The Guinness Partnership Limited (202508933)

Decision
Case ID	202508933
Decision type	Investigation
Landlord	The Guinness Partnership Limited
Landlord type	Housing Association
Occupancy	Assured Shorthold Tenancy
Date	17 December 2025

Background

The resident lives in a 3-bedroom, mid-terraced house with her 3 children, one of whom has asthma.

What the complaint is about

The complaint is about the landlord’s handling of the resident’s:
1. Reports of damp and mould.
2. Associated complaint.

Our decision (determination)

We have found that there was:
Severe maladministration regarding the landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of damp and mould.
Service failure regarding the landlord’s complaint handling.

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

Summary of reasons

Damp and mould

The landlord did not investigate the cause of damp and mould until after the resident had raised this 5 times over 7 months, despite noting that this was ‘extensive’, nor did it undertake any risk assessments to consider any vulnerabilities and temporary measures. The landlord then misdiagnosed the cause and did not complete works until 8 months after it issued its stage 2 response. When we investigated, the issue was ongoing 2 years after it was first reported.

Complaint handling

Although the landlord apologised and appropriately offered compensation for its delay at stage 1, it did not offer compensation for its stage 2 delay until after it had issued its stage 2 response.

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 its Chief Executive Officer. 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 14 January 2026
2	Compensation order The landlord must pay the resident £1,700, made up of: The £400 that it offered for the resident’s time, trouble and inconvenience due to its failures in response to her reports of damp and mould. The £50 that it offered for its poor communication. The further £400 that it offered for the personal impact caused to the resident due to further repair delays. A further £650 for the distress caused by its failures in response to the resident’s reports of damp and mould. The £100 that it offered for the resident’s time, trouble and inconvenience due to its complaint handling delays at stage 1. The further £100 that it offered for its complaint handling delays at stage 2. 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 14 January 2026
3	Inspection order The landlord must contact the resident to arrange an inspection. 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 inside the property for damp and mould throughout 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 A full scope of works to achieve a lasting and effective resolution to the issue 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 11 February 2026

Our investigation

The complaint procedure

Date	What happened
31 July 2024	The resident raised a formal complaint. The key points were as follows: The resident said there had been a lack of communication from the landlord in response to her reports of damp and mould. The resident’s daughter had asthma and had been to hospital various times. The landlord had not addressed damp and mould issues within its timeframes.
10 September 2024	The landlord acknowledged the complaint.
18 September 2024	The landlord issued its stage 1 complaint response. The key points were as follows: The landlord acknowledged historical reports of damp and mould but said it could only consider reports back to 12 months before the resident’s complaint. It said that, due to the sporadic nature of reports, it would address damp and mould reports from 14 December 2023. The landlord said the resident had reported damp and mould 5 times between 14 December 2023 and 19 June 2024, of which it attended once outside its usual timeframes. It noted on 3 occasions that the mould was extensive or would return, but did not investigate the cause due to a change in the response repairs service manager for the area. The landlord had since inspected the property on 13 September 2024 and identified works required to address the cause of damp in the property. The landlord had not responded to the resident’s complaint in line with the timeframes set out in its complaints policy. The landlord apologised for the resident’s experience and distress caused. It offered £500 compensation, comprised of £400 for her time, trouble and inconvenience in relation to her reports of damp and mould, and £100 for its complaint handling delays. The landlord said it had learned from the complaint by developing a process to support the quick resolution of damp and mould repairs. It had done this by prioritising cases based on a household’s circumstances. It was also in the process of appointing specialist contractors to support this. The landlord said it would inspect the insulation in the loft space on 23 September 2024 and inspect a fan heater on 25 September 2024 to address damp and mould in the property.
30 September 2024	The resident asked to escalate her complaint to stage 2 due to the landlord failing to contact her to arrange a damp and mould inspection of her home.
31 October 2024	The landlord acknowledged the resident’s escalation request.
25 November 2024	The landlord issued its stage 2 complaint response. The key points were as follows: The landlord said the resident had reported damp and mould throughout her home on 14 December 2023, which it raised as an emergency repair due to one of her children having a respiratory condition. Due to a lack of operative availability and being unable to access the property on 15 December 2023, the landlord did not remove and treat all visible mould until 18 December 2023. It said it had acted in line with its damp and mould policy, but accepted it did not attend in line with its responsive repairs policy. The landlord had attended 4 times between 31 January 2024 and 3 July 2024 to remove and treat mould throughout the property, but it did not investigate or escalate the issue. The landlord had said it had no details of a visit on 3 July 2024 when the resident phoned for an update on 11 July 2024. It asked its repairs team to arrange an urgent inspection but then did not contact the resident. Complaint handling delays meant the landlord did not arrange a further inspection until 13 September 2024. It was then unable to gain access to the property on 23 and 25 September 2024. The landlord had agreed on 24 September 2024 to arrange a further inspection due to the resident’s concerns about the repairs it intended to complete but then did not contact her. It had since inspected the property on 1 November 2024 and believed the main cause of damp and mould was inadequate ventilation, for which a specialist contractor would visit on 29 November 2024 to complete an assessment. The landlord would share the outcome of this and any action it would take by no later than 6 December 2024. The landlord apologised for any distress and inconvenience caused. The landlord said it had failed to acknowledge, extend or respond to the resident’s stage 1 complaint within the timeframes specified in its complaints policy. It said it had also failed to acknowledge her stage 2 complaint in line with its policy due to staff absence. The landlord offered the resident £150 compensation in addition to the £500 previously paid. This comprised of £100 for her time, trouble and inconvenience and £50 to apologise for its poor communication. The landlord said it had merged its repairs and customer service teams to ensure consistency and reduce repair delays, and that it was in the process of introducing new software to improve its management of contractors. It was also recruiting additional resource to improve its complaint handling times and had provided revised training to ensure consistent and high-quality complaint responses. The landlord said it would consider whether any further apology or redress was needed once it had resolved the damp and mould.
4 June 2025	The resident referred her complaint to us. She requested that the landlord resolve all repairs, acknowledge the serious impact this situation had on her family, particularly her mental wellbeing and her daughter’s health, review its complaint handling and communication processes to prevent others from experiencing similar failures, and provide compensation to reflect the “significant emotional, physical and health-related harm caused”.
3 October 2025	The landlord offered the resident further compensation of £500. This comprised of £400 for the personal impact caused to the resident by its further repair delays and £100 for its complaint handling delays at stage 2.

