Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council (202104867)

REPORT

COMPLAINT 202104867

Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council

2 September 2022

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

This complaint is about the landlord’s handling of:
1. void property repairs to plasterwork, pipework and flooring that the resident reported at the beginning of her tenancy;
2. the related complaint.

Background and summary of events

Background

The resident was an introductory tenant of the property from 9 March 2020. The tenancy agreement described the property as a two-bedroom house. The landlord is a local authority.
The tenancy agreement shows that the landlord will repair and maintain the structure of the property and keep in repair and proper working order installations that supply water.
The landlord has a repairs policy that shows that it is responsible for internal plastering work and equipment installed for delivering water while the resident is responsible for decorations. It sets out that it will complete emergency repairs within 24 hours (where there is a health and safety implication) and routine repairs will be completed in accordance with right to repair legislation.
The landlord has a void property letting standard policy that shows that:
1. it will “ensure that all properties for re-letting have been subject to our standard checks for cleanliness and condition, for the integrity of all services including gas, electricity and water supply and for the proper operation of appliances for the use of water and heating”;
2. it will ensure that “all internal wall surfaces will be free from major visible defects” so all “plasterwork will be repaired to walls that have defects larger than hairline cracks” and loose wallpaper will be removed;
3. “all floors should be even and free from trip hazards” and “all hot water pipes and cold water tanks that are out of the insulated part of the property will be separately insulated”.
The landlord has a housing complaints procedure that sets out a two-stage complaints process with responses required within 10 working days of the complaint acknowledgement at each stage.

