No shower – It’s a dirty job?

All good comments above, and particularly note Paul Shear's point about the type of mixer tap.

We have the latter type at home and it's easily as good as an electric shower and was easy enough to fit.

That said, I would let this chap go. I suspect he will demand something else once you sort the shower, and then something else...

If you do get an electric shower fitted I would think longterm and buy more than one of the same model. I find they tend to not last very long at all, so having the facility to replace it with exactly the same one would save you a lot of time a few years down the l ine.

If you have a combo-boiler where both hot and cold water supply are equal pressures, a bath mixer tap should be fine. Maybe just change the shower head to one that provides a more efficient spray.

Reply to the comment left by Rob Crawford at 28/01/2019 - 15:32
HI Ken here. Thanks everybody. As of today he has stopped paying his rent. Decision time. Admittedly the pressure at the mixer is low/ was ok when I had normal taps.I did send my regular plumber around to change the mixer back to taps but he refused. Saying he wants the shower.Obviously if he goes I have got losses anyway Regards Ken.

Thanks everyone Things have developed. He has stopped paying his rent until he gets a shower. So decision time.it is the cost that holding me up. Regards ken.

First he makes an unreasonable demand, then says he is moving out, now he has stopped paying rent. He sounds like a rogue tenant who will be trouble the wwhole time he is there. Evict him and just put up with whatever it costs to do so.

Kenneth,
He has no legal right to stop paying his rent. People who think they can do this are likely to find other reasons to stop paying their rent, like mildew build up in the bathroom after he runs a hot shower and doesn't open a window.
You would be well advised to evict him without any further delay, using a Section 21 notice if he's over his first 6 months. I wouldn't bother with a Section 8 as this gives him the opportunity to argue at Court, unless you're still within the first 6 months, in which case you'll have to wait until he is 2 months behind. Either way, evict him now otherwise you'll end up loosing more rent and still evicting him in the future.

It's my guess that the shower set up as it is, is actually inadequate, something the tenant wouldn't have appreciated when viewing the property. It's a shame that they have stopped paying the rent, as this changes the dynamics of the situation, but no doubt has more to do with frustration on their part.

I've been in a similar sort of situation recently, when some tenants left after 7 years in situ, who it seems had been happy with the bath and low pressure, hand held shower head, but as the bathroom needed refurbishing, I started fitting a previously purchased bathroom suite, only to come to the conclusion that the set up was inadequate, particularly with the gravity fed water tank hot water supply.

In the end I had a shower cubicle with electric shower fitted, which wasn't cheap, as just about everything had to be re-sited, and is particularly galling, as the house is in a low rent area, and doesn't make much financial sense, but the situation had to be viewed from a potential tenant's perspective.

Having been a Landlord for almost 30 years, I have always taken on board tenant's requests & observations, and not felt affronted by them. In the situation here, if you can't afford to have the work done (or don't want to) then put it to the tenant, and give them the option of leaving the contract, especially as I can't see the relationship enduring here.

He sounds like a problem. He saw what was installed when he took the flat. If the pressure is so low that the shower doesn't work properly then he may have a point, but i suspect he will always be difficult.
What will be the next thing that doesn't suit him. Does he read a lot and want you to install more ceiling lights?

A bath with a shower mixer, provided the average person would say they function properly, is more than meeting your obligations as a landlord. Also, as others have pointed out, the tenant accepted the property with this feature.

If, however, he subsequently found it didn't meet his needs, the proper response would be to REQUEST a shower, POLITELY, not DEMAND one!

Unless there's low demand for the property, I would quite happily let this tenant go if he wishes, but you might want to point out that he COULD still be liable for rent for the entire fixed term - see Reichman v Beveridge and Another in particular.