Platform Housing Group Limited (202414727)

REPORT

COMPLAINT 202414727

Platform Housing Group Limited

24 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 complaint is about the landlord’s handling of repairs at the property.

Background

The resident lives at the property, a 3-bed house, with her children. She is an assured tenant of the landlord since 2023 and moved into the property via a mutual exchange (ME). ME is a scheme for social tenants to be able to swap properties with another social tenant.
On 14 December 2023 the resident told the landlord the flooring in the kitchen of her property was uneven. The resident also raised additional repairs within the property regarding electrics, her bathroom and window glazing on different dates through to 27 February 2024.
The resident complained to the landlord on 3 March 2024. She said the following:
1. In the bathroom the ceiling needed to be repaired and there were broken tiles.
2. The kitchen floor was slanted and needed to be relevelled.
3. The only toilet in the property was situated downstairs. Prior to the ME completion the landlord told her an upstairs toilet would be installed in the property. The resident said 2 of her children had vulnerabilities and required a toilet upstairs.
4. The bedroom window repair was outstanding.

On 26 March 2024 the landlord responded at stage 1 of its internal complaints process. It said the resident had been given appointments for all the repairs she had raised. The landlord said the request for a toilet to be installed upstairs and the kitchen floor to be relevelled had been passed on to the relevant internal department. It did not uphold the resident’s complaint.
On the same day the resident escalated her complaint with the landlord. She disagreed with the response and said she had not been given appointments for all outstanding repairs.
On 14 June 2024 the landlord responded at stage 2 of its internal complaints process. It apologised for the delay in completing the upstairs electrical repair and a lack of communication regarding the relevelling of the kitchen floor. The landlord offered £300 compensation to the resident.
The resident escalated her complaint to this Service and on 16 January 2025 stated the landlord had not yet completed the repair for the bedroom window at the property.

Assessment and findings

Scope of investigation

Throughout the complaint and in communication with this Service, the resident has said the situation had a detrimental impact on her and her family’s health and wellbeing. The courts are the most effective place for disputes about personal injury and illness. This is largely because independent medical experts are appointed to give evidence. They have a duty to the court to provide unbiased insights on the diagnosis, prognosis, and cause of any illness or injury. When disputes arise over the cause of an injury, oral testimony can be examined in court. While the Ombudsman cannot consider the effect on health, consideration will be given to any general distress and inconvenience which the resident experienced because of a service failure by the landlord.
In her correspondence with this Service, the resident has raised other repairs at the property that have not yet been through the landlord’s complaint process. In the interest of fairness, the scope of this investigation is limited to matters which completed the landlord’s internal complaints procedure on 14 June 2024. This is because the landlord needs to be given a fair opportunity to investigate and respond to any reported dissatisfaction with its actions before the involvement of this Service.

