Stonewater Limited (202309215)

REPORT

COMPLAINT 202309215

Stonewater Limited

27 February 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

The resident’s complaint is about the landlord’s handling of reports of antisocial behaviour (ASB).
This Service has also considered the landlord’s complaint handling.

Background

The resident lives in a 3-bedroom house. She has an assured tenancy with a housing association landlord. The tenancy started on 30 June 2022. The landlord is aware of the resident’s mental health vulnerabilities.
The resident emailed the landlord on 12 March 2023 to report ASB in the street in which she lived. She said that there was continuous noise, fighting, shouting and general unrest between 5 households. The resident said it was unbearable, and she wanted to move to an alternative home.
Between 20 May 2023 and 14 June 2023, the resident contacted the landlord on at least 6 occasions to report ASB. She said her neighbour was verbally abusing her and her family. She added that children in the street were constantly shouting and screaming and blocking the road with bikes and toys. Additionally, she said the neighbour’s daughter was also verbally abusive toward her. The resident said it was impacting on her mental well-being.
The resident raised a formal complaint on 14 June 2023 about the landlord’s handling of her reports of ASB. The landlord acknowledged the complaint on 22 June 2023 and sent a formal response to the resident on 4 July 2023.
In its stage 1 response the landlord acknowledged and apologised for its delay in responding to the resident’s reports of ASB. It said that since the resident made a formal complaint it had spoken with her about the ASB she had reported and agreed an action plan for dealing with the ASB. The landlord said that it would keep in regular contact with the resident and offered her £50 compensation for the inconvenience caused by its delay.
The resident escalated her complaint on 11 July 2023. She said the ASB was impacting on her well-being, and she was disappointed with the compensation offered. She explained that she had reported ASB in March 2023 and was aware that other resident’s in the street had also reported ASB.
The landlord acknowledged the escalated complaint on 17 July 2023 and formally responded on 14 August 2023. In its response it:
1. Listed the dates the resident had reported ASB in May 2023 and explained that it had failed to action the reports as it had recorded them incorrectly.
2. Confirmed it had received further reports of ASB from the resident between 1 June 2023 and 16 June 2023.
3. Had spoken to her about the ASB on 22 June 2023 and agreed an action plan with her.
4. Carried out a community door knock with a Police Community Support Officer (PCSO) on 26 July 2023 and spoke with the alleged perpetrator of the ASB.
5. Took part in an ASB case review with the local authority and the police.
6. Acknowledged and apologised for delays dealing with the resident’s initial reports of ASB.
7. Said it continued to monitor the situation.
8. Increased its offer of compensation to £100 for the impact on the resident caused by the landlord’s initial delays.
9. Offered a further £50 compensation for the impact on the resident of it providing incorrect information about the availability of a support service.

Post internal complaints process

The landlord closed the ASB case in January 2024 and the alleged perpetrator of the ASB moved to a different home in March 2024. The resident submitted a second complaint about the landlord’s handling of ASB in February 2025. The landlord sent a final response to this complaint on 3 April 2024. It confirmed that it had worked with the police and closed the case as there had been no further reports of ASB. In addition, it confirmed it had offered the resident £500 compensation.
Additionally, on 20 May 2024 the landlord reviewed its response to the complaint the resident submitted on 14 June 2023. It increased its offer of compensation by £450, in addition to the £150 it had offered in its stage 2 response on 14 August 2023. It said this was for the inconvenience and distress caused by its poor communication and for the time and trouble the resident spent pursuing a resolution.

Assessment and findings

Scope of the complaint

When investigating complaints about ASB it is not our role to investigate the incident or establish if the behaviour took place as alleged. Our investigation focuses on the actions of the landlord and will determine if it handled the situation in line with its policies and procedures.
In bringing the complaint to us on 21 June 2023 the resident said the ASB had impacted on her mental well-being. This investigation is unable to find a causal link between the resident’s mental well-being and the landlord’s actions. This would be more appropriately dealt as a personal injury claim through the courts or the landlord’s liability insurer (if it has one). This is a legal process, and the resident should seek independent advice if she wants to pursue this option. Nonetheless, we will consider the general distress and inconvenience the situation may have caused the resident.
Additionally, the resident said she wanted the landlord to evict the alleged perpetrators of ASB. It is not within our authority to provide the resident with this outcome.

The landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of ASB.

