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Twenty11 Homes Ltd (202320501)

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REPORT

COMPLAINT 202320501

Twenty11 Homes Ltd

20 March 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

  1. The complaint is about the landlord’s handling of damp and mould between September 2022 and July 2023.

Background

  1. The resident has been an assured shorthold tenant of the landlord, a housing association, since August 2022. The property is a 1–bedroom bungalow.
  2. In September and October 2022, the resident reported damp in the property. The landlord carried out 2 inspections in September and November 2022 and works between October 2022 and March 2023 to address this.
  3. The resident reported there was still damp in April 2023. The landlord completed an inspection on 22 May 2023 and noted remedial works had recently been carried out. It said this meant it was difficult to confirm if there was an ongoing problem or if the remaining damp was left behind from before the works had been completed. It noted that it needed the property to dry out before it would take any further action.
  4. The resident made a complaint on 26 May 2023. She said there was still damp, despite works being completed. She advised she had bought a dehumidifier and used large amounts of energy to address the damp. She asked to be compensated for this.
  5. The landlord’s stage 1 response of 12 June 2023 confirmed the outcome of the inspection the previous month. It said it would reinspect the property in July 2023 to assess progress and identify if any further action was needed. It advised there was no evidence it had recommended the use of a dehumidifier until its visit on 22 May 2023. Therefore, it would only reimburse her the running costs from then until the next inspection. The complaint was not upheld on the basis that the actions taken and proposed were reasonable.
  6. On 27 June 2023 the resident said there was rising damp because the damp proof course was at ground level. She felt the property should not have been let to her in its current condition and asked for compensation because of this. The landlord treated this as a request to escalate the complaint.
  7. In early July 2023 the landlord reinspected and noted there was no evidence of any ongoing damp. It believed the works had been successful and no further action was needed.
  8. The landlord’s stage 2 response of 21 July 2023 said the complaint was not upheld because it had not told the resident a dehumidifier was needed, and it would not reimburse her the associated costs. It offered £200 compensation (£100 for the stress and inconvenience caused by the repairs and £100 as a gesture of goodwill).
  9. The resident asked us to investigate her complaint in August 2023. She said the compensation received did not cover her increased energy bills or the costs of the dehumidifier.

Assessment and findings

Scope of investigation

  1. The resident reported further problems with damp and mould in October 2023 and February 2024. This resulted in the landlord taking additional action to investigate and address this between March and October 2024. As this has happened after the landlord’s stage 2 response of July 2023, the landlord has not assessed its more recent handling of the damp and mould via its internal complaints process. Therefore, the landlord’s handling of damp and mould after July 2023 falls outside the scope of this investigation and is not considered further in this report.

