Reader question: Why must an initial defect in the fittings be specifically reported for the category assessment?
The bathroom exists, but cannot be used as intended from the outset. You have photos and therefore want to have a lower rent reviewed. For the fittings category, however, the visible defect alone is not decisive. § 15a MRG links certain initial defects to a notification and the landlord's opportunity to remedy them.
Three different points in time
Fictional starting point: An apartment is viewed, the contract is concluded later and only thereafter handed over. At the handover an important bathroom function is unusable. For the assessment it must be clarified what condition existed at the time the contract was concluded and what may have occurred only later.
§ 15a paragraph 2 ties the category in principle to the state of the fittings at the time the contract was concluded. [MRG15a] A defect that only occurs years later is therefore not automatically the same category case. Keep any messages, descriptions of condition and recordings with their actual date. A later reminder is referred to as a reminder.
Notification is more than a private note
According to paragraph 2, the initial unusability described there or a lack of contemporary bathroom standard will only be taken into account for the category classification if the tenant has notified the landlord of this and the landlord has not remedied the defect within a reasonable period, at the latest within three months of receipt. [MRG15a]
The three months are not a blanket licence to leave any repair undone for that length of time. The provision first speaks of a reasonable period and contains an ultimate limit for this category connection. Other urgent or necessary measures are not conclusively assessed by this.
Our editorial recommendation: Describe the actually unusable function and the known timeline concretely. Secure proof of delivery of your communication. A picture stored only in your own photo album does not yet inform the landlord of the problem.
The response belongs in the same file
Record offered inspections, actual work and its result. Was the defect completely remedied, only temporarily bridged, or does a particular function continue to be lacking? Avoid making your own technical diagnosis. In a technical dispute a suitable expert opinion may be required.
If access appointments are needed, agree them reliably. The legal assessment of a delay cannot be properly made if it remains unclear when which work was actually possible. The article does not assess any individual duty to cooperate and does not recommend unilaterally blocking the remedy.
Do not automatically assume category D
§ 15a distinguishes several categories with different characteristics. A missing modern bathroom standard and an unusable internal WC are not simply interchangeable facts. The provision also contains a limited compensation rule for missing features, from which bathing facilities are excluded. [MRG15a]
Therefore have the correct category and its significance for the actual rent model examined together. The appropriate scope of application must also be established under § 1. [MRG1] A lower category is not an automatically self-issued repayment invoice by you.
For the fictional case there are ultimately four things available: documented initial condition, specific notification, provable access and documented remedy or remaining defect. With these the actual category and entitlement assessment can begin. The article deliberately does not state a blanket square-metre price or individual deduction.