Household appliance repairs in a rented apartment

Hi,
I subrented a flat. There was a washing machine when I got there. An old one. I used it 4 times in the 2 months I´ve been here and now it is making strange noises and it sounds as if does not have much longer to live.
My question: do I have to bear the costs of repairing it or does the hauptmieter or does the renting company? It is a really old machine and I´ve only used it 4 times, so I am not happy with the thougth of coughing up 60-70 euro for the repairs. The machine itself is probably not worth that much.

In my subrent contract I accepted all the rights and responsibilities from the main renting contract, in which I have not found a clause that would reslove my doubts. Also, I do not know who actually owns the bloody thing : my hauptmieter or the renting company. I guess it does make a difference.

Anyone experienced a similar situation?

I would say its a wear and tear item and the responsibility of the Landlord/renting company to repair or replace. In fact you say its not broken yet, so you should get in touch with them asap and report that it might need repair, if you dont say anything, then you would be liable.

According to the German Rent law.Anything that is in your apartment when you move in is also rented.Like a kitchen or washing machine.The landlord then has to accept responsability for any repairs.been through this a few times with ex landlords.They will of course try to get away with it and throw the the bill back on you.Do not go for it.The landlord even has to buy a new one if its not worth it.

This is very very good to hear!
I am ready for the battle with my landlady.
Will keep you posted on the development. :-)

First place I lived in Munich was fully furnished. The kitchen was tiny, and had a cheap model of toaster oven in it, obviously after 12 months of living there, it had seen a lot of use and needed to be replaced. Under the terms of the contract it was the landlords problem, not mine. When I handed over the keys, the landlord commented that the flat was the cleanest he had ever seen it. I found out a month later that he had taken 60€ from the deposit for cleaning...how much do new toaster ovens cost?

See if there is a clause in your contract regarding Kleinreparaturen. But I agree that this is a wear and tear issue and the landlord should fix/replace the washing machine.
Or wait until it goes bust and complain that you rented an apartment with a washing machine and now do not have a functioning one. Then he has to replace it or he is in breach of contact.

well, for starters i´d be happy with the fact I don´t have to repair it. and then, as far as i am concerned, he may well not repair it, if he lowers the rent.
how much a rent decrease should i ask for anyway?

If you get it repaired, then send them the bill, though repair is probably a waste of time here, its cheaper to replace.

You rented an apartment with a functioning washing machine. Forget rent decreases or any such thing. Just tell the ladlord it's wonky and needs to be either repaired or replaced. Assuming that it's just knackered because of age and not because you tried to put a persian cat through a spin cycle then the cost is his not yours. End of story.

no, by all means i am not going to repair it. the situation of me paying for the repairs and then sending the bill claiming that money from the landlord just seems too risky.
i ´ve just send him an email about it, so we´ll see what he will say.

No, there is no persian cat in the story.

I suspect it may actually depend on whether the washing machine is listed in the inventory of the flat which should be attached to or part of the contract. If it is then you should have a good hand for getting either the agent or landlord to replace/repair. If not then I'd say you've probably not got much chance.

IANAL though, I guess a Mietverein would be the best place to ask.

Fair point, though upshot of that is that you can sell it and you are not required to replace it if you moved out.

ok, if i got maekelborger and 3 Lions correctly:

A: the machine is listed in the inventory. PRO:The landlord has to pay.CON:God knows how much it will take him to do so.
B: Not listed. PROI can do with it what I please, even leave in a dumpster if i want. CON:I have to pay for it.

BUT, since I am an Untermieterin, thing are a wee bit more complicated.
So,
If A, then landlord.
If B, that means that the actual owner of the machine is my hauptmieter. Therefore, had it been him living in the flat when the malfunction occured, he´d have to pay for the repairs. Does that mean then, that now I have to pay for it, while i am the untermieterin. or not, since he is actually my landlord, so see option A?

It´s a bit complicated, I know, that´s why I ask.

In the untermiete contract it says nothing about this type of events.

Good, because their long hairs tend to clog the washing machine. Stick to British Shorthair. Or Devon Rex.

The Kitchen in the apartment was already fitted when we moved in. Its a bit mankie to be honest, but non the less, its functional.

To cut a long story short, the fridge has packed in.

As the kitchen is obviously part of the rent, is it the responsibility of the landlord to repair or replace the faulty appliance?

Thanks

SP

Yes - so long as the kitchen furniture and fittings are specifically included in the rental contract (and not just there as a hangover from a previous tenant which the landlady has graciously donated to you), and there are no little clauses stating you pay the first €x.xx of any repair, in which case if €x.xx is more than the cost of repair then it's your problem. €x.xx is usually less than €100.00. If the kitchen is not shown in the rental contract it maybe they are not part of the rent and are simply yours to repair, fix or throw away.
The first thing of course is to check with the owner for their reaction.