London Borough of Lewisham (202408551)

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REPORT

COMPLAINT 202408551

Lewisham Council

30 April 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 complaint is about the landlord’s handling of the resident’s:
1. Requests for it to replace her kitchen and bathroom.
2. Reports of damp and mould.
We have also assessed the landlord’s complaint handling.

Background

The resident is a secure tenant and she lives in a 2-bedroom maisonette with her child. The landlord is a local council.
In January 2024, the landlord was replacing kitchens and bathrooms in the resident’s block under its improvement programme. The resident asked when hers would be done and the landlord told her she was not on its improvement list.
The resident complained about her kitchen and bathroom not being on the list for replacement on 31 January 2024. She wanted her home added to the list and asked the landlord to do a damp and mould inspection and an asbestos survey.
The landlord gave its stage 1 complaint response on 21 February 2024 which said:
1. It was doing stock condition surveys to prepare its future improvement plans.
2. It could not give a timescale for when the resident’s kitchen and bathroom would be replaced.
3. The resident should email its damp and mould team with photographs. It would then arrange to inspect.
4. It had ordered an asbestos survey and its contractor would arrange an appointment with her.
The resident escalated her complaint on 12 March 2024 because she was not satisfied with its response. She wanted to know when it would replace her kitchen and bathroom and for it to address the damp and mould she reported under the floor and units.
The landlord gave its stage 2 complaint response on 17 July 2024 which said:
1. It needed to complete stock condition surveys on all its homes before it could make its future improvement plans.
2. The resident should continue to report any repairs needed in her kitchen and bathroom.
3. It had inspected the damp and mould on 17 May 2024. Its contractor would arrange to do the repairs recommended.
4. It did not have records of the repairs it had done before the resident moved in, including work to the kitchen and bathroom.
The resident brought her complaint to the Ombudsman for investigation. She remains unhappy with the landlord’s response to her requests to be added to its kitchen and bathroom replacement list. She is also unhappy that the landlord has not done repairs following the damp and mould inspection. She wants the landlord to add her home to its improvement plan and do the repairs needed.

Assessment and findings

Scope of investigation

Paragraph 42.a. of the Scheme says the Ombudsman may not consider complaints that have not completed the landlord’s complaint process.
The scope of this investigation is the resident’s requests for a new kitchen and bathroom, and her reports of damp and mould from January 2023. This is because they were included in her complaint that completed the landlord’s process on 17 July 2024.
The resident made a further complaint about the landlord’s handling of her damp and mould reports around January 2025. That complaint has not completed the landlord’s process yet. As such we have not assessed the landlord’s handling of her later reports of damp and mould or her later complaint.
The resident can ask us to investigate her later reports of damp and mould separately once her complaint has completed the landlord’s process.
We have considered the current position with the damp and mould, and her later complaint when making our orders.