The landlord’s handling of repairs at the property

The resident raised the following repairs at her property:
1. On 14 December 2023 she said the kitchen floor was uneven and needed relevelling.
2. On 14 December 2023 the resident said there was an electrical fault with an upstairs light.
3. On 21 February 2024 she said there were broken tiles in the bathroom and the ceiling in the bathroom needed replastering. A job was also raised to repair the extractor fan in the bathroom.
4. On 27 February 2024 a job was raised for internal broken glazing within the window of the main bedroom.
The landlord’s repairs policy states:
1. An appointment for non-emergency repairs will be offered to the resident within 28 days.
2. An assessment for major repairs will be offered within 28 days. Completion of the repair will then be within 90 days.
3. The landlord is responsible for the following at the property:
  1. The repair or replacement of windows.
  2. Maintenance and repair of the boiler.
  3. Repairs to timber flooring and floor coverings in the kitchen.
  4. Tiles in the bathroom.
  5. Extractor fans.
  6. Internal finishes including ceiling plasterwork.
4. If an adaptation is required for medical reasons the resident must contact an occupational therapist (OT) for an assessment.
The landlord’s ME policy states the following:
1. Incoming residents must:
  1. Agree to accept the condition of the property they are exchanging with.
  2. Ensure they have inspected the property.
  3. “Assume responsibility for any damages” to the property made by the outgoing resident.
2. The landlord will carry out any “responsive repairs” required to the property.
On 3 March 2024 the resident complained to the landlord and said the following:
1. The kitchen floor was slanted and needed to be re-levelled. The current flooring was also damaged, and new flooring was needed in the kitchen.
2. A repair for the damaged bathroom tiles was outstanding.
3. Two of her children had additional needs and required a toilet to be fitted in the upstairs bathroom.
4. There was no sink in the downstairs toilet for hand washing and this was unhygienic for her family.
5. There was an issue controlling the hot water at the property.
The landlord sent a complaint acknowledgement letter to the resident on 11 March 2024. It said it would respond to the complaint no later than 26 March 2024.
On 26 March 2024 the landlord responded at stage 1 of its internal complaints process. It said the following:
1. When moving via ME it is the incoming resident’s responsibility to inspect the property. Following an ME the resident will “assume responsibility” for any damage made to the property by the outgoing resident.
2. The request for a kitchen floor repair had been sent to the relevant department for consideration and the resident would be advised of the outcome.
3. Bathroom repairs for the ceiling and broken tiles were booked in for 28 March 2024.
4. The resident’s reconfiguration request for the bathroom facilities had been passed to the relevant team to arrange an inspection.
5. An appointment for the “hot water issue” had been cancelled by the resident. A new appointment date would be sent to her.
6. The repair for the bedroom window was booked in for 10 April 2024.
7. The resident’s complaint was not upheld as the repairs had been attended to or arranged for her in a “timely manner”.
A review of the stage 1 response shows the landlord informed the resident that it was looking into her request to relevel the kitchen floor and the reconfiguration of the bathroom facilities. The resident had agreed to accept the condition of the property before moving in via ME. Therefore the landlord acted reasonably by seeking to investigate and ascertain who had responsibility for these repairs. The landlord said it assumed responsibility for the remaining responsive repairs. This was in line with its ME and repairs policy and was therefore an appropriate decision for it to take.
The landlord said it would attend 2 days later for the bathroom repairs. This appointment was within the 28 days’ timeframe stated in its repairs policy.
However, for the bedroom window repair, the date given to the resident compared to the timeframe stated in the landlord’s repairs policy meant a delay of around 20 days. The bedroom window repair was a hazard due to the broken glass. The resident said she did not allow her children to enter the effected bedroom.
The resident escalated her complaint on the same day. In her complaint she said the level of repairs needed at the property had been unacceptable. She disagreed with the landlord’s finding that the repairs had been arranged in a timely manner. Regarding the installation of an upstairs toilet, the resident said the landlord told her when she had moved into the property that one would be installed.
On 16 April 2024 the resident agreed for the landlord to have an extension of time to respond to her complaint escalation. This was to allow time for the landlord to complete a “stock condition survey” of the property on 6 June 2024.
The landlord replied to the resident at stage 2 of its internal complaints process on 14 June 2024. It said the following:
1. Prior to the ME the only repair recorded at the property was a “broken socket” in the kitchen. No planned improvements or repairs were agreed for the property before the resident moved in.
2. The stock condition survey recommended the landlord do the following:
  1. Install a wash hand basin into the downstairs toilet to bring the property “up to modern standards”. A job had been raised for this to be carried out.
  2. Remove the kitchen units, relevel the floor and install a replacement kitchen.
  3. Repair the broken tiles in the bathroom. The bathroom upstairs was deemed to be in a “satisfactory condition” and, as such, did not require replacement or a toilet to be fitted.