In its ASB policy the landlord says that it is committed to tackling ASB responsively and effectively in line with legal and regulatory requirements. It states that it will respond to incidents of hate crime and domestic abuse within 1 working day and all other ASB in line with its customer service standards. These are set out on its website as:
1. 2 working days for contact from a resident by email.
2. 5 working days for contact from a resident by letter.
The landlord’s policy also sets out the types of behaviour it does not consider ASB. This includes noise from children playing and lifestyle differences.
Additionally, it states that it will record and monitor incidents of ASB and ensure resident’s are kept informed, agreeing the method and frequency of feedback in the action plan.
The landlord will make use of all tools available to it to tackle ASB. This may include direct contact with the alleged perpetrator and mediation.
The resident initially raised concerns about ASB in the street in which she lived on 12 March 2023. The landlord acknowledged this report and said it would pass her concerns to the appropriate team within the organisation. However, we have not seen any evidence that this happened. This was not appropriate.
The resident reported further incidents of alleged ASB on at least 6 occasions between 20 May 2023 and 14 June 2023.
On 21 June 2023 the landlord apologised for its delay in responding to the residents reports of ASB and said that it was looking through all reports she had made since 20 May 2023.
The landlord failed to respond to the resident’s reports of ASB within the timescales set out in its policy and on its website. This was not appropriate and caused the resident distress. She told the landlord that she felt that it had ignored her concerns.
The landlord contacted the resident by telephone on 22 June 2023 to discuss the incidents she had reported. It told the resident that it had reviewed the evidence she had provided and listened to her recordings. This was appropriate.
The landlord confirmed an action plan with the resident, which included contacting the alleged perpetrators and arranging a joint visit to the street with the neighbourhood police. Additionally, the landlord told the resident to continue reporting any ASB and sent her details of a support service. It was appropriate that the landlord discussed the reports with the resident and that it developed an action plan. The landlord acted in line with its policy.
The landlord contacted the alleged perpetrator of the ASB the same day. This was appropriate. Additionally, it contacted the police to arrange a joint visit to the street. This was also appropriate.
The landlord cooperated with a request from the police for information for an ASB case review. This was appropriate and in line with the landlord’s ASB policy, which states that it will fully participate in case reviews and follow appropriate recommendations.
Recommendations from the case review included:
1. Carrying out a visit with the police to the street, and keeping police updated with relevant information.
2. The landlord seeking collaboration with other agencies to create activities for local children.
Following the recommendations the landlord investigated the possibility of a ‘playing out’ scheme for the local children. It carried out a joint visit to the street with the police to speak with the alleged perpetrator of the ASB and to gather evidence from other residents in the street. This was appropriate.
In its stage 1 response the landlord apologised to the resident for its initial delays in responding to her reports of ASB. It set out the action it had taken since recognising its mistake and offered the resident £50 compensation for the stress caused by the landlord’s delays.
In its stage 2 response the landlord further explained the reason for its delay in dealing with her ASB reports. It said her initial reports had been logged incorrectly. However, it said when it realised its mistake it contacted the resident and developed an action plan. It acknowledged that there had been delays and listed the action it had taken since then. The landlord increased its offer of compensation to £100 in recognition of the impact the delays had on the resident and her family. It offered a further £50 for the impact on the resident of it providing incorrect information about the availability of a support service.
It is clear from the evidence and by the landlord’s admission that the landlord failed to deal with the initial reports of ASB in line with its policy. However, once it realised its mistake it acted appropriately because it:
1. Investigated the reports of ASB.
2. Liaised with the police.
3. Developed an appropriate action plan.
4. Spoke with the alleged perpetrator and took proportionate action to resolve the ASB.
5. Continued to investigate reports of ASB after its stage 2 response.
When there are acknowledged failings by a landlord, as is the case here, we will consider if any redress offered by the landlord put things right. In considering this we consider if the landlord’s offer of redress was in line with our dispute principles:
1. Be fair.
2. Put things right.
3. Learn from outcomes.
The landlord failed to deal with the resident’s initial report of ASB on 12 March 2023. It also failed to appropriately record 6 further reports of ASB between 20 May 2023 and 14 June 2023. In both its complaint responses the landlord acknowledged its failing and apologised for this. Additionally, it offered the resident £100 compensation for the impact the delays had on her and her family. Once the landlord realised its failings it responded appropriately to the resident’s reports of ASB. However, there was a delay of approximately 3 months before the landlord correctly recorded the resident’s reports of ASB. This delay far exceeded the landlord’s customer service standards and was not appropriate.
Despite acknowledging and apologising for its failings the landlord has not demonstrated how it has learned from this. By the landlord’s own admission, the resident’s reports of ASB were logged incorrectly. However, the landlord has not said how it would avoid a similar issue occurring in the future. We therefore find a service failure in the landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of ASB.
In considering the landlord’s offer of compensation we have referred to the landlord’s compensation policy and our remedies guidance. The landlord’s compensation policy states that it may offer discretionary compensation for a resident’s time, trouble, distress and inconvenience. Additionally, it states it uses our guidance to calculate compensation but may apply its discretion.
The level of compensation offered by the landlord was in line with a service failure finding. Therefore, we will not be making any further order for compensation.

