General Repairs Information

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How do I report repairs?

There are lots of different ways of reporting repairs to Hexagon:

On the Repairs freephone 0800 393 338 - you can ring between 8:00 am and 6:00 pm Monday to Friday (except Bank Holidays). The busiest time tends to be between 9:00 am and 11:00 am – so it is often a good idea to ring at other times if possible. If the repair you are reporting is an emergency, it is always best to telephone
In person at Hexagon’s Office 130 – 136 Sydenham Road, London, SE26 5JY
By e-mail - customer_desk@hexagon.org.uk If you do send an e-mail please let us have a telephone number too, as we might need to speak to you before raising an order
On-line through Hexagon’s website www.hexagon.org.uk
To any member of Hexagon’s staff, if they are visiting you at home. They will report it to the Customer Services Desk on your behalf
You can write to us at the same address as above – but as this may take several days to reach us it is not a good idea for anything that is at all urgent

What do I do if a repair is needed when your office is closed?

If an emergency repair (see below for what counts as an emergency) is needed outside our office hours, please ring the repairs freephone 0800 393 338. There will be a recorded message which will give you further information and enable you to speak to one of our contractors
Repairs that are not emergencies can still be reported by e-mail or through the website. Alternatively, you can contact us when the office is next open

What happens when I report a repair?

Hexagon staff will ask you for lots of information about the repair.

This will include:

What needs repairing or replacing?
What the problem is - is it leaking, broken, loose or stiff?
Can you describe the item that is broken - what type, shape, colour and size is it?
What is it made of - wood, metal, plastic?
What you think is causing the problem?
Where in your home, block or estate the repair is needed?
Are any other homes affected?
When you can be in and what is the best way for the contractor to contact you?
It is a good idea to think about these things before contacting Hexagon.

We tell you:

How long the repair should take to complete
In the case of some Urgent or Routine repairs booked via the Customer Service Centre, we will make an appointment for you. This will usually be morning, afternoon or ‘avoid school runs’. If you later need to change this appointment, please call the contractor at least 24 hours before it is due
Who the contractor is
A Repair Order Number for the work
If a surveyor needs to inspect. If so, we will make an appointment for them to visit you when you ring – we will aim for this to be within 5 working days, although this will depend on your being able to be at home
Apart from with emergencies, if no appointment is made when you report the repair, the contractor will usually try to give you at least 24 hours notice of coming to do the repair

For most repair jobs, our contractor will need to get into your home during the day.
It is very important that you keep this appointment as we could otherwise be completing other tenants’ repairs
If you cannot be at home, ask a friend or neighbour if they can stand in for you
If you are out when our contractor visits, they will leave a card asking you to ring to arrange another appointment. If you do not contact us, we will cancel your repair job

How long will the repair take?

The length of time a repair takes will vary, depending on how serious the problem is:

Emergencies – target 24 hours. Real emergencies are potentially dangerous to the occupiers, or could cause serious damage to the building. They include:

Bad roof leaks - we will do a temporary repair, if the weather allows.
No cold water to the kitchen sink - check with neighbours first that it isn’t a more general supply problem in your area. If this is the problem contact your local Water Company – for most tenants this will be Thames Water on 0845 920 0800
Major water leak - before ringing first try to turn off the water at the mains stop-cock - in most homes this is a tap under the sink.
No electricity - If you have a key meter, check that it is charged before you contact us. You should also check with neighbours that there isn’t a power cut in your area. You should also check the miniature circuit breakers (MCBs) in your fuse box. If any of them are ‘off’, try switching them back on again. If the MCB will not stay on, turn off and unplug all electrical appliances items on that circuit. If there is more than one item, switch the MCB on after disconnecting each one to work out which is faulty.
Collapsed ceiling
Broken or blocked toilet - but please note that if you are able to flush your toilet with a bucket of water, the priority will be urgent rather than an emergency.
Broken windows - we will normally board up your windows then replace them during normal working hours. We will charge you for this work if you do not have a crime number from the police and details of the Police Station to which you reported the crime. Breakages caused by means other than crime are your own responsibility.
Gas leaks - report suspected gas leaks directly to Transco on 0800 111 999 rather than Hexagon, but first you should turn the gas off at the meter. Open doors and windows. Do not smoke, use light switches or naked flames

We often have to make temporary repairs when emergencies happen at night or weekends because we cannot get the materials to carry out full repairs. The safety of you, your household and your home, is our first concern and attendance by the contractor should be within 2 hours. Our contractors will come back to repair the problem properly as soon as they can.

Urgent Repairs - target 7 days

Urgent repairs are serious but are those that are not likely to put life or health at serious risk. These will include:

Toilets that will not flush – you can flush the toilet with a bucket of water while waiting for the repair to be completed
Normal plumbing leaks
No hot water
No heating whatsoever, between 1st October and 31st March
Blocked hand basin
Several lights or sockets not working

Normal Repairs – target 28 days

These repairs, whilst essential, are not urgent and are given a lower priority. They include:

Most other day to day repairs to woodwork, brickwork and plaster
Non-urgent plumbing and electrical work

Planned Repairs

There are some repairs that can be done over a longer term basis.

They include:

Some carpentry and fencing repairs
Kitchen unit replacement
Floor covering replacement

In some circumstances, we will ask the contractor to complete the work more quickly than is set out above. This may apply if you are elderly, disabled, or have children under 5 in your household.

Much of the maintenance work we do is planned up to six years ahead. So if you ask us to do a non-urgent repair, we will usually check to see if it is already on our 'to do' list for the near future. If it is, we will let you know and ask you to wait.

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