Requests for the landlord to replace her kitchen and bathroom

Social housing landlords must comply with the Regulator of Social Housing’s regulatory standards. The Safety and Quality Standard (published 2 April 2024) requires landlords to:
1. Keep accurate and up to date information about the condition of their homes.
2. Make sure their homes meet the government’s Decent Homes Standard.
3. Ensure the health and safety of tenants in their homes.
4. Provide effective, efficient and timely repairs and planned improvement services.
The tenancy agreement confirms the landlord is responsible for repairing the kitchen and bathroom and replacing items that cannot be repaired. There is no specific obligation for the landlord to fully replace a kitchen or bathroom deemed to be repairable or in good working order.
It is not clear from the landlord’s evidence when the resident started asking it to replace her kitchen and bathroom. She told us she had done so from the start of her tenancy in 2018. The landlord’s records show she has regularly reported issues in the kitchen and bathroom from then.
The landlord’s evidence shows it carried out multiple repairs to the kitchen and bathroom during the resident’s tenancy. In 2023 alone, it attended 17 times to repair kitchen units and leaks in the kitchen and bathroom.
The evidence suggests the landlord’s records of the condition of the resident’s home were not up to date or complete. She asked the landlord about it replacing her kitchen and bathroom in early January 2024. It told her she was not on the list because it had replaced them in 2018, just before she moved in. The resident told the landlord its records were wrong multiple times from 31 January 2024.
The landlord repeated its view that it had replaced the kitchen and bathroom in 2018 during its complaint process. However, it also said that it did not have records of the work it had done in 2018. This shows the landlord did not have adequate record keeping practices in place at the time.
Given the landlord did not have records of work it did in 2018, it is not clear how or why it decided to exclude the resident’s home from its improvement plan. It did not fully explain its reasons to the resident or explain what criteria it used to decide which homes it would improve. This meant the resident felt she had been unfairly excluded when her neighbours were getting new kitchens and bathrooms.
The landlord was doing a stock condition survey of all its homes at the time. As such, it was understandable that it did not make separate arrangements to assess the condition of the resident’s kitchen and bathroom.
The stock condition survey was done on 19 April 2024. It assessed the kitchen and bathroom as being in acceptable condition. It did not make any recommendation for them to be replaced.
There were multiple failings in the landlord’s communication with the resident during its handling of her requests for a new kitchen and bathroom. It did not reply to some of her contacts. For example, she emailed on 16 March 2024 sending photographs the landlord had asked for. Her email was passed between various teams with each saying it was another’s responsibility to deal with it. There is no evidence anyone replied to the resident.
When the landlord did reply, it was sometimes slow to do so. For example, the resident asked it for an update on its improvement plans on 8 April 2024. The landlord replied 25 working days later (on 13 May 2024) saying it could not give any information until after September 2024. Given the limited information shared in this response, it is unclear why the landlord could not have replied sooner.
The landlord also missed an opportunity to give a better response to the resident’s requests. On 15 May 2024, she told it her stock condition survey had been done in April and asked for a copy of the report. On this occasion, the landlord replied within a reasonable timeframe on 22 May 2024. It said it did not have the survey report yet and would plan its improvement programme when it had all the survey results. In our view, however, it could have asked its contractor for the resident’s survey results. If it had, it would have been able to tell the resident what the survey said.
It was appropriate that the landlord told the resident, in its stage 2 complaint response, that she should report any repairs needed in her kitchen and bathroom. This shows the landlord was mindful of its repair obligations under the tenancy agreement.
The landlord told the resident multiple times it could not advise on its future improvement plans until the stock condition survey was completed. It would have been reasonable for it to have updated her when it received the overall survey results. It should have told her what her survey said and whether it intended to add her home to a future improvement plan. Its failure to do so meant it missed the opportunity to explain what the resident could do if she disagreed with its decision.
In her complaint of 31 January 2024, the resident asked the landlord to arrange an asbestos survey. She told us she did so because she felt the landlord’s records were not reliable and wanted to know if there was asbestos in her home.
It was appropriate the landlord arranged a survey when it found it did not have an up to date record. It shows the landlord considered its obligations for the health and safety of the resident.
The survey report dated 1 March 2024 says no work was needed. The landlord sent the resident a copy of the report. Its actions in response to her request for the asbestos survey were reasonable.
Nevertheless, there was maladministration in the landlord’s handling of the resident’s requests for it to replace her kitchen and bathroom. This is because:
1. It is not clear why the resident’s home was excluded from its 2024 improvement plan.
2. It did not give the resident a clear explanation of its reasons or its criteria for deciding which homes it will include in improvement plans.
3. It did not update the resident when it received the outcome of her stock condition survey. It did not tell her whether it would include her home in a future improvement plan.
4. Overall, its communication with the resident was inadequate. It did not reply to some of her contacts and was slow to reply to others.
The resident has explained the distress and inconvenience caused. She feels ashamed of her kitchen and bathroom and this affects her enjoyment of her home. She feels it was unfair that her home was excluded from the landlord’s 2024 improvement programme. It was inconvenient to have to keep reporting issues and chase the landlord for updates on its improvement plans.
We have ordered the landlord to apologise and pay the resident £250 compensation. This sum is in line with the Ombudsman’s guidance on remedies and recognises the distress and inconvenience caused by the landlord’s failure to explain its improvement plans and update its records.
We have ordered the landlord to confirm whether it intends to replace the resident’s kitchen and bathroom through its improvement programme.

