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Clarion Housing Association Limited (202318192)

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REPORT

COMPLAINT 202318192

Clarion Housing Association Limited

13 May 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 the resident’s reports of anti-social behaviour (ASB).

Background

  1. The resident is an assured tenant of the landlord’s since 2007. The property is a 1-bed bungalow.
  2. On 19 October 2022 the resident told the landlord his neighbour had fixed decorations to the boundary fence that belonged to him. The resident’s neighbour told the landlord on 8 November 2022 a CCTV camera had been installed by the resident. The neighbour said the camera was pointed at her garden and was an invasion of her privacy.
  3. The landlord issued a tenancy warning to the resident on 23 May 2023. It said he did not obtain the landlord’s permission to install CCTV at his property. The landlord asked the resident to apply for retrospective permission.
  4. On 29 May 2023 the resident complained to the landlord. He said his neighbour had installed trellis on to his fence and he was unhappy with the warning letter he had been sent by it.
  5. The landlord responded at stage 1 of its internal complaints process on 14 September 2023. It said the following:
    1. It had given the resident’s neighbour permission to attach trellis to his fence for privacy. This was due to the placement of the resident’s CCTV camera.
    2. It would not remove the resident’s warning letter about CCTV from its system.
  6. On 22 September 2023 the resident escalated his complaint. The landlord responded at stage 2 of its internal complaints process on 26 October 2023. It said the following:
    1. It apologised for giving the resident’s neighbour permission to attach trellis to his fence. The landlord said this was a service failure.
    2. It offered the resident the option of using its conflict resolution services to resolve the dispute with his neighbour.
    3. The landlord offered £150 compensation broken down as:
      1. £100 for its failure to follow its processes and the inconvenience caused to the resident.
      2. £50 for its handling of the associated complaint.
  7. The resident brought his complaint to us and said the ASB between his neighbour had now been resolved.

Assessment and findings

  1. Paragraph 53.c. of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme states that, “the Ombudsman may determine the investigation of a complaint immediately if satisfied that the member has made an offer of redress following the Ombudsman’s intervention which, in the Ombudsman’s opinion, resolves the complaint satisfactorily.”

The Ombudsman’s Intervention

  1. We contacted the landlord and provided it with a summary of events. This included our provisional comments as to what the landlord could do to resolve the resident’s complaint.

The landlord’s offer of redress

  1. The landlord offered to pay the resident £200 compensation within 4 weeks. The resident has informed us that he is content with this as a resolution to his complaint.
  2. We are therefore satisfied that following our intervention, the landlord’s actions will remedy the matters raised. This will resolve the complaint satisfactorily.

Determination

  1. In accordance with paragraph 53.c. of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, the complaint was resolved with intervention.

Recommendation

  1. We recommend that the landlord pay the sum of £200 compensation directly to the resident, if it has not already done so, within 4 weeks of this decision.