Southern Housing (202417064)

Decision
Case ID	202417064
Decision type	Investigation
Landlord	Southern Housing
Landlord type	Housing Association
Occupancy	Assured Tenancy
Date	18 November 2025

Background

The resident lives with her family in a flat. She complained about ongoing problems with damp and mould in 2023. She said this has affected the health and wellbeing of her and her family.

What the complaint is about

The landlord’s handling of the resident’s:
1. Reports of damp and mould.
2. Complaint.

Our decision (determination)

We found:
1. Maladministration in the landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of damp and mould.
2. The landlord offered redress to the resident which satisfactorily resolves the complaint about the landlord’s complaint handling.

We have made orders for the landlord to put things right.

Summary of reasons

The landlord’s handling of damp and mould reports

The landlord did not provide the resident with an action plan as agreed after installing data loggers between January and March 2023. It did not complete works identified by its surveyor to alleviate the damp and mould in August 2023. While it did face access issues, it did not consider the resident’s concerns leading to her refusing access.

The landlord’s complaint handling

There were delays in the landlord’s handling of the resident’s complaint. It asked her to delay the escalation of her complaint to stage 2 which was not in line with our Complaint Handling Code or its complaints policy. However, its stage 2 apology and compensation offer were reasonable and in line with our remedies guidance.

Putting things right

Where we find service failure, maladministration or severe maladministration we can make orders for the landlord to put things right. We have the discretion to make recommendations in all other cases within our jurisdiction.

Orders

Landlords must comply with our orders in the manner and timescales we specify. The landlord must provide documentary evidence of compliance with our orders by the due date set.

Order	What the landlord must do	Due date
1	Apology order The landlord must apologise in writing to the resident for the failures identified in this report. The landlord must ensure: the apology is provided by a senior repairs manager the apology is specific to the failures identified in this decision, meaningful and empathetic it has due regard to our apologies guidance	No later than 17 December 2025
2	Compensation order The landlord must pay the resident £990 made up as follows: £225 offered at stage 1 for damp and mould repair failures £15 offered at stage 1 for complaint handling failures £100 offered at stage 2 for complaint handling failures £500 for distress and inconvenience caused by the landlord’s failure to provide an action plan in March 2023 and complete recommended repairs in August 2023 £150 for time and trouble it caused the resident chasing the landlord for updates and results from installed data loggers This must be paid directly to the resident by the due date. The landlord must provide documentary evidence of payment by the due date. The landlord may deduct from the total figure any payments it has already paid.	No later than 17 December 2025
3	Inspection order The landlord must contact the resident to arrange an inspection if it has not completed a new inspection in the last 3 months. It must take all reasonable steps to ensure the inspection is completed by the due date. The inspection must be completed by an externally appointed independent surveyor with expertise to complete the type of inspection required. If the landlord cannot gain access to complete the inspection, it must provide us with documentary evidence of its attempts to inspect the property no later than the due date. What the inspection must achieve The landlord must ensure that the surveyor: inspects the entirety of the property and produces a written report with photographs The survey report must set out: whether the property is fit for human habitation and whether there are any hazards the most likely cause of the damp and mould whether the landlord is responsible for repairing or resolving the issue together with reasons where it is not responsible if the surveyors work recommendations from August 2023 are still the best course of action a full scope of works to achieve a lasting and effective resolution to the issue (if the landlord is responsible) the likely timescales to commence and complete the work Whether temporary alternative accommodation is necessary either because of the condition of the property or during the works	No later than 22 December 2025
4	Providing information The landlord must take all steps to provide us and the resident with a report detailing its findings and any proposed actions raised from the data loggers it installed between January and March 2023. If it does not have this data, it must write to the resident and explain why it did not explain this to her in response to her earlier communications about the issue.	No later than 17 December 2025

Recommendations

Our recommendations are not binding, and a landlord may decide not to follow them.

Our recommendations
The resident has reported the dehumidifier passive vents in the property causing issues with the cold. The landlord may wish to investigate any methods of alleviating this.
We recommend the landlord signpost the resident to its insurance process for any claims she may wish to make for damage to her personal belongings and furniture.
We recommend the landlord provides the resident with advice and guidance on moving to a new property.

Our investigation

The complaint procedure

Date	What happened
14 September 2023	The resident complained about ongoing problems with damp and mould in the property. She said it started after the landlord installed cavity wall insulation. She reported being unable to heat the property properly. She told it about household vulnerabilities and health conditions.
2 October 2023	The landlord acknowledged the resident’s complaint.
16 October 2023	The landlord extended its stage 1 response time.
31 October 2023	The landlord sent its stage 1 complaint response. It found service failure for repair and complaint handling delays. It apologised for the inconvenience it caused and said it would complete mould repairs on 9 and 10 November 2023. It offered £240 compensation.
8 November 2023	The resident called the landlord to ask what works it would complete after the mould wash. She complained about its communication and phone lines.
24 November 2023	The landlord asked the resident to agree to delay her stage 2 escalation request until it surveyed her property for damp and mould.
14 December 2023	The resident escalated her complaint following a dispute with the landlord about the installation of environmental sensors to monitor damp and mould.
20 December 2023	The resident contacted the landlord again to request escalation of her complaint due to ongoing damp and mould. She said the landlord had not provided an appointment for works and wanted to know how it would rectify damp and mould. It acknowledged this request on the same day.
5 February 2024	The landlord sent its stage 2 response. It provided a history of its involvement and its plan for works. It said it would arrange a heat loss calculation survey to identify any underperforming radiators. It apologised for the time taken to escalate her complaint. It increased its stage 1 compensation offer by £100, bringing its total offer to £340.
Referral to the Ombudsman	The resident remained dissatisfied with the landlord’s approach to her reports of damp and mould. She asked us to investigate. She would like it to: install a draught excluder on the passive vents to see if it helps alleviate some of the damp and cold complete damp and mould works explain why it wants to install environmental sensors in the hallway and not in the affected areas provide compensation for replacing items damaged by mould provide information from data loggers installed between January and March 2023

What we found and why

The circumstances of this complaint are well known by the parties involved, so it is not necessary to detail everything that’s happened or comment on all the information we’ve reviewed. We’ve only included the key information that forms the basis of our decision of whether the landlord is responsible for maladministration.

