FOCUS ON THE LEASE MANDATE
Heating and the Right to Peaceful Enjoyment of Your Home
Published November 5, 2025 by Jocelyne Raymond. Journal de Chambly.
Winter is just around the corner and you’ve probably turned up the thermostat in your apartment, or realized that your landlord has already done so, if electricity costs are included in your lease (this information is specified in clause E of your lease). Then everything’s fine, because your right to enjoy the premises is respected in this respect.
However, if regular or sudden heating problems are affecting your daily well-being, you should notify the people concerned promptly, and ideally confirm this in writing, so that they can remedy the situation within a reasonable time. If it takes several days to provide the required solutions, the landlord must provide you with auxiliary heating, usually within 24 hours, a timeframe that the Housing Administrative Tribunal (TAL) has deemed reasonable in the circumstances, especially in extreme cold.
When the PSR where you live is slow to act, and risks to your health or property are imminent, you can make repairs at your own expense, provided they are justified and appropriate to the circumstances. You should then keep the invoices for this work and claim these costs from the landlord, preferably in writing. If he neglects or refuses to reimburse you, you can then file a claim with the TAL, which may also award you damages, if you can prove damage caused directly by absent or inadequate heating. In this case, make sure you have proof of temperature measurements in the center of each room at one meter from the floor, especially if you find that the residence is slow to remedy the situation.
For the latter, however, we recommend that you contact us or consult a lawyer, to obtain sufficient information to enable you to make more informed decisions and avoid unintended legal consequences.
As for the moral damages that can be obtained in TAL cases, please be advised that they are only awarded in rather extreme cases where the habitability of the dwelling is severely compromised.
If you have been unable to carry out the necessary repairs, and the situation is not urgent but has persisted over time, you can claim a reduction in rent from the TAL for the period during which you suffered the damage.
Please note! If you control the heating in your home yourself, you should be aware that, as a tenant, you are responsible for maintaining an adequate room temperature in all areas of the property for the entire term of the lease, even in your absence. In fact, if it is proven that damage has been caused by your fault or negligence in maintaining an adequate temperature in your dwelling, you could be ordered to pay the costs.
Questions about this?
Contact CAAP Montérégie at 1-800-263-0670.
When the PSR where you live is slow to act, and risks to your health or property are imminent, you can make repairs at your own expense, provided they are justified and appropriate to the circumstances.