The landlord’s complaint handling

The landlord has a 2 stage complaints process. At both stages of its complaints process it aims to acknowledge complaints within 2 working days and respond within 10 working days. It states that in exceptional circumstances it may require additional time to respond and will agree this with the resident.
The resident submitted her stage 1 complaint on 14 June 2023. The landlord acknowledged the complaint on 22 June 2023. This was 7 working days after the resident submitted it. The landlord failed to acknowledge the complaint within its published timescale. This was not appropriate.
It responded to the complaint within 9 working days of acknowledging. This was in line within its policy, and therefore appropriate.
The resident escalated her complaint on 6 July 2023. The landlord acknowledged the escalated complaint on 17 July 2023. This was 8 working days after the resident escalated the complaint and was not appropriate.
The landlord responded to the stage 2 complaint on 14 August 2023. This was 21 working days after it acknowledged the complaint. However, the landlord contacted the resident on 31 July 2023 to explain that it would need additional time to respond. The resident agreed to the extension. Therefore, the landlord acted within its policy. This was appropriate.
Following our request for evidence from the landlord, it contacted the resident on 20 May 2024 to advise that it had reviewed her complaint. It said that as part of its review it had increased its offer of compensation by a further £450 in addition to the £150 it offered in its final response. It said that the increased offer of compensation was for the distress and inconvenience caused by its inefficient communication.
While it is positive that the landlord reconsidered its position, it is not clear to us why the landlord did not offer the increased compensation within its own complaint procedure. The landlord’s complaint policy does not allow for a further review of the complaint. Furthermore, landlords must apply their complaints policy consistently so residents can be confident that their complaints will be dealt with fairly. It appears that the landlord was prompted to reconsider its position following the complaint being referred to us. This was unreasonable.
The landlord missed an opportunity to resolve the complaint during its internal complaint process. This was not appropriate. As set out in the Complaint Handling Code (the Code) landlord’s are expected to resolve complaints at the earliest available opportunity. The landlord has not provided an adequate explanation for the increased compensation or why it chose not to make the offer during its complaints process. This was not appropriate.
Taking this into consideration, and the landlord’s failure to acknowledge the resident’s complaint within its published timescale, we find service failure for the landlord’s complaint handling.
The compensation offered by the landlord as part of its review of the complaint was proportionate to the failings identified, and therefore we will not order any further compensation. However, we will make an order for the landlord to ensure its complaint handling staff complete complaint handling refresher training.

Determination

In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Scheme we find a service failure for the landlord’s handling of:
1. The resident’s reports of ASB
2. The complaint.

Orders and recommendations

Orders

Within 4 weeks of the date of this report the landlord must:
1. Apologise to the resident for the failings identified in this report.
2. Pay directly to the resident £600 compensation, which comprises of:
  1. £150 offered by the landlord during its complaints process for the impact the delays had on the resident.
  2. £450 offered by the landlord after its internal complaints process as part of its review of the complaint.
  3. The landlord may deduct from this total any amount it has already paid in relation to this complaint.
3. Provide evidence of the above payments to us.
Within 8 weeks of this report the landlord must:
1. Carry out a review of its ASB policy paying particular attention to its procedures for recording reports of ASB.
2. Ensure all complaint handling staff complete the complaint handling learning from our centre for learning (https://www.housing-ombudsman.org.uk/centre-for-learning/key-topics/complaint-handling/)
The landlord must provide evidence of compliance with all orders within the timescales set out.