I received a call last week from one of our tenants who had received a visit from a gas company technician. He came to carry out an official annual check of all the gas appliances and pipes in the apartment. He told her that the gas outlet located inside the property was in a dangerous place, behind the stove, where it would be impossible to reach and disconnect in an emergency. He told her that it would cost money to move the outlet to a safer location, but it was a legal requirement to do so.

The tenant realized that such an expense should be met by the owner of the property or the management company, and asked the gas company technician to write down an explanation of the problem and a price quote that she could send to Creative Estates, the management company that takes care of her apartment. Suddenly the technician decided that it wasn’t so important after all and left the apartment.

Quick thinking by this savvy tenant clearly saved her and the property owner and management company from getting suckered by an opportunistic workman, who was trying to make money by carrying out unnecessary work!