1/2 Residents of the Lei in Veldhoven.
Residents of an apartment building on the Lei in Veldhoven are fed up. They regularly cannot use the elevator in the six-storey building. The elevator has broken down four times in the past three weeks. “I couldn’t go outside for days.”
“There he is again,” says resident Linda van Bekhoven when the lift mechanic enters the building on Thursday morning. The elevator was repaired the day before, after it broke down for the umpteenth time.
But how long he will continue to work this time, according to the residents, is still the question. “We can’t rely on it,” says Linda. “It stops working at least once a month. Parts are replaced every time, but they would be better off replacing the entire lift,” says Linda.
“Now I still have to climb the stairs every day.”
Many people live in the flat and really need the elevator. If the elevator breaks down, they’re in trouble. For example, a woman from the fifth floor tells us that she has just given birth. “I always have to go up and down the stairs with my newborn baby and all the baby stuff. That’s very hard.”
Linda also depends on the lift. “I need a walker because of my bad knees. That’s why I moved to live in a building with an elevator, but now I often have to climb the stairs with difficulty.”
When the elevator broke down, Franka de Lepper couldn’t leave the building at all. “I can’t go downstairs without my walker. I haven’t been able to go out for four days a few times,” she says.
Because the elevator breaks down so often, Franka is no longer reassured. “If I have to go down, I first look out the window to see if I see the elevator engineer’s van again. If I see it, I don’t risk it.” She even took precautions. “I make sure there’s always enough food in the freezer. If the elevator breaks down again, at least I can still eat.”
“They don’t take us seriously.”
Lisanne van Oorschot came to live in the flat three weeks ago. She also finds the broken elevator frustrating already. “We have ordered a new couch, but I don’t dare make an appointment for delivery. I’m afraid the elevator will be broken again when the couch arrives, and then we won’t be able to get it up.”
According to the residents, the owner of the building, Woonbedrijf, is not doing enough, while they regularly email and call with complaints. “They brush us off and don’t take us seriously,” says Linda. “The other day I called about water damage and someone said she didn’t want to hear any more complaints about the elevator.”
Woonbedrijf acknowledges that there have been a number of malfunctions. “That is of course very annoying for our residents, because an elevator simply has to work,” said the housing corporation.
According to Woonbedrijf, a complete replacement of the elevator is not an option. However, maintenance is done where parts are replaced, so that the lift can last for a while. The lift is periodically inspected by the Lift Institute. “We understand that if the elevator doesn’t work a number of times in quick succession, this will cause frustration. But for now, we’re hopeful that the elevator should work again.”