London Borough of Newham (202216584)

REPORT

COMPLAINT 202216584

Newham Council

8 January 2024

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 reports of repairs following him moving to the property.
The Ombudsman has also considered the landlord’s complaint handling.

Background

The resident held an introductory tenancy for the property, owned by the landlord. It is a one bedroom first floor flat and the tenancy started in June 2022. The landlord’s records indicate the resident has ‘mental health support needs’.
The resident contacted the landlord shortly after moving to the property to report concerns about its condition. The landlord undertook some repairs but did not respond to the resident concerning others. The resident undertook the works himself and would like the landlord to reimburse him.
The resident made a formal complaint on 12 September 2022, in which he said:
1. He has been facing one repair issue after another since moving to the property.
2. Various repairs remain outstanding.
3. He has undertaken repairs to the decorations and leaking bathroom tap himself.
The landlord responded to the resident’s complaint on 20 September 2022. The complaint was upheld and said one of its surveyors would be in contact to arrange an inspection. The resident escalated his complaint to stage two on 27 September 2022. He said that the surveyor did not arrive for the inspection appointment. He also said he had spent £5000 on repairs to the property and he would like to be reimbursed.
In referring the matter to this Service the resident has said that repairs remain outstanding and the landlord did not respond to his request for reimbursement.

Assessment and findings

Scoping

The resident reported that a curtain batten had fallen and narrowly missed him while he was asleep. The resident has requested compensation for damage caused to his phone and watch. However, it is not within the Ombudsman’s authority or expertise to determine negligence, liability or compensation claims in the same way as the courts, or to order damages in relation to these. The Ombudsman can, however, assess whether the landlord responded appropriately when the resident reported the incident.

Repairs

Prior to the resident moving to the property, on 9 May 2022 the landlord’s contractors issued a gas safety certificate.
On 17 June 2022, the resident contacted the landlord by email to complain about the condition of the property. The email is unclear as to the repairs required but questions the condition of the flat and specifically mentions the flooring.
The landlord responded on the same day. It outlined that the property does not come with flooring and this would be for the resident to arrange. It also signposted the resident to a local charity for financial support.
The landlord’s lettable standard states that prior to a property being let ‘Existing floor coverings will be removed except where it has been assessed to be in good condition and the incoming tenant has chosen to keep the coverings’. As such, the advice provided by the landlord was appropriate and reasonable.
On 1 July 2022 the resident contacted the landlord by email to report that the previous contractor appointed to fix the gas did not complete the job. The resident said the heating system was not working properly, there was a gas leak and the thermostat was not fitted.
The landlord responded later that day stating that the gas team had informed it that it had already contacted the resident and that the boiler was left in working order. The email also said that the gas team would return to look at the thermostat.
On 11 July 2022 the resident contacted the landlord by email and reported multiple repair issues with the property. The resident reported that:
1. The cold water tap in the bathroom was leaking.
2. The colour of the walls of the house was ‘very low quality’.
3. The entrance door was not closing properly leaving gaps.
4. The intercom was not working.
On 15 July 2022 the landlord raised a works order for its contractor to repair the intercom. The contractor reported this work was completed on 19 July 2022.
It is unclear why no action was taken in respect of the leaking tap or the entrance door at this time. The resident’s occupancy agreement states ‘4b The landlord will maintain: … the installations for supplying water…’ it also states ‘4d The landlord will carry out repairs that the landlord is responsible for within a reasonable period of time of you telling the landlord about them.’ As such, the Ombudsman would have expected the landlord to act on these reports however it did not which was unreasonable and resulted in delays.
The resident contacted the landlord again on 24 July 2022 to chase a response to the repairs reported on 11 July 2022.
On 25 July 2022 the landlord’s contractor reported that it had attended the resident’s home and repaired faults to the thermostat. It also said that a follow up was required for the cooker point to be secured to the wall using a backplate.
On 29 July 2022 the landlord’s contractor reported that it had attended the resident’s home and completed works to the cooker point. The landlord’s lettable standard states ‘ where there is provision for gas appliances within the property, we will ensure that there is live supply.’ It goes on to say ‘There will be a space for a cooker, with either a gas or electricity supply (or both).’ Therefore, it was reasonable for the resident to have expected the gas supply for the cooker to have been secure and ready to use when moving to the property. It was not and this was unreasonable.
On 18 August 2022 the landlord’s contractor reported that it had attended the resident’s home but did not find any further faults with the gas supply. The contractor’s note says the resident wanted the cooker point moving further back but that it was installed correctly and would not be moved. The contractor took photos of the installation at the time of the inspection.
The resident contacted the landlord again on 4 September 2022. He reported that a curtain batten had fallen during the night due to rotting wood and cracking plasterwork. The landlord responded the next day stating an enquiry had been sent to the repairs team to action.
On 8 September 2022 the resident contacted the landlord for an update. He said he had not heard anything from the repairs team and he had held on the landlord’s repairs telephone line for 45 minutes without an answer. The landlord provided the resident with contact details for his area managers.
The resident submitted a formal complaint on 12 September 2022 via the landlord’s online webform. The resident said that:
1. When moving to the property the walls were painted ‘poorly’ which he has fixed at his own expense.
2. The radiator was leaking.
3. The bathroom tap was leaking and he fixed this at his own expense.
4. He could not use his cooker for one month as the outlet was not installed on moving in.
5. A window did not have any cockspur.
6. A curtain batten had fallen damaging his property. He had reported this to the landlord but no repair has taken place.
7. He has been unable to make contact with the repairs team by phone due to long wait times.
The landlord responded to the resident’s complaint on 20 September 2022. In its response it outlined that it would do an inspection of the property and where something did not meet the lettable standard, repairs would be undertaken.
Having carefully considered the landlord’s response the offer of an inspection was a reasonable investigative step and appropriate. However, this could have been arranged following the resident’s initial reports which were on 11 July 2022. This delay was a failure of the landlord to ‘carry out repairs that the landlord is responsible for within a reasonable period of time of you telling the landlord about them.’ And was unreasonable.
The resident contacted the landlord on 27 September 2022 to escalate his complaint. He said that:-
1. He arranged an appointment for the property to be inspected on 16 September 2022 but the landlord did not turn up.
2. He contacted the landlord about this and arranged another appointment for 20 September 2022 but the landlord did not turn up.
3. He has spent £5000 on repairs and maintenance to the property and wants the money back he has spent.
The landlord sent its final response to the resident’s complaint on 19 October 2022. It said that the resident had first raised repair issues with the property on 4 September 2022. However, this was incorrect as the resident had reported issues with a leaking tap, the walls, the door and intercom in July 2022.
It said that, following a conversation with the resident, it understood that he had resolved the repair issues himself and this is why no inspection took place. However, it accepted an appointment was arranged and offered £50 compensation for one missed appointment. The landlord offered a further inspection for 14 October 2022.
In its response the landlord did not address the resident’s request for reimbursement. In its submission to this Service the landlord has said the resident raised the issue of £5000 spent on repairs as part of his escalation request but did not “raise this particular concern as an issue to be investigated”.
However, having carefully considered the resident’s comment that he wants back the money he has spent, the Ombudsman believes it should have been clear to the landlord this required investigation. Its failure to investigate this aspect of the resident’s complaint is not in line with the landlord’s complaints policy or the Ombudsman’s complaint handling code and was unreasonable.
On 28 October 2022 the resident referred his complaint to this Service. He told us that, some repairs remained outstanding, whereas some were completed at cost to himself. He said he wanted the landlord to complete the outstanding repairs and reimburse him for money spent on the property.
The resident initially reported repairs on 11 July 2022, the landlord did not respond and on 24 July 2022 the resident confirmed he had undertaken repairs himself. Under the terms of the tenancy agreement, the resident is required to notify the landlord of any repairs it is responsible for and the landlord is then required to carry out the repairs within a reasonable timescale. In this case, the resident reported repairs to the landlord and should then have given the landlord a reasonable period to carry out the repair.
The information seen by this Service indicates that the resident carried out repairs to the taps, walls and windows, without allowing the landlord a reasonable period in which to carry out the repair. Furthermore, the Ombudsman has seen no evidence that the resident wrote to the landlord confirming his intention to carry out the work or sought the landlord’s permission to do so. It would therefore be unreasonable for the Ombudsman to order the landlord to reimburse the resident.
This being said, orders will be made in respect of the landlord’s failure to action the resident’s repairs reports and failure to ensure the property was provided with a secure gas cooker point.