Handling of damp and mould

  1. The landlord is responsible for addressing damp and mould in the property in line with section 9(a) of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985. This says the landlord has an obligation to ensure the property is fit for human habitation during the term of the tenancy, in relation to freedom from damp.
  2. It is best practice for landlords to do an inspection in response to damp and mould reports as soon as possible. This allows it to assess the severity and identify the underlying cause and any actions needed to address this. The landlord inspected the property 7 days after the resident first reported the issue in September 2022. This was sensible and the quick response showed it was taking the matter seriously.
  3. The landlord completed the identified works on 25 October 2022, 26 working days after it had raised them on 30 September 2022. This was over the 20 working day target timescale for routine repairs set out in its repairs policy at the time. As this was only 6 working days over the target, this was a minor delay and not a failure by the landlord.
  4. After the completion of the works in October 2022 the resident reported that the landlord’s operative had identified further works needed. Considering the nature of the issues identified, it is unlikely these arose after the first inspection on 27 September 2022. This means they were missed during the first inspection and a second inspection was needed on 7 November 2022, at which point the landlord identified works required to address these issues. This is a concern and suggests the first inspection was not done thoroughly enough. This was a missed opportunity by the landlord to identify and resolve the issues earlier and amounts to maladministration.
  5. We have seen no evidence of a formal record of the inspections carried out in September and November 2022. This is another concern and means there is no evidence of what the landlord looked at during these visits or the outcome of any assessments made, including the severity or underlying cause of the damp and mould. This was particularly important in this case, as the resident had told the landlord she was asthmatic and so it should have records to show that it thoroughly assessed the condition of the property with this in mind. The lack of evidence that it did amounts to maladministration.
  6. After the second inspection on 7 November 2022 the landlord did not raise orders for the works until several weeks later, on 1 and 15 December 2022. This only happened after the resident chased the landlord about this on 28 November 2022 and internal enquiries were made. This delay amounts to maladministration and meant the resident incurred time and trouble chasing this up, when the landlord should have proactively progressed the works.
  7. The landlord noted it completed the works raised on 1 December 2022 on 3 March 2023, and the works raised on 15 December 2022 on 8 March 2023. This was 64 and 57 working days. As the works included a number of different jobs that needed to be carried out by different trade operatives, it was reasonable that these took longer to complete than standard routine repairs. Considering this, the nature of the works required, and that some of these were external works being completed over the winter months, the timescale in which the works were completed was reasonable.
  8. Due to the complex nature of the works required, it would have been sensible for the landlord to tell the resident an estimated timescale for these to be completed. This would have helped her to understand any limitations on the landlord. It should also have provided updates during the period of the works to confirm progress, as per the commitment in its damp and mould policy, which said it would keep residents informed throughout. We have seen no evidence that it did this, which left the resident uncertain on what was happening and how long the works would take.
  9. The resident has reported that multiple visits were made for the same issue and that this delayed the works. It is clear from the evidence provided that multiple visits were made, but it is not clear the exact number or dates of these so we cannot make an assessment of whether the landlord’s overall handling of this was reasonable. It is important that landlords closely monitor complex works to ensure they are progressed effectively and that clear records are kept of all visits so the landlord can evidence this.
  10. When the resident reported ongoing damp in April 2023, the landlord carried out a further inspection the following month. While this was sensible to allow it to properly assess the matter, the landlord should have been proactive in following up after the works were completed in March 2023. This would have meant the resident did not incur further time and trouble to re-report the issue. Our spotlight report on damp and mould confirms it is best practice for landlords to schedule follow up visits after works are completed to check that the problem has not returned. The landlord’s failure to proactively manage this matter was disappointing for the resident and amounts to maladministration.
  11. During the inspection on 22 May 2023 the landlord concluded that the property needed to dry out before it could decide if more works were needed. While frustrating for the resident, this was reasonable for the reasons given in the stage 1 response. However, it was only after the resident made a formal complaint 4 days after the inspection, that the landlord confirmed its position in writing to her and scheduled a second, follow up visit. It should have done this proactively after the first visit, and not waited for a formal complaint to be made before it provided this update and scheduled the second inspection.
  12. When the landlord reinspected in July 2023 it said no further works were needed. This was a reasonable conclusion as it noted there was no ongoing damp issue. However, it would have been helpful if it had confirmed this in writing to the resident so she was clear on its final position. It should also have scheduled further follow up, in line with best practice. This would have provided reassurance to the resident that the onus did not continually fall to her to re-report issues, which is what happened in October 2023 and February 2024.
