MOLINE, Ill. — In a week like this with heat indexes hitting well into the triple digits, you want to find relief from the heat outside. Many of us will be reaching for our air conditioning.
THE QUESTION
Is your landlord responsible for fixing your A/C if it ever breaks?
THE SOURCES
- Patrick Bigsby, an attorney at Iowa Legal Aid
- Justin Hunter, an attorney at Prairie State Legal Services
THE ANSWER
Iowa and Illinois have different policies. Neither state requires landlords to provide air conditioning units to their tenants.
Iowa state code says that landlords are responsible for the repairs. Hunter said Illinois courts are split on this, but many will decide it's the duty of the landlord.
WHAT WE FOUND OUT
Iowa
In Iowa, if a landlord does provide A/C, Iowa Code Chapter 562A determines it is the landlord's responsibility to fix the unit if it needs repairs.
"Maintain in good and safe working order and condition all electrical, plumbing, sanitary, heating, ventilating, air-conditioning, and other facilities and appliances, including elevators, supplied or required to be supplied by the landlord."
"Essentially, it has to be functional," Bigsby said.
He recommends if you find yourself in a situation where your air conditioning is broken and there are dangerous temperatures outside to first find a place where you can cool down. Then, contact your landlord.
"The sooner the landlord is aware of the problem, the sooner the landlord is able to fix it," he said. "We would always recommend written notice is the best way to do it."
The Iowa Code does not provide a timeline for when landlords must make repairs.
"During a heatwave like we're experiencing, the longer you go without that, the less safe and habitable," Bigsby said. "I would say it's really fact dependent as to kind of how quickly the landlord needs to act. But during that period, you want to make sure you're staying in contact with your landlord and you want to be sure you're documenting the problem."
He also recommends documenting any expenses you incur.
"We also recommend that for folks who live in municipalities, so cities or counties in Iowa that have a dedicated housing inspection unit — a lot of the larger cities do, some of the rural communities don't — you can absolutely get in touch with your city inspector," Bigsby said. "If there's a situation that is covered by your city ordinances, a lot of the time that can be quicker than any sort of legal resolution."
Illinois
The Illinois Attorney General's office outlines landlord and tenant rights and laws. "Must make all necessary repairs" is part of the landlord's duties, but it doesn't specify air conditioning like Iowa state code does.
"Occasionally, there are provisions in the tenant's lease that do require air conditioning to be provided," Hunter said in an email to News 8. "If there is a provision requiring A/C to be provided, a tenant would be able to go to court to enforce that provision should the landlord refuse to do so. The more difficult question is what happens where there is an A/C present but no lease provision requiring the landlord to provide A/C, and it stops working. Courts are split on this circumstance. Many courts would require the landlord to repair the A/C."
If you're a tenant living in Illinois, you need to put a repair request in writing and send it to your landlord by certified mail. In general, when it comes to repairs, the landlord has 14 days to do so. If it's an emergency that can threaten your health, safety or the apartment itself, ask that the repair be made within 72 hours.
If your landlord doesn't make the repair, there are some circumstances under the Residential Tenants' Right to Repair Act that allows you to hire a professional to make the repairs and then deduct the cost from next month's rent.
If you have something you would like verified, email verify@wqad.com.