3. A further electrical repair was needed for the upstairs light. This was completed on 12 April 2024.
4. The bedroom window repair was booked in for 25 June 2024.
5. The resident’s complaint was partially upheld due to the delays the resident experienced getting certain repair issues resolved.
6. It offered £300 compensation, broken down as follows:
  1. £100 for the delay in completing the electrical repairs to the property.
  2. £100 for the poor communication regarding levelling the kitchen floor.
  3. £100 for the delay in completing the final review.
7. The resident could contact the relevant department if she wished to make a claim for injury and the contact details were provided.
The landlord’s compensation policy states it can award up to £350 for a low-level impact and between £350-£850 for medium impact on a resident. It also states it can award over £850 for a high to severe level of impact for serious or prolonged service failures to a resident.
There was a delay of around 4 months for the landlord to complete the electrical repair to the upstairs of the property. The landlord awarded £100 to the resident for this. This was reflective of the landlord’s compensation policy and was reasonable.
The landlord commissioned a stock condition survey to be completed on the property. Due to the repairs the resident had raised following her ME, this was a reasonable step for the landlord to take. In the landlord’s stage 2 response it confirmed to the resident that it would re-level the kitchen flooring at the property. The evidence shows there was a delay of around 2 months for it to assess the repair, compared to the timeframe stated in the repair policy. The landlord offered £100 compensation for this delay. It also signposted the resident to the relevant department should she wish to make a claim for personal injury. Both actions were in line with its policies and reasonable in the circumstances.
The landlord explained to the resident there was no record of it agreeing to install an upstairs toilet in the property. It relied upon the advice of an expert as part of its stock condition survey to establish if there was a need to fit a toilet. The subsequent report deemed the layout “satisfactory”. This was an appropriate response by the landlord in respect to her request for an additional toilet as per its policies on providing improvements and adaptations to a property. However, the landlord delayed its response by 2 months, which it failed to acknowledge as part of its complaint responses. This caused inconvenience to the resident and was therefore inappropriate.
The resident said she required a toilet upstairs due to her children having additional needs. The landlord’s policy states where an adaptation is required for medical reasons it must be supported by an OT assessment. In its stage 2 response the landlord failed to signpost the resident accordingly and this was unreasonable.
The landlord’s repairs log shows that on 5 December 2024 it re-levelled the kitchen flooring and installed a new kitchen at the property.
The resident told this Service on 16 January 2025 the repair to the broken window in an upstairs bedroom was still outstanding. A previous appointment on 25 June 2024 did not take place as the landlord said “materials were not available”. Another appointment on 9 July 2024 did not happen as the operative did not have ladders. As a consequence of the landlord’s inability to fix the window, the resident is still unable to allow her children into the effected room.
The resident also said that despite the landlord’s attempt to resolve the issue around the hot water fluctuation, this issue was still ongoing.
In summary, the landlord has failed to conduct some of the repairs raised by the resident and delayed to complete others in accordance with the timescales set out in its repairs policy. The landlord also failed to effectively support the resident with a lack of signposting in relation to her requests for an adaptation at the property. This has caused distress and inconvenience to the resident who continues to be effected by the outstanding repairs.
Where there are admitted failings by a landlord, the Ombudsman’s role is to consider whether the redress offered by it put things right. In the landlord’s stage 2 response it offered compensation for the delay in completing the electrical repair and the lack of communication regarding the relevelling of the kitchen floor. This went some way in putting things right for the resident for those issues. However, it did not fully address the distress and inconvenience caused by the landlord’s repair delays, failure to complete the window repair and signpost the resident for an OT assessment.
The landlord’s failings amount to a determination of maladministration. An order of £700 compensation is made in line with the Ombudsman’s remedies guidance where the circumstances for maladministration apply and the redress needed to put things right is substantial.

Determination

In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, there was maladministration in the landlord’s handling of repairs to the property.

Orders

The landlord must, within 4 weeks of this report:
1. Provide the resident with a written apology for the failures outlined above.
2. Repair the bedroom window.
3. Arrange for an appointment to assess the ongoing issue of hot water fluctuation at the property. Also provide this Service and the resident with a schedule of any required works, with timeframes, to resolve the situation.
4. Pay the resident £700 compensation for the distress and inconvenience caused by the landlord’s failures. It is free to deduct the £300 previously offered to the resident if this has been paid to her. The compensation balance must be paid directly to the resident and not offset against a rent or service charge account.
The landlord is to provide evidence of compliance with the above orders to this Service.