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	Landlord’s handling of reports of damp and mould
Finding	Severe maladministration

What we have not investigated

We would expect a resident to raise a formal complaint with the landlord within 12 months of an issue arising. Based on this, we have started our investigation at the earliest event that we are able to evidence in the 12 months prior to the resident’s complaint. This was when the resident contacted the landlord on 14 December 2023 to report that there was damp and mould throughout the property. This investigation considers how the landlord approached matters starting from this point, and subsequently up to its stage 2 response on 25 November 2024.
The resident told us that the damp and mould impacted her mental health as well as causing emotional and physical health-related harm to the household. It would be fairer, more reasonable and more effective for the resident to make a personal injury claim for any injury caused. The courts are best placed to deal with this type of dispute as they will have the benefit of independent medical advice to decide on the cause of any injury and how long it will last. We’ve not investigated this further. However, we can decide if a landlord should pay compensation for distress and inconvenience.

What we have investigated

On 14 December 2023, the resident reported that there was damp and mould throughout her home. She said this was impacting one of her children who had asthma. Due to this, the landlord appropriately raised an emergency repair.
The landlord’s records show it visited the property on 15 December 2023, which was within the 24-hour timeframe for emergency repairs specified in its responsive repairs policy. However, it was unable to gain access. Due to a lack of operatives, the landlord was unable to return until 18 December 2023, at which point it cleaned mould from the walls in the back passageway of the property.
The resident next reported damp and mould on 23 January 2024. Up to 3 July 2024, the landlord attended this and 3 other reports of damp and mould within the 28-day timeframe for routine repairs specified in its responsive repairs policy.
Our Spotlight report on damp and mould recommends that landlords adopt a zero-tolerance approach to damp and mould interventions. The landlord’s damp and mould policy says it will undertake a comprehensive risk assessment when it identifies a particularly severe or recurring damp or mould issue. This might result in a range of actions to support the resident depending on their circumstances, including providing and funding dehumidifiers, ventilation systems, dry lining walls or applying mould resistant coverings. For more complex cases and/or where there is a serious health risk to the resident or a member of the household, it will consider moving them to alternative accommodation.
The landlord noted that there was extensive mould in the property and that paint was peeling due to damp and mould underneath. However, it failed to investigate the cause of damp and mould following any of its 5 visits. Each of these was a missed opportunity for the landlord to identify the cause of damp and mould so that it could provide a permanent solution.
There is also no evidence that the landlord considered any vulnerabilities by assessing the risk of damp and mould to the resident’s household. Nor is there any evidence that it considered any temporary measures, such as providing temporary accommodation.
Due to the landlord’s failure to identify and treat the cause of damp and mould, the issue kept returning. Its approach showed a lack of empathy for the resident’s situation and likely caused her distress and inconvenience.
The landlord failed to contact the resident after she requested an update on 11 July 2024. We would have expected it to respond in a timely manner. That it did not do so prompted the resident to raise a formal complaint on 31 July 2024.
The resident next pursued an update on 9 September 2024 due to the landlord failing to contact her for approximately 2 months. On 10 September 2024, she said her daughter had been to accident and emergency several times due to the mould triggering her asthma. This prompted the landlord to raise an inspection to identify the cause of damp and mould in the property, which took place on 13 September 2024, in line with its timeframe for responsive repairs.
