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Broxtowe Borough Council (202215452)

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REPORT

COMPLAINT 202215452

Broxtowe Borough Council

29 September 2023


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 anti-social behaviour (ASB).

Background

  1. The resident is a secure tenant of the landlord. The property is a one bedroom flat. The complaint relates to a neighbour in another block of flats close to the resident.
  2. On 10 March 2022, the resident emailed the landlord to report noise from 10pm until midnight, including screaming, on 8 March 2022. She reported that her car had been smashed by someone visiting the neighbour’s property and the neighbour’s boyfriend threatened and intimidated her.
  3. On 16 March 2022, the landlord acknowledged the resident’s report of ASB. It said the police would take the lead on criminal matters and it would speak to the neighbour and issue a warning if necessary. It explained what legal interventions could potentially be made and what was needed to implement these. It said it would keep the resident up to date on the investigation. The landlord wrote to the neighbour the same day to say it had received an ASB complaint and would be in contact.
  4. On 22 March 2022, the landlord accompanied the police on a home visit to the neighbour. The police officer discussed people coming to the property and the neighbour said this would stop because a male living at the property had been arrested. The neighbour also discussed her vulnerabilities with the landlord and police.
  5. On 29 March 2022 the landlord called the resident to discuss the ASB report. The resident confirmed she knew a male neighbour from the property had been arrested and things had been quiet since then. The resident was not happy for the investigation to be closed so the landlord agreed to keep the complaint open for one more week, and if there were no further issues then it would close the investigation.
  6. On 4 April 2022, the resident reported the neighbour was arguing and shouting so she called the police. She mentioned she was concerned that drugs were involved. The resident said she found the incident distressing and was unable to sleep. The landlord responded on 6 April 2022 and asked for the police reference number. It also asked whether the resident was able to use the noise application to record incidents of noise nuisance. It said it would keep the investigation open for another week because there had been a further incident.
  7. On 6 April 2022, the landlord called the neighbour to discuss the resident’s complaint. The neighbour provided the landlord with an explanation of the incident, and said she would try to keep the noise down. The landlord said it would call again if further noise was reported.
  8. On 10 April 2022, the landlord called the resident. The resident said there had been no noise issues lately, but that there were regular visitors to the neighbour’s property late at night and the resident suspected drug dealing. The landlord advised the resident to call the police if she suspected drug dealing was taking place and said it would work in partnership with the police in respect of this. The landlord said it was closing the investigation because there was no longer an issue with the noise but advised the resident to contact the landlord if there were any further issues.
  9. This service has not seen any further contact between the landlord and the resident regarding this matter until the resident contacted the Ombudsman in October 2022. Following this, a stage one complaint was submitted to the landlord.
  10. On 23 November 2022, the landlord issued its stage one response to the resident’s complaint that the landlord had not taken action against the resident’s neighbour, despite illegal activity at their property. The landlord confirmed it had received a report of noise nuisance relating to a male and female in a neighbouring property. It said the male left the property and the noise improved so the investigation was closed. The landlord confirmed it was aware that issues regarding alleged drug use had continued since the original investigation was closed. It said, “Drug possession is a criminal offence, which is up to the police to investigate and enforce. When drugs are found “…” within landlord’s accommodation, the landlord will act to enforce tenancy conditions. The level of action “…” depends on the level of evidence and severity. From your complaint, [you feel] the landlord should be seeking the most severe action possible. However, “…” action needs to be supported by police evidence “…” To date, the landlord has not received this supporting evidence. If and when it does, it will act dependent on the facts of the case at that time.”
  11. On 27 November 2022 the resident responded to say she was unhappy with the response. She did not feel anything had been done. She said the landlord had refused to apply standard procedures to close the property.
  12. On 28 December 2022, the landlord issued its stage two response, saying it had taken appropriate action regarding the resident’s report. It said the police had visited the property several times and it understood the resident had also reported drug issues to the police. It reiterated that it had not received substantive evidence of drug related activity from the police and therefore it could  not end the neighbour’s tenancy.
  13. In January 2023 the resident contacted the Ombudsman saying she remained dissatisfied with the actions of the landlord, and that she wanted the landlord to apply procedures to close the neighbour’s property. The Ombudsman is aware that the resident has continued to report ASB following this.

