now about the inside of the window. So like, he’ll always poke his head in and like have a look and be like, oh, the window, like it’s getting bad. And then do the cleaning. Whereas like, I don’t really bother to look if like, if I do see it spread across the wall. That would be quite gross and like, I would take it upon myself to clean it, but I think that he’s just much quicker to react. So he definitely must care about it more than I do. |
| Me | And have either of you contacted the landlord about it or is it something you’re just self managing? |
| Irati | Yeah, so we did. I think – so we had a separate issue. I think we had an issue with the washing machine or like maybe the boiler, but someone came round and before they came around, we were also – cause we had raised this like damp and mould issue before and they hadn’t done anything, but they were coming around for a separate issue, which was a bit more urgent. Again, it was someone from Roy Brook. So it wasn’t the landlady. And like during that visit, they asked, like, are you having any other issues? And we were like, yes. So we’ve raised this thing about like the sort of damp mould situation in the bedroom. And so I think that the guy that came around was familiar with the flat, cause he was like, oh yeah, yeah, yeah, no, I know what you mean. And then he suggested just like leaving the window open and using a dehumidifier, but was like, there’s nothing more we can really do for you. And since that visit, which was like, yeah, last winter, we were using the dehumidifier every single day during the winter, which was really expensive and trying to open the window as much as possible. So yes, it has been raised and those were the solutions proposed that we’ve implemented. |
| Me | And with the dehumidifier. Was that something you bought yourself with your own money or was that something the landlord or Roy Brooks provided? |
| Irati | It was actually already in the flat in storage. So the flat came almost completely unfurnished, but there was a dehumidifier sort of in the storage space that we have, which suggests that again, like this would’ve been an ongoing issue cause like the previous people would’ve used it. I don’t know if it was like previous tenants who left it or if it actually belongs to the agency or to the landlady, but we didn’t really ask. We just have started using it. |
| Me | And you mentioned the cost of running the dehumidifier. Do you find you think you spend more on say heating the house warmer as well to keep it dry? Or is that something that you don’t really think about with it being so confined to one area? |
| Irati | Yeah, I think we don’t have the heater on, in the bedroom just because in the winter we don’t really spend much time in there. So it’s just the dehumidifier that we have on, we haven’t considered, doing more heating. We do actually have it for a few hours in the evening, but that’s sort of independent from the damp issue. |
| Me | And have you or Mond ever lived somewhere else with a damp problem or is this the first time you’ve moved somewhere and found something like this? |
| Irati | I don’t know about Mond. Though, I do recall there like slightly being a damp issue at the previous flat in Brixton as well, but it definitely wasn’t as bad as here. I just have this memory of again, in the previous flat, like Mond cleaning again with like bleach and a rag, cause he was like, oh, like the damp, the damp is back. But it definitely wasn’t that bad, because it’s not that memorable. We didn’t have a dehumidifier and it wasn’t like ever raised like with the landlord or anything. So I think there was probably a slight issue, but not as bad as here. |
| Me | And say, it kind of seems obvious that they knew there was a problem before – how does that make you feel about your relationship and your dealings with your landlord or with Roy Brooks? |
| Irati | I think like, I don’t care too much about Roy Brooks because I sort of went into this knowing that they would be quite shit. Like, that they wouldn’t be very helpful because that’s like most people have had quite distant or frustrating relationships when they’re flat is owned by an agency, such as Rob Brooks. I think I haven’t thought about this too much. And I think because I’m not the person in the household, who’s like taken that, you know, mental charge to deal with it, I think that I just have the privilege to knowing that it’s to know that it’s an issue and not doing that much about it. Like Mond would definitely be the better person to interview, perhaps if he’d filled out your survey, which I don’t think he did. I think that it hasn’t bothered me as much, but it definitely bothers Mond more because he does more about the issue. And I have heard him complain. And I know that when that Roy Brooks guy did come round, he was like, that’s really annoying advice that they just told us to run the diffuser, like all day, every day, because it’s so expensive, and he’s told us to just like have the window open in the winter at night and like basically freeze to death. So I know that Mond was quite annoyed with that response. I don’t feel a massive sense of like betrayal or like we’ve really been let down cause I think, yeah, again, like I had quite low expectations. People tend to have like issues with landlords, with agencies and stuff. And because it’s like, I would say like, the only real issue that we’ve experienced in the flat I’m yeah. Not too upset or disappointed by it. If it was like, a combination of issues that had really culminated I’d probably feel differently, but this is one thing it is quite contained. I mean, it is, it is a problem. And I do wish that we’d known in advance because we would’ve maybe factored in like the extra cost of running the dehumidifier, but I’m kind of like, well shrug about it. And yeah, as I said, perhaps Mond feels a little bit more strongly than I do. |