Reports of damp and mould

The landlord has a damp and mould policy (effective from January 2024) which says it will investigate reports it receives and carry out necessary repairs. It says the landlord will communicate with residents throughout their damp and mould case.
The damp and mould policy does not give any timescales for investigation or repairs. The landlord’s repairs policy (effective from January 2024) says it will respond to urgent repairs within 3 working days, and routine repairs within 20 working days.
The resident told us she had been reporting damp and mould for at least 2 years before she complained. The landlord’s records show reports in 2018 and suggest it treated mould in her bathroom. They show further reports in 2022 and show the landlord intended to inspect. Its later complaint responses said the inspection was not done but it is not clear why.
In her complaint of 31 January 2024, the resident asked the landlord to arrange another inspection. It was appropriate the landlord did so as this was in line with its policy to investigate reports it received.
The evidence shows the inspection was arranged for 22 March 2024 but the resident was not home when the surveyor called. She called to arrange another appointment. The landlord’s repair records do not show when the inspection took place but its stage 2 complaint response said it inspected on 17 May 2024.
It is not clear from the landlord’s records why it took a further 2 months to inspect after the first inspection was rearranged.
We asked the landlord for a copy of its inspection report but it has not provided this. As such there is no evidence that the landlord investigated the damp and mould in line with its policy.
The landlord’s stage 2 complaint response of 17 July 2024 said it was arranging the necessary repairs following the inspection. There are no corresponding orders on the landlord’s repair records. There is no evidence the landlord arranged any repairs to resolve the damp and mould.
There was maladministration in the landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of damp and mould. This is because it has not shown that it investigated the reports in line with its policy or arranged work as it promised in its stage 2 complaint response. This meant repairs were not done within 20 working days in line with its repair policy.
The resident has explained the distress and inconvenience caused. She has bought special cleaning and decorating products, and dehumidifiers to try to minimise the mould growth. She worries that the mould could affect her, and her child’s health. It was frustrating when the landlord did not fulfil its commitments. She made further reports and another complaint to try to get the landlord to act.
We have ordered the landlord to inspect again and carry out any repairs needed. We have also ordered it to apologise and pay the resident £400 compensation for the distress and inconvenience caused by its failure to arrange repairs. This sum is in line with the Ombudsman’s guidance on remedies. The landlord may deduct the £160 compensation it offered in its stage 1 response of 3 February 2025 if it can show it has already paid it.

