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ForHousing Limited (202424394)

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REPORT

COMPLAINT 202424394

ForHousing Limited

28 May 2025


Our approach

The Housing Ombudsman’s approach to investigating and determining complaints is to decide what is fair in all the circumstances of the case. This is set out in the Housing Act 1996 and the Housing Ombudsman Scheme (the Scheme). The Ombudsman considers the evidence and looks to see if there has been any ‘maladministration’, for example whether the landlord has failed to keep to the law, followed proper procedure, followed good practice or behaved in a reasonable and competent manner.

Both the resident and the landlord have submitted information to the Ombudsman and this has been carefully considered. Their accounts of what has happened are summarised below. This report is not an exhaustive description of all the events that have occurred in relation to this case, but an outline of the key issues as a background to the investigation’s findings.

The complaint

  1. The complaint is about the landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of damp and mould.

Background

  1. The resident is an assured tenant of the landlord living in a 2-bedroom house. She lives in the property with her partner and 2 children.
  2. The resident raised a complaint as the landlord had not addressed the damp conditions in the property. The document was undated, so the Service is unsure of the date of the complaint. She said it completed a damp survey on 9 March 2023 but did not action the follow-on works. She wanted the landlord to complete the repairs as soon as possible and did not want it to complete any follow-on work over the Christmas period.
  3. The landlord issued its stage 1 response on 18 September 2023. It said the repairs were initially booked for January 2023 but were cancelled at the resident’s request. The resident asked to reschedule the appointment on 14 March 2023, 25 May 2023, and 5 June 2023. It subsequently raised work to the contractors, but the emails were missed. It apologised for the error. It offered £250 compensation for the delay in completing the repairs.
  4. The resident asked to escalate the complaint on 28 January 2024. She said she was still waiting for the repairs and had not received any further communication.
  5. In its stage 2 response on 21 February 2024, the landlord apologised for the ongoing damp and mould issues. It said:
    1. The resident initially reported damp and mould in September 2022, but works were not completed.
    2. A new inspection was completed in September 2023. It identified several works including repointing, installing air vents, replacing roof tiles, replacing windows, and internal damp and mould works. It started the work in November 2023.
    3. The external works were to a poor standard and the pointing failed due to weather damage. It therefore paused internal works.
    4. It would start the external works on 5 March 2024 and then complete the internal works. It would provide the resident with a timeline of the works.
    5. It offered £1680 compensation made up of £250 awarded at stage 1, £630 to cover the cost of the additional energy bills, and £800 as an interim amount for the service failure. It would review the compensation once it completed the works.
  6. In her complaint to the Service, the resident said she remains dissatisfied as there is still damp and mould present in the bedrooms. She wanted the landlord to resolve the issues in full. She said the landlord had not responded to her concerns about outstanding works to the bedrooms, kitchen ceiling, external brickwork, cold spotting, and windows. She requested additional compensation for the time the issues remained outstanding.

Assessment and findings 

Scope of investigation

  1. The resident told the Service that the damp and mould has been ongoing for over 10 years. While this may be the case, it would have been reasonable for the resident to have pursued the landlord and raised a complaint at an earlier time if she was unhappy with how the landlord had dealt with this (or failed to deal with this). This investigation will not endeavour to look back 10 years because as time goes on, memories fade, it becomes difficult to verify accounts, and records are erased. Residents are expected to raise complaints with their landlords in a timely manner so that the landlord has a reasonable opportunity to consider the issues whilst they are still ‘live’, and while the evidence is available to reach an informed conclusion.
  2. This investigation will only consider events that occurred 12 months prior to the resident’s complaint. We have therefore only offered a view on how the landlord approached the damp and mould issue from September 2022 onwards.
  3. The resident also reported that the landlord’s handling of this case has negatively impacted her family’s health. While the Ombudsman is sorry to hear this, it is beyond the expertise of the Service to determine a causal link between the landlord’s actions (or lack thereof) and the impact on health. Often, when there is a dispute over whether someone has been injured or a health condition has been made worse, the courts are better equipped to access and assess all the relevant evidence that can provide an expert opinion of the cause of any injury or deterioration of a condition. This would be a more appropriate and effective means of considering such an allegation and so should the resident wish to pursue this matter, she should do so via this route. This investigation will only consider whether the landlord acted in accordance with its policy / its legal obligations, and fairly in the circumstances.
  4. The resident told the Service that there are outstanding works to the kitchen ceiling following a leak from the toilet. This was not raised as part of the complaint or included in the original repair specification. In the interest of fairness, the scope of this investigation is limited to the issues raised during the resident’s formal complaint. This is because the landlord needs to be given a fair opportunity to investigate and respond to any reported dissatisfaction with its actions prior to the involvement of the Service. Any new issues that have not been subject to a formal complaint can be addressed directly with the landlord and progressed as a new formal complaint if required.

The landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of damp and mould

  1. The landlord’s damp and mould policy states that it adopts a zero-tolerance approach to damp and mould. It will complete a damp and mould inspection, a mould wash, and any necessary remedial works. It will contact the resident 4 weeks after it completes works to confirm it has resolved the damp and mould. The landlord’s repairs policy states it will respond to emergency repairs in 24 hours, urgent repairs in 3 working days, routine repairs in 30 working days, and damp repairs in 40 working days.
  2. The landlord completed a damp and mould survey on 16 September 2022. It found:
    1. Mould to the bathroom window reveals and cold spotting to the toilet and basin wall. Works were required to remove the bathroom fixtures, thermal board, plaster, make good the tiles, renew the plywood dust casing, install a condensation control, and provide a windowsill.
    2. Mould to the bedroom window reveal. A glazing inspection and damp and mould treatment was required.
    3. Penetrating damp on the top of the stairs around the hall and landing window.
    4. Mould and cold spotting in the lounge.
  3. The landlord raised work orders to complete the repairs on 23 September 2023 and 2 November 2023. However, it was cancelled on 30 November 2023 at the resident’s request to reschedule as the appointment was close to Christmas. It is noted that in line with the 40-working day repair timeframe, the landlord should have completed the work by 13 November 2023. It was therefore unreasonable that it remained outstanding on 30 November 2023. Nonetheless, the additional delay due to the rescheduled appointment was outside of the landlord’s control.
  4. In its complaint response, the landlord said the resident made contact on 14 March 2023, 25 May 2023, and 5 June 2023 to rearrange the appointments, but it did not properly action these requests. It said it notified the contractor, but the emails were missed. This caused an unreasonable delay in completing the repairs. The Service’s spotlight report on damp and mould found that landlords are often too reliant on residents reporting issues and residents may give up reporting damp and mould when the trust with the landlord has been eroded. The landlord should review how it monitors repairs to ensure it has sufficient oversight of repairs referred to its contractors, so it meets its repair timeframes. It was appropriate that the landlord recognised and apologised for this failing.
  5. The landlord raised a further inspection on 22 September 2023 as the previous inspection was over 6 months prior. While the additional appointment may have caused inconvenience to the resident, it is important that the landlord has an accurate report of the condition of the property to ensure it raises the correct works to address the damp and mould. It was reasonable that the landlord offered to decant the resident, as this would have reduced the impact during the works, but she declined the offer.
  6. Following the survey, the landlord raised a work order on 26 September 2023 to complete several works to address the damp and mould. This included a mould wash, repairs to the windows, renewing the vents, and inspecting the brickwork. It attended on 18 October 2023 and 23 October 2023 but noted the resident refused works. This delay was outside of the landlord’s control. However, the landlord should confirm the reasons for the resident declining the works so that it could establish how best to proceed. The resident explained that she declined the works as the job description did not match the repairs agreed at the inspection. The landlord should have promptly addressed the matter to progress the repairs.
  7. The landlord raised a further work order on 27 October 2023 to repoint the side of the building and install airbricks. It attended on 9 November 2023 and 6 December 2023. It raised a further work order on 15 November 2023, which included the works identified in the survey on 16 September 2022. It completed the works between 4 December 2023 and 15 December 2023.
  8. The landlord completed a further damp survey on 30 January 2024. It raised numerous internal works and noted the external brickworks required inspection. In its complaint response on 21 February 2024, the landlord recognised that the external works were to a poor standard. The repointing failed which the landlord reported was due to weather damage caused by frost and rain. The Ombudsman cannot confirm with certainty whether the weather conditions were outside of the normal range which repairs would typically be expected to withstand. Nonetheless, as it failed to provide a full and lasting repair it was reasonable that the landlord rescheduled the repairs. It was also appropriate that it suspended the internal work as it would not be effective until the external repairs were successful.
  9. The landlord completed several further works following the stage 2 response:
    1. Between 6 March 2024 and 11 April 2024, it erected scaffolding, completed roofing repairs and repointing. It noted the works exceeded the repair timeframe as additional works were added to the scope.
