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London & Quadrant Housing Trust (202326085)

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REPORT

COMPLAINT 202326085

London & Quadrant Housing Trust (L&Q)

3 June 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 response to the resident’s reports about leaks from the roof. 

Background

  1. The resident is a leaseholder of a ground floor flat.
  2. In September 2022, the resident reported a leak through the roof into her property to the landlord.
  3. On 2 August 2023, the resident complained to the landlord about delays repairing the communal roof. She said this was causing leaks into her property. The resident said quotes had been raised for the repairs since October 2022 but work had not been completed.
  4. The landlord responded at stage 1 on the same day. It said the delays to the repairs was due to a Section 20 consultation process. This process is a requirement under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 for landlords to consult with leaseholders prior to carrying out major works funded by leaseholder service charges.
  5. The resident remained unhappy with the delays and escalated her complaint on 29 September 2023. After she came to the Service for assistance we asked the landlord on 11 December 2023 to respond to the resident at stage 2.
  6. The landlord issued a final response on 18 December 2023. It acknowledged that it had not yet started a Section 20 process but was urgently doing so to resolve the repairs. The landlord apologised and offered the resident £2440 of compensation. This was broken down as £1680 for distress and inconvenience, £280 for time and effort, £60 for the delay at stage 2, and £420 for miscommunication and service failures over a 14 month period.
  7. The resident remained dissatisfied with this response. In her complaint to the Ombudsman, she said she had continued to follow up with the landlord about the repairs. The resident confirmed that the repairs were completed in September 2024.

Assessment and findings

Scope of Investigation

  1. In her complaint to the Service the resident raised concerns about the requirement for a Section 20 consultation process. This issue was not part of the resident’s complaint to the landlord.
  2. This investigation centres on the issues raised during the resident’s formal complaint, to which the landlord sent its final response on 18 December 2023. Any issues or requests after that time should be raised as new complaints with the landlord before they can potentially be investigated by the Ombudsman.

The landlord’s response to the resident’s reports about leaks from the roof

  1. The landlord accepted its repair responsibility for the roof under the terms of the lease agreement.
  2. The landlord’s repairs policy says where a communal repair is expected to cost more than £250 per home, it will ensure that consultation is carried out in line with Section 20 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985.
  3. The landlord has a 2 stage complaints policy. It will respond to stage 1 complaints within 10 working days and stage 2 complaints within 20 working days. After confirming its decision, it will monitor progress until all outstanding actions are complete. The policy does not cover matters that have previously been considered under its complaints policy.
  4. The landlord’s compensation policy says it can award discretionary compensation when its mistake or failure causes a resident distress and inconvenience and/or the need to spend unnecessary time and effort in getting it to put things right.
  5. The evidence shows the landlord failed in its oversight of the repairs. There may have been factors outside its control which contributed to the delayed Section 20 process, but the evidence does not show any. The landlord acknowledged in its final response on 18 December 2023 that it had not started a Section 20 process for the repairs to the roof as stated at stage 1. It recognised the delays this had subsequently caused to the repairs. It offered compensation in line with its policy and the Ombudsman’s remedies guidance for failings of this large scale and nature, and in which a resident has been put to considerable inconvenience. It also set out a plan of action to complete the necessary work and put things right for the resident.
  6. However, the landlord failed to start the plan of action within a reasonable timeframe. It did not raise the repair works until 24 April 2024. This was following the resident raising further concerns about the lack of progress and communication about the repairs on 23 April 2024. The evidence shows the resident had to take the time and trouble to continue to contact the landlord, through various different departments in the months following its final response.
  7. The resident confirmed the repairs were completed in September 2024. The further delay after the works were raised in April 2024 was due to the landlord obtaining quotes for scaffolding and approval for the work. These were reasonable actions for the landlord to take for a complex repair such as roofing works. However, they do not explain the delay between December 2023 and April 2024.
  8. Overall, the resident waited almost 2 years for the repair to take place. The landlord recognised its delays to the repairs up until December 2023. It attempted to put things right through an offer of compensation and plan of action. However, it did not raise the works urgently as stated in its response, but 4 months later. It also continued in its failing to retain an oversight of the repair. The resident had to continue to take the time to follow up with the landlord after the end of the complaints process and this was a failing.

Determination

  1. In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme there was service failure in the landlord’s response to the resident’s reports about leaks from the roof.

Orders and recommendations

Orders

  1. Within 4 weeks of this report the landlord must pay the resident compensation of £250 for the further distress and inconvenience caused by its delays following its final complaint response. This is in addition to the £2440 already paid.
  2. The landlord must provide evidence of compliance with this order within the deadline above.