Complaint handling

Under the Ombudsman’s Complaint Handling Code (the Code), landlords must:
1. Acknowledge a complaint within 5 working days.
2. Give a stage 1 response within 10 working days of the acknowledgement.
3. Give a stage 2 response within 20 working days of acknowledging the escalation request.
There is no evidence the landlord acknowledged the resident’s complaint of 31 January 2024 or her escalation request of 15 March 2024. The Code and the landlord’s complaint policy require it to acknowledge complaints and escalation requests. It was a failing that the landlord did not do so.
The landlord’s stage 1 response of 21 February 2024 said it had spoken with the resident. It did not send us any records of its calls with the resident which may suggest it does not have any.
The stage 1 response wrongly said the landlord had no record of the resident reporting damp and mould before her complaint. Its repair records show reports in 2018 and 2022. This suggests the landlord had not checked its repair records when investigating the complaint.
The response said the resident’s home was not on its improvement list because its records showed it had replaced her kitchen and bathroom in 2018. It did not address her complaint that its records were wrong. This meant it missed the opportunity to say what it would do to put things right. It also means it did not adequately address all parts of the resident’s complaint as required by the Code.
The resident asked to escalate her complaint on 15 March 2024. The landlord replied saying it was chasing for updates but it did not address her escalation requests. There is no evidence the landlord escalated the complaint at this point and this was a failing.
It should not have taken a further request from the resident on 5 June 2024 for the landlord to escalate her complaint. It meant the landlord took almost 13 weeks (from 15 March until 16 June 2024) to escalate the complaint. It is not clear from the landlord’s records why there was such a long delay.
The delay in escalating the complaint meant the landlord’s stage 2 response of 17 July 2024 was late. It was given 85 working days after the resident’s escalation request. The Code and the landlord’s policy require it to give a stage 2 response within 20 working days. The landlord’s failure to escalate the complaint sooner delayed the resident in being able to bring her complaint to the Ombudsman.
The stage 2 response said the landlord did not have records for the work it had done in 2018 before the resident moved it. This should have caused the landlord to consider if its records of having replaced the kitchen and bathroom were reliable. There is no evidence it did so and this meant the landlord missed another opportunity to address the resident’s complaint that its records were wrong.
There was maladministration in the landlord’s handling of the complaint. This is because:
1. It did not acknowledge the complaint or escalation request.
2. Its stage 2 response was late because it failed to escalate the resident’s complaint when she asked it to.
3. It did not address the resident’s complaint that its records were wrong in either of its responses.
We have ordered the landlord to apologise and pay the resident £150 compensation for its failings in handling her complaint. This sum is in line with the Ombudsman’s guidance on remedies and reflects the avoidable inconvenience caused.

Review of policies and practice

In this investigation we found failings in the landlord’s handling of repairs and its record keeping. We found similar failings in case 20124577 and made a wider order for it to improve its practices. The landlord complied with our wider order and we will assess the impact of the changes it has made through our future casework.
The Ombudsman launched a special investigation into the landlord’s handling of repairs and complaints, and its record keeping on 30 July 2024. We have the powers, under paragraph 49. of the Scheme, to undertake a special investigation beyond an individual complaint to identify common points of failure.
We will consider the failings in repair and complaint handling identified in this case as part of our special investigation. We will make recommendations for any improvements the landlord needs to make to its policies and practices through our special investigation.

Determination

In accordance with paragraph 52. of the Scheme, there was maladministration in the landlord’s handling of the resident’s:
1. Requests for it to replace her kitchen and bathroom.
2. Reports of damp and mould.
3. Complaint.

Orders and recommendations

Orders

Within 4 weeks of the date of this report, the landlord must provide us with evidence to show it has complied with the following orders:
1. Write to the resident to apologise. Its apology must acknowledge the failings we have identified and the impact they had on the resident. The landlord must send us a copy of its apology.
2. Pay the resident total compensation of £800. The compensation must be paid directly to her and not offset against any arrears. It is made up of:
  1. £250 for the distress and inconvenience caused by its failure to explain its improvement plans.
  2. £400 for the distress and inconvenience caused by its failure to arrange repairs after the damp and mould inspection of 17 May 2024. The landlord may deduct the £160 compensation it offered in its stage 1 response of 3 February 2025 if it can show it has already paid it.
  3. £150 for the inconvenience caused by its handling of the resident’s complaint.
3. Write to the resident to explain the assessment of her kitchen and bathroom from its stock condition survey. The landlord must confirm whether or not it intends to add her home to a future improvement programme including the criteria it has applied in making its decision. It must send us a copy of its letter.
Within 6 weeks of the date of this report the landlord must inspect the damp and mould at the resident’s home and write to her to confirm the outcome. Its letter must include:
1. Its assessment of the damp and mould and likely causes of it.
2. Explaining what work it intends to do to resolve the damp and mould including timescales it will work to.

The landlord must send us a copy of its inspection report and letter to show it has complied.

The landlord must complete repairs identified through the order above within 12 weeks of the date of this report. It should keep adequate records to show how it has done all it could reasonably do to comply with this order.