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GreenSquareAccord Limited (202446563)

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REPORT

COMPLAINT 202446563

GreenSquareAccord Limited

22 September 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 in the resident’s home.
  2. We have also assessed the landlord’s complaint handling.

Background

  1. The resident is an assured tenant. She lives in a 2 bedroom flat with her 16-month old child.
  2. On 9 May 2023, the resident reported mould inside a fitted wardrobe. The landlord said it would inspect.
  3. The resident complained on 23 October 2023 because the landlord had not inspected and there was still mould in the wardrobe. She said she was pregnant and worried about the impact on her health.
  4. The landlord gave its stage 1 complaint response on 19 January 2024. It said it had now inspected and done repairs including a mould wash. It had not gained access to fit an extractor fan but the job was booked for 8 February 2024. It was sorry for the delays and not keeping her updated. It offered £850 compensation.
  5. The resident escalated her complaint on 2 February 2024. She said the mould was not resolved and she could not sleep in her bedroom.
  6. The landlord gave its stage 2 response on 22 February 2024. It said it had done repairs but not resolved the cause of the mould. It had inspected again and ordered further repairs. It offered an additional £500 compensation and said it would consider compensating for her damaged belongings. It asked her to send a list of damaged items.
  7. The resident brought her complaint to the Ombudsman because the damp and mould was not resolved. She feels the landlord has not addressed the cause of the problem and is worried about the impact of the continuing mould on her health and her child’s. She wants the landlord to move her.

Assessment and findings

Scope of investigation

  1. The resident wants the landlord to move her to another home because she is worried about the impact of the mould on her health and her child’s. Without assessing the landlord’s transfer list, we would be unable to establish if there are others in the same position as the resident or with greater priority than the resident.
  2. Therefore, it would not be appropriate for us to make this order in this case. The resident has applied to her local council for rehousing and can contact the landlord to discuss any other moving options available to her.

Damp and mould

  1. The resident complained the landlord was slow in responding to her reports and did not resolve the cause of the damp and mould.
  2. The resident reported mould in her fitted wardrobe on 9 May 2023. The landlord dealt with the report under its Responsive Repairs Policy initially as it did not adopt its Damp, Mould and Condensation Policy until July 2023. It was reasonable the landlord decided to inspect the mould.
  3. It had not inspected by 23 October 2023 when the resident complained. This was despite the resident chasing it to inspect at least 3 times between 26 September and 18 October 2023. While the landlord’s policies do not specify a timescale for inspecting, over 5 months had passed since the resident’s first report.
  4. Given the known risks of even a small damp and mould problem in a home, this was not a reasonable timescale for the resident to have waited for the landlord’s inspection. Further, the resident told the landlord she was pregnant and worried about the impact on her health on 6 October 2023. It should have considered speeding up its response once it knew of her vulnerability and concerns.
  5. The landlord inspected on 26 October 2023 and concluded the cause of the damp and mould could be a blocked fall pipe. There was already an order outstanding to clear the pipe and the landlord raised new orders for a mould wash and to install an extractor fan in the bathroom. These were reasonable actions in the circumstances but delayed by the time taken to initially inspect.
  6. In line with its Damp, Mould and Condensation Policy, the landlord should have completed the mould wash within 7 days. It was done on 16 November 2023 which was 21 days after the landlord’s inspection. As such, the landlord did not meet its policy timescale when completing the mould wash.
  7. The fall pipe was cleared on 10 November 2023. It is not clear if this met the 28 day timescale of the landlord’s Responsive Repairs Policy because we do not know when it had raised the order. However, it was done within a reasonable period after the landlord’s inspection on 26 October 2023.
  8. The extractor fan was booked to be installed on 27 November 2023 but the contractor did not gain access. It was re-arranged for 8 January 2024 but the appointment was cancelled because the operative was ill. It was installed on 8 February 2024. This was 105 days after the landlord’s inspection which was far longer than its 28 day timescale for completing routine repairs. However, some of the delay was not in the landlord’s control because its contractor had not gained access on 27 November 2023 and was ill on 8 January 2024.
  9. In the meantime, the resident reported mould had returned on 18 January 2024 and the landlord ordered another mould wash.
  10. In its stage 1 response of 19 January 2024, the landlord accepted there had been service failures. It was reasonable it apologised, offered compensation and confirmed it was due to install the extractor fan on 8 February 2024.
  11. In her escalation request of 2 February 2024, the resident told the landlord she had stopped using the bedroom. It was reasonable the landlord decided to inspect again because the resident also said she felt it had not found the cause of the mould.
  12. The landlord inspected on 13 February 2024 but told us it could not provide an inspection report. As such, there is no evidence the landlord decided what the likely cause of the damp and mould was. Nor is there evidence it had discussed the resident’s concerns with her or advised her if it was safe to use her bedroom.
  13. The surveyor raised orders for scaffolding to be erected so they could inspect the roof and gutter. The order was later cancelled because the roof could be accessed from the building.
  14. In its stage 2 complaint response of 22 February 2024, the landlord accepted it had not resolved the damp and mould. It was reasonable it apologised and offered further compensation. It also asked the resident to provide a list of damaged belongings so it could consider compensating her for them. This was in line with its Compensation Policy and gave the resident the opportunity to claim for her damaged belongings.
  15. The response said the landlord would remove vegetation from the external walls, clear out a drain, and inspect the roof as well as the second mould wash. In the absence of a report, we cannot confirm if these were actions recommended from the inspection of 13 February 2024.
  16. The second mould wash was done on 23 February 2024. This was 36 days after the landlord raised the order so was not done within the 7 day timescale of its Damp, Mould and Condensation Policy. Further, the resident found that not all the mould had been removed. This led to the landlord raising another order for a mould wash on 3 April 2024 which was done 20 days later on 25 April 2024.
  17. There is no evidence the landlord removed the vegetation, cleared out the drain or inspected the roof as promised in its stage 2 response. As such, it failed to address the potential causes of the damp and mould.
  18. The landlord identified failings in its handling of the damp and mould through its complaint processes. It apologised at both stages and gave compensation. It also arranged mould washes and fitted an extractor fan in the bathroom. However, this did not prevent some failings being repeated and did not adequately address the damp and mould in the bedroom. This means we cannot conclude there was reasonable redress in its handling of the damp and mould.
  19. There was maladministration in the landlord’s handling of the damp and mould because it:
    1. Took over 5 months to inspect following the residents initial report of 9 May 2023.
    2. Did not meet its 7 day policy timescale for completing mould washes for any of the 3 washes it completed.
    3. Did not do the work promised in its stage 2 response which meant it failed to address the potential cause of the damp and mould.
  20. Since the end of its complaint process, the landlord has done further inspections and mould washes but has not yet resolved the damp and mould which now affects the lounge as well as the resident’s bedroom. We have ordered it to arrange an independent specialist survey to identify the cause of the problem. It must then complete any repairs it is responsible for in line with its repair policy timescales.
  21. We have not ordered the landlord to pay more compensation. This because it has already paid £1,100 compensation through its complaint process. This sum is in line with the Ombudsman’s guidance on remedies and appropriately reflects the impact of the failings we have identified.

