Unprofessional visit: unclear authority, no report, poor conduct
Really upsetting experience with Andreeas Abode (@abode_london_ on Instagram). A woman attended our rented home in Harlow regarding mould/damp and initially represented herself as being from Harlow Council / Environmental Health. Once inside, that changed and we were told she was a third party “from Abode”. No official ID was shown, no clear company information was provided at the time, and no written report was provided to the tenants who actually live there.
The advice given was essentially to blame the tenants and to keep windows wide open 24/7 in the middle of winter. That isn’t practical, and it did not feel like professional, safe guidance.
After the visit we tried to verify who had attended and what organisation they represented. The company director name we found publicly (Andreea Kelbezan) matched the person who attended. We also noticed what appeared to be a social media connection between the attendee and the landlord, which raised concerns for us about independence and transparency in a situation where tenants are vulnerable and the person attending is alone in your home.
During the visit, when it became clear the attendance was not what we had been told to expect, we asked the attendee to leave multiple times. She did not leave immediately, and only left after further requests (including when we began recording for our own record-keeping due to the situation becoming confrontational).
Overall, the lack of clarity, identification, documentation, and the way the visit was handled left us very concerned. I would advise others to be cautious and to insist on clear ID, written scope, and a written report if someone is attending your home in this kind of “official” capacity.