  13. As part of her complaints, the resident raised concerns about the positioning of the damp proof course and overgrown trees in the front garden. She believed these were contributing factors to the damp issues. We are unable to make an assessment of whether these are contributing factors or not, but have considered how the landlord responded to these issues. We have seen no evidence that the landlord responded to either of these concerns. This amounts to maladministration and has left the resident feeling ignored. An order is made for the landlord to respond in writing to these concerns and confirm what, if any, further action it will take to investigate or address these specific issues.
  14. The landlord told the resident it would not reimburse her the cost of buying her dehumidifier as it had not recommended using one. It said if it had recommended this, it would have provided it. The resident has said she bought the dehumidifier shortly after moving in to the property on the advice of a family member. While the landlord did suggest using a dehumidifier, this was in May 2023, around 8 months after she bought hers. Therefore, it was reasonable that the landlord declined to reimburse her the cost of buying it.
  15. The resident also asked the landlord to contribute towards the running costs of the dehumidifier. The landlord responded to this as part of its stage 1 and 2 responses, however, its position changed between the 2 responses. It is reasonable that, in some circumstances, a landlord’s position on an issue may change and as long as it properly explains the reasons for this, then that is acceptable. In this case, the landlord should have contributed towards the running costs for the dehumidifier between 22 May 2023 and the follow up inspection on 6 July 2023, as was agreed in the stage 1 response.
  16. The landlord had said it needed the property to dry out in order to assess whether further works were required. While a dehumidifier was not crucial, it would help with this. Considering the resident had told the landlord she was asthmatic, it should have taken all available steps to speed up the drying out process in order to remove the damp. A dehumidifier would have undoubtedly helped with this, as acknowledged by the landlord.
  17. Therefore, the landlord should have followed through with its offer to contribute towards the running costs of the dehumidifier. Its change of position was not only unreasonable but also raised the resident’s expectations and then left her disappointed. This amounts to maladministration. An order is made for the landlord to pay the resident £46 as a contribution towards the running costs of the dehumidifier between 22 May and 6 July 2023 (£1 per day for 46 days).
  18. The resident also asked the landlord to contribute towards her energy costs, as she had to use increased energy to manage the damp. In total, it took the landlord 6 months to complete actions to address the damp (excluding drying out time). While the timeframe in which the works completed between December 2022 and March 2023 was reasonable, there were delays in it raising works orders and properly identifying all of the issues between September and December 2022.
  19. Therefore, the overall time taken to address this issue was unreasonable and the landlord could have done more to address it sooner. This means the resident incurred additional heating costs during the period of delay and the landlord should compensate her for increased energy use for part of this period. The resident has told us her energy costs increased by £700, but we have seen no evidence to support this. Considering the time that has now passed, we recognise it may be difficult for the resident to provide evidence of usage for comparison.
  20. We have assessed separately the additional costs incurred for electricity for the dehumidifier and so any further award relates to increased costs for gas use for the heating only. An order is made for the landlord to pay the resident £250 compensation in recognition of increased energy costs between September 2022 and March 2023.
  21. Overall, we have found failure in the landlord’s handling of this matter which amounts to maladministration. Considering the full circumstances of the case, and in consultation with our remedies guidance, the landlord’s offer of £200 compensation was insufficient. Orders are made for the landlord to apologise to the resident and pay her £350 compensation, inclusive of the £200 already offered.
  22. The resident has told us that there is still an outstanding damp issue in the kitchen and that the landlord is scheduled to inspect on 10 April 2025. While positive that an inspection is scheduled, this is still some time away. Considering the length of time this matter has been ongoing, an order is made for the landlord to consider whether it can bring forward the inspection and provide a written update to the resident confirming the outcome of this, including any alternative dates.

Determination

  1. In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Scheme there was maladministration in the landlord’s handling of damp and mould between September 2022 and July 2023.

Orders

  1. Within 4 weeks of the date of this report the landlord is ordered to provide evidence that it has:
    1. Responded in writing to the resident’s concerns that the position of the damp proof course and overgrown trees in the front garden are contributing to the damp. The landlord should include what, if any, further action it will take to investigate or address these specific issues with a timescale for actions to be completed.
    2. Paid the resident £646 made up of:
      1. £46 as a contribution towards the running costs of the dehumidifier between 22 May 2023 and 6 July 2023.
      2. £250 compensation in recognition of increased energy costs between September 2022 and March 2023.
      3. £350 compensation for its handling of the damp and mould between September 2022 and July 2023 (inclusive of the £200 already offered).
    3. Apologised to the resident for its handling of the damp and mould between September 2022 and July 2023.
    4. Considered whether it can bring forward the inspection on 10 April 2025 and provided a written update to the resident confirming the outcome of this, including any alternative dates for this.