    2. It replaced the windows on 4 July 2024. It initially raised the works to replace the kitchen and bathroom windows on 26 January 2024 as they were allowing water to penetrate the property. As such, there was an unreasonable delay in completing the works.
    3. It repointed on 7 June 2024 and 24 July 2024.
    4. Between 25 July 2024 and 8 August 2024, it replastered the bathroom, repaired the window reveals in the bathroom and removed the skirting board and hacked off bridging plaster in the living room. 
    5. It retiled the bathroom between 21 August 2024 and 15 October 2024. 
    6. It renewed the bathroom flooring on 23 October 2024.
    7. It attended on 20 November 2024 and 21 November 2024 to refit the kitchen radiator and living room skirting board.
  10. The works were ongoing for 9 months following the final response, which is an unreasonable timeframe. It is recognised where there are extensive works, it is not always possible for landlords to adhere to the repair timeframes. However, it does not appear the landlord suitably prioritised follow-on works to prevent further delays. The landlord noted that the resident’s actions disrupted the progress of the works, including removing tiles, removing plastic sheeting, and visitors attending which prevented works. The landlord would not be accountable for such delays. It is unclear which repairs this impacted and there is insufficient evidence that the resident contributed to the full extent of the delays.
  11. The resident told the Service that works to the bathroom, stairs, and living room are now completed. However, there are outstanding repairs to the bedrooms and the windows needed to be externally sealed. She also asked for the outcome of the thermal imaging survey to inspect the soffit and facia cold spotting, and she asked the landlord to inspect the external brickwork due to a large crack. She said the landlord had not responded to her concerns about the outstanding repairs since 7 January 2025. She further chased the works on 2 April 2025. An order has been made below for the landlord to address the outstanding repairs.
  12. The landlord recognised shortcomings in its complaint responses. Where there are admitted failings by a landlord, the Ombudsman’s role is to consider whether the redress offered by the landlord put things right and resolved the resident’s complaint satisfactorily in the circumstances. In considering this the Ombudsman assesses whether the landlord’s offer of redress was in line with the Ombudsman’s Dispute Resolution Principles: be fair, put things right and learn from outcomes.
  13. In this case, the delays in addressing the damp and mould impacted the resident’s enjoyment of the property and caused concern for her family’s health. The landlord offered £1,680 in its stage 2 response. The landlord’s compensation policy states it will pay over £300 compensation if there is a serious or prolonged detriment to the resident. In line with the Service’s remedies guidance, awards above £1,000 are appropriate in cases where there was a significant failure in service which had a seriously detrimental impact on the resident. The compensation offered was therefore proportionate to the level of failing at the time of the final response.
  14. The resident has provided evidence of a text from the stage 2 complaint handler on 16 December 2024 stating it offered a further £550 for the additional service failings and inconvenience. The Service asked the landlord to clarify its final compensation offer and it did not include this amount. However, in the circumstances this would be an appropriate compensation level so this amount will form part of the final compensation award. As there remains outstanding issues, nevertheless, an additional award of £300 compensation would be reasonable for the delays post December 2024.
  15. It is understood that the landlord has also offered compensation in relation to different complaint matters. While this has not been considered or assessed as part of this investigation, the landlord should ensure it upholds any previous agreements.

Determination

  1. In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, there was maladministration in the landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of damp and mould.

Orders

  1. In addition to the £1,680 offered at stage 2, the landlord must pay the resident £850 compensation for the further delays in resolving the damp and mould. It must provide evidence to the Service of the total compensation payment of £2,530 within 4 weeks of the date of this report.
  2. Within 4 weeks of the date of this report, the landlord must provide the resident and the Service with a clear schedule of works to complete the outstanding repairs, including the bedrooms, windows, and external crack. It should also address the resident’s concerns about cold spotting by sharing the thermal imaging survey and including any required works in the schedule of works. The schedule of works should include the anticipated start dates and estimated time to complete the works.
  3. Within 12 weeks, the landlord must provide a post-inspection to confirm it has completed the works to resolve the damp and mould in full. 
  4. The landlord must provide evidence that it has complied with the orders within the relevant timeframes.