A BLAIRDARDIE pensioner has described how she felt trapped in her home after her landlord took months to start work on repairs.

Glasgow Housing Association (GHA) staff visited Margaret Smith’s Moraine Drive flat last week – after the Post raised her concerns with the association.

Margaret, 70, and her son Neil both said they feared GHA was waiting until Margaret died before carrying out repairs.

Margaret – who lives upstairs in a four-in-a-block building – said she had contacted GHA several times to report an uneven staircase between her home and garden.

She also described how an eroded pipe had fallen on top of her and how her home has suffered from damp and high fuel bills for years.

Margaret, who suffers from COPD, said: “They told me to remain at home because the work wouldn’t be carried out until their staff were no longer furloughed.

“I feel like I’m being left to rot and they’ll wait until I die before addressing the issues with my home.”

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Son Neil said a new boiler at the property had continually broken down and leaked, leaving his mum without heating and hot water on numerous occasions – and added that he believed the property’s electrics were faulty too.

He said: “She has had a combination of rising and penetrating damp, with toxic mould evident. This could have caused her COPD.

“As far as I’m concerned, the council is just waiting for her to die so they can reclaim the house.”

Since the Post first contacted GHA for comment, a surveyor has revisited the address and made adjustments.

A spokesman said: “We completed a full assessment last summer and while the steps were not deemed unsafe, it was decided that due to the age of the steps, comprehensive work would be needed to upgrade them.

“As a result of coronavirus restrictions, we have been running an essential repairs service only and have been unable to carry out this project.

“Our neighbourhood environmental team has recently visited to ensure the tenant can more easily access her back garden until the upgrade to her steps and path can be completed as soon as we return to a full repairs service.”