Sam, Cardiff

4 February 2011

Last year I lived in a converted Victorian house - our rented ground-floor flat was mostly an extension.  The walls were completely hollow, no insulation at all.  Only half the house had double glazing which made it worse.

Putting the heating on almost didn't make any difference.  And the heat evaporated as soon as you turned it off.

I spent the whole winter wearing thermals but really struggled to keep my feet warm.

It was apparently a four-bedroom flat but only three of us lived there.  We used the back room - an extension that clearly used to be a kitchen - for band practice.  The idea of someone sleeping in that room was simply inconceivable with its large windows and three exterior walls.

This year we're renting a large, detached house that's perfect - apart from the cold.  It's probably not as bad as last year but the loft insulation is black with mould and only a couple of inches thick.

Our generation often has no choice but to rent privately, so its a scandal that there's no regulation for landlords to make their houses warm.

Rented homes are also often occupied by people who have the least cash to pay enormous fuel bills, its basically hidden rent!