Complaint handling

The resident initially made his complaint on 12 September 2022. The landlord acknowledged the complaint the next day and responded on 20 September 2022.
In his complaint to the landlord the resident raised a number of repair issues including repairs to:
1. the flooring
2. walls
3. a heater leak
4. the kitchen gas supply
5. windows
6. a leaking bathroom tap
7. a timber curtain batten
The landlord responded at the first stage of its complaints process on 20 September 2022. In its response it advised an inspection would be undertaken to determine if repairs were required. There is no evidence the landlord investigated the resident’s previous reports of the individual repairs.
Section 5.6 of the Ombudsman’s complaint handling code states “Landlords must address all points raised in the complaint and provide clear reasons for any decisions, referencing the relevant policy, law and good practise where appropriate.’
Having carefully considered the landlord response at stage one of the complaints process the Ombudsman considers there has been a failing to address all points raised in the complaint. Specifically, the landlord has not addressed each of the repairs raised or reviewed its correspondence to comment on the resident’s previous reports of these. This was unreasonable and was a missed opportunity to resolve any outstanding repairs issues at the property.
Further and as mentioned previously at stage two the landlord failed to respond to the residents request for reimbursement.

Determination

In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, there was maladministration in the landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of repairs.
In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, there was service failure in the landlord’s handling of the resident’s complaint.

Orders

The landlord should take the following action within the next four weeks and provide evidence of compliance with these orders to the Ombudsman:
1. Pay the resident the sum of £500, (please note this must be paid direct to the resident and not offset against any arrears they may have) this consists of:
  1. £250 in recognition of the distress and inconvenience caused to the resident by not having a secure cooker point which took over a month to repair.
  2. £200 in recognition of the landlord’s failure to action the resident’s repairs reports and the distress and inconvenience this caused.
  3. £50 in recognition of the failure to respond to the resident’s complaint in full.
2. Write to the resident with an apology for the failings identified in this report.