Maintenance · Troubleshooting
Maintenance: troubleshooting
Fixes for common maintenance problems and error messages. For how maintenance works, see Maintenance; for step-by-step instructions, see Maintenance: how-to.
I can’t see an issue a colleague logged
Section titled “I can’t see an issue a colleague logged”Why it happens: the person filter on the Maintenance panel remembers the default you chose in this browser. Mine & Unassigned hides issues assigned to colleagues. The issue may also be archived, or filtered out by property, tag or supplier.
How to fix it:
- Change the person filter to include your colleague, or clear it.
- Clear the property, tag and supplier filters, and click Filter.
- If it’s still missing, tick Archived only.
I can’t see Maintenance in the menu, or its buttons
Section titled “I can’t see Maintenance in the menu, or its buttons”Why it happens:
- Your role doesn’t include Maintenance. Without view permission you can’t see the panel; with view but not edit permission you can’t see Add maintenance issue, the settings cog or the workflow buttons.
- Maintenance hasn’t been set up on any property yet.
How to fix it: ask an admin in your organisation to give your role view or edit permission for Maintenance, and check that Maintenance is switched on for your properties.
A tenant can’t report an issue
Section titled “A tenant can’t report an issue”Why it happens:
- Maintenance isn’t switched on for their property, or its terms haven’t been accepted.
- They don’t have an active tenancy, for example a future tenant who hasn’t moved in yet.
- Your organisation asks tenants for entry permission and they haven’t answered.
- The category requires a photo or a video and they haven’t added one.
How to fix it:
- Check the property’s Maintenance service is on.
- Check the tenancy is active. Until then, log the issue yourself with Add maintenance issue.
- Ask them to answer “may we enter your home…?” and to add the required photo or video.
- Or send them your report-an-issue link, which needs no login.
The supplier says they never got the job
Section titled “The supplier says they never got the job”Why it happens:
- You chose No to Do you want to share this issue with the supplier?, so COHO didn’t contact them.
- Their email address is wrong, or the email went to spam.
- You didn’t give a UK mobile number, so no SMS was sent.
How to fix it:
- Open the supplier section on the issue. If it isn’t shared, use Change supplier (or Send to supplier on a completed job) and choose Yes.
- Check the Email address and Contact number.
- Click Copy link and send the link to the supplier yourself.
The supplier hasn’t responded
Section titled “The supplier hasn’t responded”Why it happens: COHO doesn’t remind suppliers or set a response deadline. Severity and the Target date don’t change this.
How to fix it: contact the supplier using the Supplier conversation tab or their contact details. If they can’t do it, use Change supplier.
Tenants weren’t told about the visit or the repair
Section titled “Tenants weren’t told about the visit or the repair”Why it happens:
- COHO emails tenants only when the job is scheduled and when it’s completed, and only active tenants in the issue’s conversation.
- The issue is private and was raised by you, so there’s no tenant conversation.
- The tenant who reported it doesn’t have a COHO account.
- Tenants get these updates by email, not SMS or WhatsApp.
How to fix it:
- Click Alert tenants once the date is approved, to email every active tenant at the property.
- Message them from the Housemates tab, or share the issue to create a conversation.
An issue from the report link has no property
Section titled “An issue from the report link has no property”Why it happens: the general link asks the reporter to type an address. COHO doesn’t guess the property from it.
How to fix it: open the issue and click Assign property. To avoid this, give each property its own link: Individual property link in Maintenance Settings.
The report-an-issue page no longer lists my properties
Section titled “The report-an-issue page no longer lists my properties”Why it happens: the general link no longer shows a list of your properties, so that anyone with the link can’t see your portfolio. Reporters type the address instead.
How to fix it: nothing is broken. For posters or welcome packs at one property, use an Individual property link, which skips the address.
I can’t create a financial item from an invoice
Section titled “I can’t create a financial item from an invoice”Why it happens: COHO explains under “You cannot create a financial item for this invoice. Reason(s):”
| Reason | What it means |
|---|---|
| “No property owner for this property” | Add an owner to the property |
| “Issue already has a financial item” | Only one financial item per issue. Find it in Finances |
| “Property is owned” | Your organisation owns the property, so there’s no owner to charge. Record the cost in Finances instead |
| “It’s an estimate” | Estimates can’t become financial items. Wait for the invoice |
| “Invoice status is incorrect” | The supplier’s invoice hasn’t been accepted yet. Click Accept |
| “Invoice already has N financial item(s)” | It’s already been done |
If there’s no reason shown but no button either, your role needs edit permission for Finances.