Following the inspection, the landlord arranged to check a fan heater and insulation in the property on 23 and 25 September 2024, but it was unable to gain access to the property on each occasion. The landlord’s records reflect that the resident said she had cancelled the appointments, but there is no direct evidence of this.
On 24 September 2024, the landlord said its service manager would phone the resident within 2 working days to arrange a further inspection. However, its failure to then contact her prompted her to pursue this on 27 September 2024.
It was not until 1 November 2024 that the landlord completed a further inspection of the property, which was outside its 28-day timeframe for routine repairs. The landlord noted that issues with the roof had caused the damp and mould in the property. Therefore, it arranged for a roofing contractor to survey this on 29 November 2024, which was appropriate.
However, when it undertook a post complaint review on 3 October 2025, the landlord identified further failings and made an increased offer of compensation. Rather than the roof being the cause of damp and mould, the landlord said it later found that there was a build-up of condensation and arranged for a contractor to fit extractor fans to resolve the issue. There was then a significant delay in completing the required works until approximately 7 months later. Despite this, the resident says the damp and mould issues remain.
The landlord’s total offer of £850 compensation, though substantial, could not be considered reasonable redress even if deemed sufficient. This is because it offered £400 almost 11 months after its stage 2 response. It is not in the spirit of our dispute resolution principles for a landlord to make a substantial offer of redress late in a protracted process with the anticipated effect that we will not consider the matter further.
We have ordered additional compensation to reflect the serious failings in this case, whereby the resident was left with damp and mould in her property for a period of over 2 years. Our award is in line with our remedies guidance for circumstances where there was a severe long-term impact, with a series of significant failures having a seriously detrimental impact on the resident.

Complaint	Complaint handling
Finding	Service failure

Our statutory Complaint Handling Code (‘the Code’), effective from 1 April 2024, sets out when and how a landlord should respond to complaints. The landlord has a published complaints policy that complies with the terms of the Code in respect of timescales.
The resident raised a formal complaint on 31 July 2024. In accordance with its complaints policy, the landlord should have acknowledged the complaint within 5 working days and issued a stage 1 response within a further 10 working days. However, the landlord acknowledged the complaint on 10 September 2024, which was 24 working days outside the timeframe specified in its complaints policy. It then issued its stage 1 response on 18 September 2024, which was in line with its policy.
The resident asked to escalate her complaint on 30 September 2024. In accordance with its complaints policy, the landlord should have acknowledged the escalation request within 5 working days and issued a stage 2 response within a further 20 working days. The landlord acknowledged the escalation request on 31 October 2024, which was 18 working days outside the timeframe specified in its complaints policy. It then issued a stage 2 response on 25 November 2024, which was in line with its policy.
Overall, the resident experienced complaint handling delays totalling more than 2 months due to the landlord failing to acknowledge her stage 1 and stage 2 complaints within the timeframe specified in its complaints process. The landlord apologised for its failings in its complaint responses and offered the resident £100 compensation at stage 1. However, it was not until 3 October 2025, following our request for evidence for this case, that the landlord offered an additional £100 compensation for its delay at stage 2. Therefore, although the total offered was in line with its compensation policy, the landlord’s failure to provide suitable additional redress at stage 2 has resulted in a finding of service failure.

Learning

Knowledge and information management (record keeping)

The landlord said it was introducing new software to improve its record keeping and management of works completed by contractors. This is positive.

Communication

The landlord appropriately identified that it needed to recruit additional resource for handling complaints and delivering revised training to improve its complaint responses. This indicates a solution-focused approach.