Summary of Events

The landlord completed a void property inspection report on 18 February 2020. It made no reference to damp and mould or the state of plasterwork or flooring but recorded that all rooms were in ‘average’ condition.
The landlord wrote to the resident on 20 February 2020, offering the property to her subject to a viewing.
The landlord’s records show that it arranged works at the property from 19 February 2020 to 9 March 2020 to clean the property twice and clear waste from the rear garden.
The tenancy agreement was signed by the resident on 6 March 2020. An accompanying tenancy sign-up checklist showed that:
1. a £130 decorations voucher was awarded to the resident;
2. ‘ready to let’ photographs were noted as being on the ‘house file’.
The landlord’s repairs log shows that it noted on 19 March 2020 that ply board was needed to cover exposed pipes in the rear bedroom and pipes under a window needed to be boxed in. This repair order was subsequently recorded as ‘cancelled’.
The landlord’s repairs log shows that a repair order was requested on 31 March 2020 due to low water pressure. It noted that the job was completed on 21 April 2020.
The resident’s support worker wrote to the landlord on 17 April 2020. She reported “holes in the floor, plaster hanging off the ceiling in addition to cupboard doors hanging off, damp and mould in certain areas” and asked for the resident to be contacted albeit she acknowledged that works may not be possible at the time due to Covid-19.
The landlord noted on 20 April 2020 that repair jobs related to “flooring in cupboard and plastering in cupboard” were on hold due to the pandemic. It passed this information to the resident’s representative on the same date.
The landlord’s records show that it noted on 21 April 2020 that the resident had told it that she was concerned about the condition of the property as she was not expecting it to be the same as when she viewed it. It said that it would contact its voids team for an update.
The landlord’s records show that the resident chased it on 14 May 2020 regarding repairs as she told it that she had not received any response.
The landlord’s repairs log shows that it again noted a low water pressure issue on 22 June 2020. It subsequently recorded on 2 July 2020 that it would need to “locate stop tap boxes” for four properties and check the pressure at the resident’s property.
The landlord’s records show that it noted on 15 July 2020 that a member of staff had contacted the resident and she had said she was moving. It added the following day that the resident had said she had handed her notice in for the property due to the condition it was in and to live with her new partner.
The landlord wrote to the resident on 17 July 2020, advising it had received the end of tenancy notice and the tenancy would cease on 16 August 2020 with rent payable up to then.
The resident wrote to the landlord on 29 July 2020, with photographs enclosed showing extensive black mould staining and peeling plasterwork to a ceiling in one room, a hole in the ceiling of a cupboard and exposed pipework and missing flooring to a cupboard. She advised that:
1. her and her six-year-old daughter had moved into the property after viewing it around two weeks prior to the tenancy beginning and being assured that it would be cleaned and the condition improved;
2. she came into the landlord’s office with photographs on 9 March 2020 (the date she was given keys to the property) and raised a complaint;
3. an inspector had visited the property and said that plastering was necessary but no work was done;
4. she still contacted it during the Covid-19 lockdown to tell it that the property was musty and there was low water pressure so running a bath was difficult;
5. a cupboard in her daughter’s bedroom was unsafe with a massive hole in the floor and hot exposed pipework to the side of the window;
6. she had now moved out of the property and was seeking compensation for the lack of repairs and support offered.
The resident re-submitted the above correspondence to the landlord on 10 August 2020. The landlord and resident exchanged emails on 11 August 2020 with the latter providing information requested by the former so a complaint could be logged.
The landlord noted that it issued a complaint response to the resident on 13 August 2020, concluding that:
1. an inspector had attended on 11 March 2020 and found no evidence of damp or mould but plastering works had been raised;
2. there had been delays due to Covid-19 and there had been no access when it attended on 10 August 2020 to carry out plastering works;
3. a plumber attended in March 2020 but found no water pressure problem and there was a further visit in June 2020 which led to it deciding to ask its contractor to check the water supply and pressure to four addresses, including hers;
4. the contractor attended on 21 July 2020 but was unable to locate a stop cock or gain access to the property;
5. it asked the resident to advise what losses she had incurred.
The resident wrote to the landlord on 13 August 2020, advising that:
1. she had left the property on 10 July 2020;
2. she had told the landlord when she was given the keys to the property what her concerns were in terms of health and safety hazards such as mould to a bedroom, holes in another bedroom and unsafe pipework;
3. an operative had attended for water pressure but said the property had a very old system and there was nothing he could do;
4. she had identified that the property was in a poor condition when she had viewed it two weeks prior to the tenancy commencing and was told this would be rectified but it had not been and she felt she had to move into the property as she was only in temporary accommodation at the time;
5. she suggested that the landlord should pay compensation.
The landlord noted on 19 May 2021 that it had spoken at length with the resident and that she told it she had reported damp, mould and holes in the property when she first got the keys plus a later water pressure issue. It added that there were some photographs on its records from when she moved in.
The resident forwarded her August 2020 correspondence to the landlord on 25 May 2021. The landlord noted on 26 May 2021 that there had been no reply to this and that it had re-opened the complaint.
The landlord recorded that it responded to the resident on 27 May 2021, concluding that:
1. a void inspector attended the property on 11 March 2020 and did not view any mould growth;
2. the resident was given a £130 decorations voucher in accordance with its procedures for new tenants;
3. the inspector had identified that plastering works were necessary to cupboard ceilings and walls in the back bedroom and kitchen;
4. it had been unable to progress these works due to the Covid-19 lockdown and had eventually arranged them for 10 August 2020 but then became aware that the resident was no longer at the property;
5. a plumber attended in March and June 2020 to address low water pressure and had been liaising with the contractor to locate a stop cock to the resident’s property and her neighbour’s but there was no response to phone call attempts and messages sent to the resident and no access when it visited on 21 July 2020.
The resident submitted a complaint escalation on 28 May 2021 on the grounds that:
1. although carpets and decorations were her responsibility, the plastering and pipework safety should have been resolved before she moved in;
2. a plumber had attended twice but had done nothing and said she would have to sort out her own water supply;
3. her point was that the property should not have been let in the condition it was in and she had been charged rent for a property that was not at a habitable standard;
4. she had sent messages and made calls and had only now received a complaint response.
The landlord issued its final complaint response to the resident on 28 May 2021. It concluded that:
1. it had only been passed the resident’s complaint on 27 May 2021;
2. works to the bedroom cupboard should have been done while the property was void but it had made arrangements once it became aware of the issue;
3. it apologised for this and said it had taken the matter up with the inspecting officer;
4. the works had been on hold due to the national lockdown and it had still been attempting to complete them when it became aware in August 2020 that the resident had vacated the property.

Assessment and findings

The Ombudsman’s Dispute Resolution Principles are:

Be fair
Put things right
Learn from outcomes

This Service will apply these principles when considering whether any redress is appropriate and proportionate for any maladministration or service failure identified.