Assessment and findings

  1. The Ombudsman notes that the resident said they have been experiencing ASB since December 2021, however the first recorded report of ASB was March 2022.
  2. When assessing complaints about the landlord’s handling of reports of ASB, the Ombudsman’s role is to assess whether the landlord has adequately investigated the reported issues and taken appropriate and proportionate action in line with its policies and procedures.
  3. The Anti-social Behaviour Crime and Policing Act 2014, and the associated guidance, set out the powers of the police and the landlord, as well as its powers in its capacity as a council. It encourages joint working between landlords and the police. Before landlords evoke legal powers, landlords will be expected to attempt to resolve neighbour disputes informally.
  4. Landlords have the power to apply for an injunction or possession. Injunctions and possession orders are made by the court. Therefore, in order to be successful in obtaining a court order, the landlord would be required to show that:
    1. The behaviour complained of existed and amounted to a nuisance or anti-social behaviour (or a breach of tenancy terms); and
    2. That the landlord had attempted non-legal methods to resolve the alleged behaviour; and
    3. That unless the injunction or possession was obtained, the behaviour was unlikely to be abated.
  5. The landlord had a responsibility to respond to reports of ASB made by residents within a reasonable timescale. The landlord’s ASB policy says that complaints will be recorded and allocated to the appropriate team within one day and that it will contact the complainant within five working days. Following the resident’s report of ASB to the landlord on 10 March 2022, it telephoned and wrote to the resident on 16 March 2022. This demonstrated the landlord’s willingness to act promptly and in line with the ASB policy timescales. The ASB policy also says it will provide and assess diary sheets, keep residents updated on progress and try to resolve problems quickly, without having to use legal action wherever possible. The landlord discussed concerns with the resident several times as well as communicating with the neighbour, including visiting their property with a police officer. It kept the complaint open when further incidents were recorded and closed the complaint after a period of no incidents. The landlord’s records showed that it followed its policy until the closure of the complaint in April 2022.
  6. The resident did not contact the landlord regarding the drug issue again until October 2022. The Ombudsman understands the resident said she was still experiencing these problems, hence her contact with this service. The landlord had advised the resident to report any further related incidents in its telephone call of 10 April 2022. Further, the landlord explained in its ASB complaint acknowledgement letter of 16 March 2022, that it could consider legal interventions if there was ‘substantial evidence of continuing and serious ASB’. As the resident had not reported any further incidents, it did not have enough evidence to take legal action.
  7. The landlord’s ASB policy says it ‘works closely with the police to address crime and anti-social behaviour. Where individual cases include acts of a criminal nature, the landlord will signpost such cases to the police, providing a joint response where appropriate, without jeopardising any criminal investigation’
  8. It was appropriate for the landlord to give the resident advice to contact the police, as drug activity is a criminal offence. The police have different powers to the landlord to take action against perpetrators of criminal activity and therefore the police would be best placed to investigate such matters, rather than the landlord. The landlord would be expected to assist the police if necessary, in their investigation. This service has seen evidence that the landlord was in communication with the police regarding the alleged use of drugs at the neighbour’s property in December 2022.
  9. The neighbour the resident complained about had known vulnerabilities. The landlord’s ASB policy states that it ’recognises that vulnerabilities can exist for both the perpetrators or perceived perpetrators of antisocial behaviour and the victims. We will attempt to ensure that any vulnerability is considered fully within the context of the situation and any action the landlord can reasonably expect to take is given due consideration’. Therefore, it was fair of the landlord to carefully consider what action (if any) would be appropriate in dealing with the neighbour, including working with the police, before considering tenancy enforcement action.
  10. The Ombudsman does not underestimate the distress this situation would have caused the resident, and it is clear that the situation had a significant impact on her. However, based on the evidence available to this service, the landlord has appropriately sought to manage the reported ASB using the tools available to it. Overall, the landlord took reasonable actions in response to the resident’s reports of ASB, which were proportionate and timely in the circumstances.
  11. As noted above, the Ombudsman is aware that the resident reported ASB in March and April 2023. While these more recent incidents are not considered here, as they occurred after the landlord’s final response to the complaint, a recommendation is made below. 

Determination

  1. In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, there was no maladministration in the landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of ASB.

Recommendation

  1. The landlord should continue to address any reports of ASB in line with its policy, liaising with the police where appropriate.