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London & Quadrant Housing Trust (202434985)

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REPORT

COMPLAINT 202434985

London & Quadrant Housing Trust (L&Q)

30 June 2025


Our approach

What we can and cannot consider is called the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction and is governed by the Housing Ombudsman Scheme (the ‘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:
    1. The landlord’s handling of reports of damp and mould.
    2. The landlord’s handling of repairs to the property.
    3. The landlord’s decision to seek possession of the property.
    4. The landlord’s handling of reports of damage to and/or loss of the resident’s personal belongings.

Background

  1. The resident is an assured tenant of the landlord. The landlord is a housing association.
  2. On 11 December 2024 the landlord issued a claim at court for possession of the resident’s property.
  3. We wrote to the landlord on 17 January 2025 to advise that the resident wished to make a complaint. They were unhappy with the condition of the property and the landlord’s decision to seek possession.
  4. The landlord issued its stage 1 response on 31 January 2025. The resident requested their complaint be escalated to stage 2 of the complaint process on 28 February 2025.
  5. On 3 March 2025 the resident submitted their defence against the landlord’s issued claim. As part of their defence they made a counterclaim for:
    1. Disrepair.
    2. Personal injury.
    3. Damage, distress, and inconvenience.
    4. Loss and expenses.
  6. The landlord issued its final response on 6 March 2025. The resident escalated their complaint to this service on the same day.

Determination

  1. In accordance with paragraphs 41.c and 42.e of the Scheme, the resident’s complaint is not within the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction.

Reasons

  1. Paragraph 41.c of the Scheme states that the Ombudsman cannot consider complaints which, in the Ombudsman’s opinion, concerns matters that are the subject of court proceedings or were the subject of court proceedings where judgement on the merits were given.
  2. Paragraph 42.e of the Scheme states the Ombudsman may not consider complaints which, in the Ombudsman’s opinion, concern matters where a complainant has or had the opportunity to raise the subject matter of the complaint as part of legal proceedings.
  3. We have considered the landlord’s issued claim against the resident as well as the resident’s defence and counterclaim. We are satisfied the matters raised in the complaint set out at paragraph 1 of this report are the subject of court proceedings. We have not been provided with any evidence that the court proceedings have been discontinued without a judgement on the merits being given. As there are live court proceedings on the same subject matter brought to us, we cannot investigate the complaints in accordance with paragraph 41.c of the Scheme. The court can consider the landlord’s decision to issue proceedings as part of its case management powers.
  4. Any elements of the substantive complaint that the resident has not included in their defence or counterclaim, can be included in the legal proceedings. The resident can apply to amend their case statements. On that basis, the Ombudsman is satisfied that the resident has had the opportunity to raise these as part of the legal proceedings, in accordance with paragraph 42.e of the Scheme.
  5. We have not investigated any of the complaints raised for the reasons set out.