An issue isn’t in “Missing financial items”
Section titled “An issue isn’t in “Missing financial items””Why it happens: the filter shows issues with an accepted invoice that has no financial item. An invoice you added without ticking Approve invoice directly, and haven’t accepted since, isn’t counted.
How to fix it: open the invoice and click Accept, then Create financial item.
The owner didn’t get my approval request
Section titled “The owner didn’t get my approval request”Why it happens:
- The owner doesn’t have a COHO account, so COHO only changes the status.
- You didn’t enter a reason, so no message was sent.
How to fix it: contact the owner directly, or invite them to their owner dashboard. Message them from the Owner tab once they have an account.
The owner can’t see an issue
Section titled “The owner can’t see an issue”Why it happens: owners only see issues you share with them, or every issue if the owner is set to Automatically share all maintenance issues with owner? = Yes. Owners see the issue but not your conversations with tenants or suppliers.
How to fix it: open the issue and click Share in the owner section, or change the owner’s setting.
No auto-response was sent, or the wrong one
Section titled “No auto-response was sent, or the wrong one”Why it happens:
- Auto-responses are posted when a tenant reports an issue from their dashboard.
- A category auto-response replaces the property’s auto-response.
- The property’s Would you like to auto-respond to new maintenance issues? is off, or the response is blank.
How to fix it: check the category in Maintenance Settings > Maintenance Categories, then the property’s Maintenance settings cog.
A category can’t be chosen
Section titled “A category can’t be chosen”Why it happens: “This is a parent category, and cannot have an issue submitted directly against it.” Adding a sub-category turns its parent into a heading. Disabled categories don’t appear.
How to fix it: choose a sub-category, or add one that fits.
I don’t get Actions for new issues
Section titled “I don’t get Actions for new issues”Why it happens: maintenance Actions need the property’s Maintenance service to be switched on with its terms accepted. Actions about a job in progress go to the issue’s assignee.
How to fix it: check the property’s Maintenance service, and check who the issue is assigned to.
The buttons on an issue are greyed out
Section titled “The buttons on an issue are greyed out”Why it happens: the issue is archived (“This maintenance issue is archived”), another form is open, or your role can only view Maintenance.
How to fix it: click Unarchive, close the open form, or ask an admin for edit permission.
I deleted an issue by mistake
Section titled “I deleted an issue by mistake”Why it happens: deleting can’t be undone from COHO.
How to fix it: add the issue again with Add maintenance issue. Next time, use Archive, which you can reverse with Unarchive.
Error messages
Section titled “Error messages”| Message (as shown) | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| “You do not have permission to view maintenance for this organisation” | Your role can’t see Maintenance | Ask an admin for view permission |
| “You do not have permission to manage maintenance for this organisation” | Your role can’t change issues | Ask an admin for edit permission |
| “You do not have permission to manage finances for this organisation” | Your role can’t create financial items | Ask an admin for edit permission for Finances |
| “Property service not found or not enabled” | Maintenance isn’t switched on for the property | Switch on the property’s Maintenance service |
| “Couldn’t find an active tenancy” | The tenant has no active tenancy at the property | Log the issue yourself, or check the tenancy |
| “Entry permission consent is required when maintenance access consent is enabled.” | The tenant didn’t answer the entry question | Answer Yes or No |
| “A maintenance category or title is required” | No category or title was chosen | Choose a category or type a title |
| “We need a propertyReference or a propertyAddress to register the issue” | The public form had no address | Type the property address |
| “An email address is needed for sharing an issue to an Organisation Supplier” | You chose to share with a supplier who has no email | Add the supplier’s Email address |
| “This supplier is already assigned” | You chose the supplier already on the job | Choose a different supplier, or close the form |
| “No scheduled date to approve” | There’s no proposed date | Use Schedule Job |
| “Scheduled date needs to be set before approving” | The date is missing | Set a date first |
| “Cannot set a scheduled end without a scheduled start” | Only an end time was given | Enter When will the work be done? |
| “Scheduled end must be after the scheduled start” | The end is before the start | Correct the times |
| “Issue needs a property to be shared to Property Owner” | The issue has no property | Use Assign property first |
| “Owner conversation cannot be created because the issue is not shared with the owner” | The issue isn’t shared | Share the issue with the owner first |
| “We can’t create a conversation with the request reason, since the owner doesn’t have a COHO account” | The owner has no account | Contact the owner directly |
| “Your maintenance item was created but a problem happened after creation. Please refresh your page to load the new maintenance item” | The issue was saved, but a follow-on step failed | Refresh the page and check the issue |
| “Issue not found” (“Check with the person who assigned your issue.”) | A supplier opened a link to a job that’s no longer shared with them, or was deleted | Share the job again, or send the right link |