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A2Dominion Housing Group Limited (202422363)

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REPORT

COMPLAINT 202422363

A2Dominion Housing Group Limited

3 July 2025


Our approach

What we can and cannot consider is called the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction and is governed by the Housing Ombudsman Scheme. The Ombudsman must determine whether a complaint comes within their jurisdiction. The Ombudsman seeks to resolve disputes wherever possible but cannot investigate complaints that fall outside of this.

In deciding whether a complaint falls within their jurisdiction, the Ombudsman will carefully consider all the evidence provided by the parties and the circumstances of the case.

The complaint

  1. The complaint is about the landlord’s response to the resident’s reports of damp and mould in her property.

Determination (jurisdictional decision)

  1. When a complaint is brought to the Ombudsman, we must consider all the circumstances of the case as there are sometimes reasons why a complaint will not be investigated.
  2. After carefully considering all the evidence, I have determined that the complaint, as set out above, is not within the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction.

Summary of events

  1. The resident holds an assured tenancy agreement with the landlord, which is a housing association. Her property is a 3-bedroomed house (the property).
  2. The resident reported damp and mould in her property to the landlord previously in January 2021, January 2022 and January 2023. Her most recent report was on 3 January 2024. The resident reported that there was damp and mould around windows and on the ceilings. She said the 3 bedrooms, bathroom, kitchen and upper hallway were affected.
  3. The landlord inspected the property on 14 March 2024. It proposed work to remedy the damp and mould which included work to the loft, bathroom, windows, kitchen and roof.
  4. The landlord carried out a mould wash on 16 April 2024, but no other works were done. The resident raised a complaint on 13 May 2024, about the landlord’s lack of action to resolve the damp and mould. She said the damp and mould was affecting her household’s health and she wanted compensation for her costs in travelling to her mother’s property to sleep at night.
  5. The landlord issued its stage 1 complaint response to the resident on 21 May 2024. It set out the work it would do to address the damp and mould which it said it would complete by 7 June 2024. The landlord offered her £195 compensation.
  6. The resident told the landlord she was unhappy with the compensation offer on 22 May 2024. On 10 July 2024 she told the landlord she was unhappy that the work had not been done and escalated her complaint.
  7. The landlord provided its final stage complaint response to the resident on 6 August 2024. It increased its offer of compensation to £450 for delays, poor communication, and the resident’s inconvenience. The landlord said it was seeking a second quote for the damp and mould repairs, and it would do a mould wash in the meantime.
  8. The resident made a legal disrepair claim against the landlord through her solicitor on 15 January 2025. This was for damp and mould in her property including the leaking roof, damp around her window, and an intermittent leak in her kitchen. On 10 June 2025 the resident accepted a settlement offer from the landlord of £2,500 for damages and for it to complete repairs to address the damp and mould by 25 November 2025. These repairs included work to the ceilings, loft insulation, installation of 2 extractor fans, and replacing and redecorating the kitchen.
  9. The landlord confirmed to us on 25 and 27 June 2025 that it had inspected the property to determine the scope of work needed to address the repairs raised in the disrepair claim. It also confirmed to us that its surveyor discussed the details of the repairs with the resident during its inspection.

Reasons

  1. Paragraph 42.e. of the Scheme states that the Ombudsman may not consider complaints which concern matters where a complainant has or had the opportunity to raise the subject matter of the complaint as part of legal proceedings.
  2. The resident raised a legal disrepair claim on 15 January 2025 about the damp and mould in her property, which she accepted a settlement for on 10 June 2025.
  3. The scope of work identified as part of the disrepair settlement differs slightly from the landlord’s initially proposed work on 14 March 2024. It initially proposed to replace trickle vents, for versions which were easier to operate, and sealing around windows. These repairs are not mentioned in the revised schedule of repairs. The landlord confirmed to us that this work was not necessary as its recent inspection found no issues with the windows. It relayed its surveyor’s finding that there were no repairs needed for the roof. The landlord also confirmed that its proposed repairs would resolve the issues the resident reported.
  4. The landlord told us that it discussed with the resident what work it would do to resolve the damp and mould. The resident has not informed us that anything remains outstanding. We are therefore satisfied that she had the opportunity to raise the subject matter of the complaint as part of her legal disrepair claim and the complaint is outside of the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction, in line with the Scheme. For this reason, we will not investigate the complaint further.