Repairs

The resident has raised concerns as part of this complaint that she was offered reassurances when she viewed the property in February 2020 that its condition would be improved prior to her tenancy commencing the following month. There is no evidence of any such commitments made by the landlord so there was no service failure on its part in this regard.
However, the landlord’s void letting standard policy shows that it will repair plastering, make floors even and insulate pipework. The landlord had to raise repair orders to remedy each of these issues shortly after the tenancy began and its void inspection report was silent on these issues. This demonstrates that the void inspection for this property was insufficient and failed to identify repairs that were required to bring it up to its lettable standard. Although the resident was not the tenant at the time of this failure, it meant that she had to report the issues upon moving in, causing unnecessary time and trouble to her.
The resident reported the outstanding void repair matters from the beginning of her tenancy on 9 March 2020 and they all remained unresolved by the point she told the landlord that she was vacating the property in July 2020. In mitigation, this Service accepts that March 2020 and the following weeks was a difficult period for most organisations. We are aware that local authorities often had to transfer staff to frontline services to ensure a continuity of its business.
The government’s Covid–19 lockdown guidance from late March 2020 said that landlords should only access properties where there was a serious or urgent issue. This advice was broadly unchanged until the beginning of June 2020 when it was recommended that landlord could take steps to address “wider issues of repairs and safety inspections” – some delay in progressing the plastering works was therefore inevitable. However, it was unreasonable that the landlord failed to consistently communicate with the resident during this period and had not progressed the works by mid-July 2020, despite the potential health and safety concerns with the condition of flooring and exposed hot pipework.
The resident also reported that there was low water pressure to the property from at least as early as the end of March 2020. As with the void property related works, some delay in the landlord resolving this was inevitable given the Covid-19 restrictions and the landlord took reasonable steps to visit and attempt to diagnose the fault in April 2020 and June 2020. Its investigations into the cause of low water pressure were ongoing at the point the resident told it that she would be leaving the property in July 2020 and there was therefore no service failure on the part of the landlord in its handling of this issue.
Through the landlord’s complaints process, it eventually acknowledged that it should have identified the need for works to the bedroom cupboard (presumably both plastering and flooring repairs) through its void inspection, apologised for this and said it had spoken to the inspecting officer. However, it failed to address whether the void process should also have addressed the exposed pipework to the bedroom and it did not award compensation for the inconvenience and time and trouble caused to the resident by her having to report, and chase, the outstanding repairs when they should have been remedied before she moved in.
In summary, the landlord has acknowledged that its void inspection failed to identify that works were needed to the property which the resident had to report from the point she moved in. Although it apologised and said it would learn lessons from the case, its decision not to award compensation meant that it failed to put things right for the resident, particularly given it did not communicate with her reasonably or assess whether there was a health and safety hazard between March-July 2020.

Complaint handling

The resident initially submitted a complaint to the landlord on 29 July 2020. The landlord obtained further details from her in early August 2020 to enable it to log a complaint. It was obliged to respond to the complaint within 10 working days and it therefore responded within an appropriate timescale when it wrote to her on 13 August 2020.
However, the resident made further representations to the landlord on 13 August 2020, expressing continued dissatisfaction. The landlord should have escalated the resident’s complaint at this point but the resident had to pass the correspondence to it again in May 2021 in order to get a final complaint response later that month. The landlord’s delay in escalating, and offering a final response to, the resident’s complaint was inappropriate albeit there is no evidence that this was chased between September 2020 and April 2021.
In summary, the landlord responded within an appropriate timescale to the resident’s initial complaint in July 2020. However, it failed to escalate the resident’s complaint when she expressed continued concerns in August 2020 and this meant that a final complaint response was not provided until May 2021, around eight months later than it should have been.

Determination

In accordance with paragraph 54 of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, there was maladministration by the landlord in its handling of:
1. void property repairs to plasterwork, pipework and flooring that the resident reported at the beginning of her tenancy;
2. the related complaint.

Reasons

The landlord did not identify repairs during its void inspection in accordance with its letting standard policy. This meant that the resident had to report these on moving into the property and the landlord contributed to further delays in completing repairs, and communicating with her, up to the point she decided to move out.
The landlord failed to escalate the resident’s complaint in August 2020 as it should have and this led to an unreasonable delay in it providing a final complaint response.

Orders

The landlord to write to the resident to apologise for the service failures identified in this report.
The landlord to pay the resident compensation of £425, made up of:
1. £250 in recognition of the inconvenience and time and trouble caused to her by the service failures in its handling of the void property repairs to plasterwork, pipework and flooring that she reported at the beginning of her tenancy;
2. £175 in recognition of the inconvenience and time and trouble caused to her by the service failure in its handling of the related complaint.

The landlord should confirm compliance with these orders to this Service within four weeks of the date of this report.

Recommendations

The landlord to ensure that its void inspection reports include a requirement to consider the condition of plasterwork and any exposed pipework.

The landlord should confirm its intentions in regard to this recommendation to this Service within four weeks of the date of this report.