The Guinness Partnership Limited (202126272)

REPORT

COMPLAINT 202126272

The Guinness Partnership Limited

1 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

1. The complaint concerns how the landlord handled the replacement of an extractor fan in the bathroom of the property.
2. The Ombudsman has also considered the landlord’s complaint handling in relation to the resolution it offered.

Background

3. The resident is an assured tenant of the landlord, which is a housing association. The property is a house.
4. In March 2021 an inspection was undertaken at the property following a report from the resident of damp and mould in the bathroom. The inspection found mould on the bathroom ceiling as a result of condensation. The inspection report recommended a mould wash and to replace the extractor fan. Work orders were raised by the landlord to treat the ceiling and replace the fan. However, an error was made on the repair logs and the work order incorrectly stated that the kitchen fan was to be replaced.
5. The contractor received the fan from the manufacturer on 6 May 2021 and an appointment was arranged for 12 July 2021. The appointment failed after the contractor was informed by the resident that it was the bathroom fan that required replacement.
6. The resident contacted the landlord on 13 July 2021 and requested to raise a complaint. She described the elements of the complaint as the length of time it was taking the landlord to resolve the issue and the poor level of communication she had received.
7. In its complaint responses, the landlord informed the resident that:
   1. There was a delay to completing the replacement of the bathroom fan as initially the work was incorrectly entered into its system as the replacement of the kitchen fan, and that its contractor had experienced staffing issues as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic which caused a further delay in rescheduling the appointment.
   2. It accepted that it had not kept the resident properly updated during the time period the repair remained outstanding.
   3. It apologised to the resident for its poor service and communication, and offered £175 compensation.
8. In referring the case to this Service, the resident explained that the outstanding issues of the complaint were that while she had initially accepted the resolution offered by the landlord, as of 1 March 2022, she had yet to receive the compensation award despite contacting the landlord. As a resolution to the complaint, the resident requested to be awarded additional compensation in recognition of the poor level of communication and service she had continued to receive from the landlord.

Assessment and findings

Relevant policies and procedures

9. The landlord categorises its repairs as “Emergency” (make safe within 24 hours) and “Routine” (complete within 28 calendar days).  An emergency repair is defined by the landlord as a repair that presents “an immediate health and safety risk to the tenant, their home or their neighbours”.
10. The landlord’s compensation policy states that it will consider offering financial redress in circumstances where “we are at fault and an apology or other remedy alone is not sufficient”. The policy also provides guidance for levels of redress and recommends a payment of up to £250 in situations where “the issue was resolved within a reasonable time which resulted in minor inconvenience having some impact on the complainant or the household”.

How the landlord handled the replacement of an extractor fan in the bathroom of the property

11. Section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 places a statutory obligation on the landlord to keep the structure and exterior of the property in repair. The landlord also has a responsibility under the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS), introduced by The Housing Act 2004, to assess hazards and risks within its rented properties. Damp and mould growth are a potential hazard and therefore the landlord is required to consider whether any damp and mould problem in its properties amount to a hazard and require remedying.
12. Therefore, once the landlord had been informed by the resident of the presence of mould, it was obligated to inspect the property and raise any necessary repairs to resolve the issue. The landlord acted appropriately by arranging for an inspection of the bathroom and then raising work orders to carry out the recommendations made in the inspection report.
13. It is not disputed that there were significant delays in completing the recommended work and that the fan was not replaced within the landlord’s published timescale of 28 calendar days for a routine repair. An error in adding the fan replacement work to its system resulted in the contractor attending the property to replace the kitchen fan and having to reschedule the work. Further delays then occurred as a result of the contractor’s staffing issues due to Covid-19.
14. During the national lockdowns the landlord operated a reduced service and only attended emergency repairs. When the lockdowns ended, the landlord had a backlog of repairs which resulted in work being delayed beyond its published timescales. Further delays also occurred as a result of availability of its contractors and issues with sourcing materials. The landlord kept its residents informed of the status of its repairs service via its website.
15. The landlord has acknowledged that it did not properly keep the resident informed of these delays which resulted in her having to chase it via numerous telephone calls and emails requesting updates. Therefore, while some of the delays in completing the repairs were outside of its control (as a result of Covid-19), it was appropriate for the landlord to apologise to the resident and offer compensation in recognition of its poor communication and for the initial delay it caused by incorrectly stating that the kitchen fan needed to be replaced.
16. The landlord’s compensation award was calculated in line with its compensation policy described above. The payment was also in line with the Ombudsman’s own remedies guidance (which is available on our website). This recommends a payment of £50 to £250 in instances of service failure resulting in some impact on a complainant. As examples for when this level of redress should be considered, the guidance suggests:
    1. Repeated failures to reply to letters or return phone calls
    2. Failure to meet service standards for actions and responses but where the failure had no significant impact 
17. Therefore, a payment of £175 for the five-month delay in completing the repair and the poor level of communication the resident experienced during this period was reasonable in the circumstances, given the mitigating circumstances.

Complaint handling

18. The resident accepted the landlord’s apology and compensation as a resolution to the complaint. However, the resident had not received payment of this compensation at the time of bringing the complaint to the Ombudsman in March 2022. The landlord’s contact logs show that the resident called it in January 2022 chasing payment, but there is no evidence that it responded. The lack of communication was again reflective of the failings the landlord sought to compensate, therefore, there was service failure by the landlord in its complaint handling, given the delay in paying the compensation and the ongoing poor communication the resident experienced in the three months up to she referred the complaint to the Ombudsman. In order to resolve this aspect of the complaint, a further compensation payment is warranted.
19. As a payment of £175 for the five-month delay and poor communication was deemed reasonable by both the landlord and the resident even with the mitigation of the Covid-19 pandemic, it would be appropriate for the landlord to pay an additional £100 compensation for the further three-month delay and poor communication as part of its complaint handling.
20. This report only considers events six months prior to the complaint being raised up to when the complaint was Duly Made on 1 March 2022. Therefore, it is not clear when or if the landlord has since paid the £175 compensation. It is recommended that the landlord write to the resident to inform her of the status of the compensation payment and determine if additional compensation is warranted for any payment delays past 1 March 2022. It should also inform the resident of its decision. It is further recommended that the landlord review its procedures for the payment of compensation and identify any areas of improvement.

Determination

21. In accordance with paragraph 55(b) of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, the landlord offered reasonable redress in light of how it handled the replacement of an extractor fan in the bathroom of the property. 
22. In accordance with paragraph 54 of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, there was service failure in the landlord’s complaint handling, more specifically the delay in providing the resolution it agreed to in its final response.

Orders

23. For the service failure and reasons set out above, the landlord is ordered to:
    1. pay to the resident £100.
    2. determine if additional compensation is warranted for any payment delays past 1 March 2022, informing the resident of its decision.
    3. review its procedures for the payment of compensation and identify any areas of improvement.
24. All actions should be completed within four weeks of the date of this report. The landlord should update this Service when it has complied with the orders.

Recommendations

25. It is recommended that the landlord pay the £175 compensation offered in its complaints process if it has not already done so.