Complaint	The handling of damp and mould reports
Finding	Maladministration

What we did not look at

The resident said this 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. We cannot decide causation or liability for personal injury like a court can. However, we can consider the overall impact of the situation on her. We have considered the landlord’s compensation offers within our general assessment of her complaints. If she wants to pursue a personal injury claim, she may wish to seek independent legal advice.

What we did look at

The resident reported damp and mould concerns to the landlord in January 2023. It attended and gave advice on reducing condensation. It returned later in January 2023 and installed data loggers. These are devices used to monitor and record environmental conditions for later analysis to aid a landlord’s response to damp and mould reports. It collected these in early March 2023 and said it would contact her with an action plan.
The resident chased the landlord for an update between April and June 2023. It arranged a roofing visit in July 2023. It followed this with a property survey in August 2023. It recommended a mould wash of the whole flat, replacing all silicon seals in the property, and installing insulation boards on the affected walls. The landlord did not action these recommendations. It recommended installing more sensors, but the resident refused because the landlord did not provide data and action from the earlier installation.
In the landlord’s complaint response of October 2023, it found service failure for not completing repairs within its timeframe. It apologised for the inconvenience and offered £225 compensation. It did not address her concerns about the works in November 2023. Its response was vague and did not adequately address her concerns. Its compensation offer was disproportionate to the 10 months the issue had been ongoing.
The resident tried to get information about works from the landlord in November 2023. It asks its surveyor to attend again. The surveyor said this was unnecessary and he expected it to have completed the works he specified in August 2023. It continued to book works to install sensors, despite the resident’s concerns about earlier installations. It found mould again on 6 December 2023 but said she refused treatment.
In December 2023, the landlord asked the resident to share data from her own sensors, but she did not provide the data to the landlord. It visited again in January 2024 and found surface damp and mould. It did not find cavity or penetrating damp. She told it about issues with the heating system. It recommended works to replaster and treat the affected walls, along with installing additional heating and dehumidifying passive vents.
In late January 2024, the landlord said the resident refused access for a mould clean but agreed for it to return in the February 2024. It said she refused the installation of data loggers. In its stage 2 response, it relied on her refusal. It listed all planned works from its visit on 25 January 2024 and said it hoped to complete them by 29 February 2024. However, it said there might be delays due to rearranging the mould wash. It said it would complete a heat loss survey due to her reported heating problems.
The landlord did not increase its stage 1 offer of £225 for repair delays. Its stage 2 response recommended the resident allow it access to complete works. However, it did not recognise the concerns which led to her refusing access. It did not explain why it did not provide her with the results from the installed data loggers, or why it had not completed works recommended by its surveyor in August 2023.
The landlord’s response did not address all the resident’s concerns, nor did it offer appropriate compensation for the issues faced. As such, we have asked the landlord to pay more compensation based on our remedies guidance for maladministration which had a significant impact on the resident.

Complaint	The handling of the complaint
Finding	Reasonable redress

The landlord has a 2-stage complaints policy. It says it will respond to stage 1 complaints within 10 working days of acknowledging the complaint. It will respond to stage 2 complaints within 20 working days of receipt. At both stages, it can extend its response time by explaining the reason for this and giving the resident the new expected response time. It says it will acknowledge stage 1 and 2 complaints within 5 working days of receipt.
The resident complained on 14 September 2023. The landlord acknowledged the complaint on time. However, it sent a further acknowledgement on 2 October 2023 and said it would respond within 10 working days. At this time, it was already late providing its stage 1 response. It extended its response time on 16 October 2023 and told the resident.
The landlord sent its stage 1 response to the resident on 31 October 2023, 26 working days after its original acknowledgement email. It acknowledged complaint handling delays in its response and offered £30 compensation for service failure. As it found service failure for repairs and complaint handling, we attribute £15 of this to complaint handling. This compensation offer was not in line with our remedies guidance.
The resident asked to escalate her complaint in November 2023. The landlord asked her to delay escalation until its surveyors inspected the property. This was not in line with our Complaint Handling Code (the Code), which says a landlord must not unreasonably refuse to escalate a complaint through all stages of the complaints procedure. While it did not refuse, it was not reasonable to delay complaint proceedings until it inspected.
The resident escalated her complaint on 14 December 2023. The landlord extended its response time on 22 January 2024. It had already exceeded its policy response time. Therefore, its stage 2 response of February 2024 was outside policy timescales.
In its complaint response, the landlord apologised for the time it took to escalate the resident’s complaint. It offered £100 compensation for complaint handling in addition to the £15 offered at stage 1. Its apology and compensation offer were reasonable and in line with our remedies guidance.

Learning

The landlord did not follow its own complaints policy and the Code when it asked the resident to delay her stage 2 escalation. It may wish to ensure staff are aware of correct escalation procedure.

Knowledge information management (record keeping)

It is unclear whether the landlord has copies of the data from the sensors installed in the resident’s property from January to March 2023. It did not answer the resident’s questions about this or provide us with evidence of the results.

Communication

The landlord communicated regularly with the resident, but its approach lacked empathy.