Monday, July 27, 2009

1300 HOUSING endangering residents?

Is 1300 HOUSING's lack of an emergency line endangering residents?

[This item has been revised due to a prescient if somewhat Hobbesian insight from a commentator (see below) who writes "... if an "Emergency" line was created, then you'd wait just as long on that as you do in the regular "Maintenance" line? An "Emergency" is the opinion of the caller...". "Anonymous" has a point. Accordingly, DH now offers this anecdote only as a footnote for the historians on the teething problems of 1300 HOUSING.

In a further development, DH hears that 1300 HOUSING's performance is improving with time, and congratulates HNSW]

DH has heard the following story from a neighbour. Now DH can't completely vouch for the common sense of the neighbour, but all the more reason to be worried...

The neighbour, lets call her Mrs X, claims she smelled gas leaking in her kitchen

Mrs X tried to get through to HNSW but the line was busy. Since there is no emergency option, a After hanging on for 20 minutes, Mrs X was unceremoniously cut off.

Mrs X next rang her commercial gas company, but they wanted her to fork out $85 which she did not have, so the gas company suggested she ring Housing to make an arrangement for payment... Meanwhile presumably the house was filling up with fumes...

Now panicking, Mrs X abandoned the house, and hopped on the next bus to Broadway office to sort it all out, a good 45 minute trip...

Pity the rest of us in the street if the house had blown up in the meantime!

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

In Queensland, we have a maintenance line as well as an emergency number for outside business hours delivered in the form of a fridge magnet.

Anonymous said...

Judging by your writing, you're clearly an intelligent person. Surely you understand that if an "Emergency" line was created, then you'd wait just as long on that as you do in the regular "Maintenance" line? An "Emergency" is the opinion of the caller...

DH said...

Errm... OK. So DH should give up her dream of writing Housing Policy? But wait ... how about this revised policy idea? Create an emergency line but with a penalty for false or mischievous claims, eg double rent for a week, if the gas leak turns about to be a light bulb that needed changing?