Complaint handling

  1. The Ombudsman’s Complaint Handling Code (the Code) sets out when and how a landlord should respond to complaints. The relevant Code in this case is the 2022 edition.
  2. The resident complained on 23 October 2023 and the landlord acknowledged it on 30 October 2023. This means the landlord met the 5 working day timescale required by the Code to acknowledge a complaint.
  3. Its acknowledgement said it would respond by 27 November 2023. It explained it was taking longer than usual to respond to complaints due to “increased demand”. We can understand the landlord wanted to manage the resident’s expectations about when it would respond. However, the Code specified a stage 1 response should be given within 10 working days.
  4. The landlord did not meet the response timescale it gave. It gave its stage 1 response on 19 January 2024 which was 56 working days after acknowledging the complaint. It was reasonable the landlord apologised for its late response and gave £250 compensation.
  5. The resident escalated her complaint on 2 February 2024. The landlord spoke to her on 7 February 2024 which was a good way to get more information and understand the resolutions the resident wanted.
  6. It gave its stage 2 response on 22 February 2024 which was within the 20 working day timescale required by the Code.
  7. In summary, there were failings in the landlord’s handling of the complaint at stage 1. In our view, the landlord’s compensation offer resolved the matter satisfactorily. As such, there was reasonable redress in its complaint handling.

Review of policies and practices

  1. In this case, we found failings in the landlord’s handling of the damp and mould, its record keeping and its complaint handling. We have found similar failings in other cases and made recommendations for the landlord to review its policies and practices.
  2. The landlord revised its Complaints Policy and process to comply with the Statutory Complaint Handling Code from April 2024. In June 2025, it told us it intended to include response timescales in its Damp, Mould and Condensation Policy and review its record keeping practices. We will monitor the impact of the landlord’s changes through our future casework.

Determination

  1. In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Scheme, there was maladministration in the landlord’s handling of the damp and mould.
  2. In accordance with paragraph 53.b of the Scheme, there was reasonable redress in the landlord’s complaint handling which, in the Ombudsman’s opinion, resolves the complaint satisfactorily.

Orders and recommendations

Orders

  1. Within 4 weeks of the date of this report, the landlord must arrange for an independent and suitably qualified surveyor to inspect the damp and mould and write a survey report. The survey report must include (but does not need to be limited to):
    1. The likely causes of the damp and mould.
    2. Whether the property is fit for human habitation and if it is not, the landlord must offer suitable alternative accommodation.
    3. Recommended works as lasting solutions to resolve the damp and mould.
    4. Whether the resident can remain in the property during any recommended works.
  2. The surveyor must complete the inspection within 4 weeks of the date of this report. They must provide the survey report to the landlord within 10 working days of the survey.
  3. Within 6 weeks of the date of this report, the landlord must send the resident and us a copy of the survey report. It must take all steps to ensure the recommended work is booked in and started within 8 weeks of the date of this report.