| Me | And so you’ve had one winter in the flat. Does it make you, um, I don’t know, more apprehensive about winter again. I suppose, especially with energy prices rising. |
| Irati | Yeah. When you say no, for sure. For sure. Cause in the summer it’s a lot easier to keep the window open. It’s been raining less. We haven’t been running the dehumidifier when it’s warm at all. Um, and I think that like, yeah, the damp issue has like been a little bit improved for sure. But like our bills have soared, you know, much like everyone else’s. And I am like, I am just thinking about having to run the dehumidifier literally all day and just like, ugh, that is really annoying. And like the amount of humidity in the room is really quite high. Like when we first, switch it on, I forget the exact number, but it’s like a very high percentage in the room. And then when it’s been like running for a few hours like that, that percentage drops by sort of 10, 20%. So it definitely does do something. It works, it’s effective, it’s necessary, but it is really expensive. It will be like, you know, hundreds at least like hundreds of pounds a year, if not more now with, with higher prices. |
| Me | And, do you feel that you had any health problems that you thought might have been linked, or like things that had got worse, like asthma or eczema – worse than usual? |
| Irati | Um, nah. |
| Me | Does it ever affect you that think have an impact on your mental health or like your boyfriend’s mental health? |
| Irati | I think that possibly mental health impact would be an exaggeration. But it has certainly caused frustration, especially when we first learned about the issue, we had to get the dehumidifier out. We were like, oh, this is actually quite shit. We were like, I don’t know if we were like, actually worried about the cost, because it isn’t something that like, couldn’t be covered. But it was just like, it was frustrating. It was annoying. And I think that, like, there is an element psychologically. When it did get quite damp and the wall was quite like black and speccy, you just feel like you’re in an unsafe environment and it’s quite gross and it’s bad for your health. So even though I don’t think it has affected my physical health per se, when I have seen that bit of the window or like the damp start to like show on the walls, it does sort of disgust me and it makes me think, oh, my goodness. I’m like living in this, I’m sleeping in this room that’s like full of black mould and like, you know, kind of catastrophize a little bit. I wouldn’t say that it’s been like a huge mental health impact, but like it, it has been an inconvenience and of course, like I’d much rather have not had to deal with this issue in any way. |
| Me | So is it something that has made you want to move out of the house or is it like – you say there’s not been any other problems – do you feel like, well, if we move somewhere else, they’d probably have some other problem. |
| Irati | Yeah. Yeah. That’s exactly how I feel. It is annoying, but it wouldn’t be a driver to go somewhere else because I know that other things would come up in a different flat, perhaps worse. And like when you’re first renting somewhere, you’re not gonna be told straight up what all of these issues are. Like, we definitely discovered some issues in our previous flat as well. So no, it wouldn’t, it wouldn’t drive us to move out. I don’t think. |
| Me | And say like, hypothetically, you did move out for another reason. Do you think it’s something you would be more cautious about or aware of when viewing flats? |
| Irati | Yeah, I think that it would definitely be a question that would be explicitly asked at a viewing now. So I haven’t been to that many viewings, but like there are questions I tend to ask about or I have asked like, you know, how light does it get in here? Like, what’s it like and whatever season that we’re not. So I would definitely ask about damp. If it was like in the summer, I’d be like, how, does it get very damp in the winter? Like how are these windows or that kind of stuff, for sure. |
| Me | And at any point, have you thought about contacting anyone else other than your landlord, like a renting union or something like that? |
| Irati | No, I don’t think that it’s sort of that level of severity or like, that it’s problematic enough to have pushed either of us to take like any stronger action basically. |
| Me | And is there anything you think – is there anything you think should be done to kind of help renters in this situation? |
| Irati | Yeah. Again, like maybe this is just like me being a bit of a pessimist, but I guess, I wasn’t surprised, but it would’ve been great to be able to factor in the extra cost of running a dehumidifier, knowing that like before signing a contract, because it means that what you’re paying monthly in rent, that’s not an accurate cost. I don’t know if this was, if we explicitly requested this, but I remember having a conversation with Mond about like actually the extra cost of running the dehumidifier. Like, we shouldn’t be the ones to cover that because we were never told about the issue and it wasn’t apparent when we came for the viewing or anything. So I think that those are like small, practical steps that could be taken. But again, like, I’m not surprised about the lack of transparency. Cause I feel like things are always going to come up like this. But it would be, it would be better if people could be more upfront about these things. So, you know what, you’re what you’re getting yourself into. |
| Me | And I think that kind of brings me to the end of my question.I normally ask at the end, is there anything else you wanna add or like stuff we haven’t talked about that you wanted to talk about? |
| Irati | I don’t honestly – like if my boyfriend were here today, if you’re just like here in the flat, I’m sure that he would jump in and be like, yes, there are so many more things. But no, I think the main thing is just like the stuff that’s been said, really? |