Gateshead Metropolitan Borough Council (202446983)

Decision
Case ID	202446983
Decision type	Investigation
Landlord	Gateshead Metropolitan Borough Council
Landlord type	Local Authority / ALMO or TMO
Occupancy	Secure Tenancy
Date	19 December 2025

Background

1. The resident lives in a 2-bedroom semi-detached house with her husband and 2 children. She reported damp and mould in the property alongside several repairs especially in the bathroom. She complained that the landlord had either delayed or failed to take action to resolve the damp and mould and complete repairs.

What the complaint is about

2. The complaint is about the landlord’s handling of the resident’s:
   1. Reports of damp and mould.
   2. Reports of repairs in the property.
   3. Complaint.

Our decision (determination)

3. We have found maladministration in the landlord’s handling of the resident’s:
   1. Reports of damp and mould.
   2. Reports of repairs in the property.
   3. Complaint.

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

Summary of reasons

The landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of damp and mould

4. The landlord failed to complete a mould wash within 3 working days of the resident reporting damp despite its commitment to this. It delayed by over 15 months to complete this. It cancelled some recommended repairs and failed to raise them alongside other repairs until the resident complained. It then failed to treat these as a priority and delayed in completing them.

The landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of repairs in the property

5. The landlord did not repair the bath within its policy timescales once notified of the issue. It then failed to raise any of the bathroom repairs included in its programme of works produced in September 2023. It did not complete a repair to plastic window trim within the required timescales. Following a further inspection in November 2024, it failed to raise the same repairs for over 6 months until after it issued its stage 2 response. It also delayed in raising an asbestos survey. 

The landlord’s handling of the complaint

6. The landlord did not raise a complaint when the resident initially complained in August 2023. It also failed to escalate the resident’s complaint until we asked it to.

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 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 16 January 2026
2	Compensation order The landlord must pay the resident £1,780 made up as follows: £840 for the distress and inconvenience caused by its handling of the resident’s reports of damp and mould £740 for the distress and inconvenience caused by its handling of the resident’s reports of repairs in the property £200 for the distress and inconvenience caused by the landlord’s handling of the complaint. 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 made as offered in its complaint responses.	No later than 16 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 someone suitably qualified to complete an inspection of the type needed. 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 property for damp and mould, and any other outstanding repairs paying particular attention to the bathroom 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 to repair or resolve the issues together with reasons where it is not responsible a full scope of works to achieve lasting and effective repairs and resolutions to the issues (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 16 January 2026

Recommendations

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

Our recommendations
We recommend that the landlord reviews the information it provides to residents about referring their complaints to us to ensure it is correct.
We recommend that the landlord contacts the resident to provide its insurance details so she can pursue a claim for damage to belongings should she wish to do so.

Our investigation

The complaint procedure

Date	What happened
29 August 2023	The resident complained that following a flood, the bath had come away from the wall and tiles were falling from it. She said she had been trying to get this resolved, but the landlord was ignoring her. She said she had to bathe her newborn baby in a rusty bath that was “jagged” at the bottom which was dangerous.   The landlord said there was a request for a building technician to attend and assess the bath and damp and mould in the property. It said as soon as it had an appointment it would contact her.
8 October 2024	The resident complained that her house was full of damp. She repeated her concerns about the bathroom. She said the mould had caused one of her children to need an inhaler.
15 October 2024	The landlord explained to the resident that the main part of her complaint related to the damp and the package of work it would deliver.
23 October 2024	The landlord provided its stage 1 response. It confirmed that a tiler would attend on 30 October 2024 for the bath and splashback tiles. It apologised for not arranging a bathroom inspection and said it had arranged this for 6 November 2024. It said it had requested the completion of the package of work raised following an inspection in September 2023. However, this was likely to be in the new year due to the volume of work. It said that after reviewing her photographs with its building technicians, it would inspect the extended areas of mould on 6 November 2024 as a secondary cause of water ingress could be contributing to the mould.
20 January 2025	The resident escalated her complaint, saying she only made progress when she raised complaints. She said she was unhappy with the stage 1 response and the delays to complete the outstanding repairs. She felt the landlord was ignoring her. She said her children were spending their time in a room that was full of mould which was impacting their health. She also said she had no clarity on when the landlord would schedule or complete repairs. She requested compensation for the extra heating costs caused by unresolved insulation and window issues.
29 May 2025	The landlord provided its stage 2 response. It said: it did not raise an order for the work recommended following the inspection in September 2023 and it completed another inspection in November 2024 following contact from the resident the inspection recommended additional work including renewing the bath, installing an extractor fan in the kitchen and installing vents in the front bedroom cupboard door it completed a mould wash in December 2024, and its contractor advised that it had cleaned all areas and removed any hazards but there was some slight staining to the wall it installed fans on 2 April 2025 but could not complete work in the bathroom as it did not hold asbestos information, it apologised for not requesting an asbestos survey its contractor would contact the resident to arrange an appointment and once it had this information it had requested that outstanding work was arranged as a priority it was clear there had been delays in completing work in the resident’s home and its communication with her had been poor it apologised for the delays and understood it had a negative impact on the resident and her household, and the lack of communication led to her repeatedly having to contact it as there had been long delays in completing this work and some were still outstanding, it offered £730 compensation as follows: –       £400 for delays in completing all works –       £280 for any additional stress or inconvenience caused –       £50 for not escalating the resident’s complaint when originally asked.
Referral to the Ombudsman	The resident referred her complaint to us as she was dissatisfied with the landlord’s response. She said it was ignoring her. She wanted a qualified person to complete a thorough inspection of her property and complete a schedule of works to resolve all issues. If the landlord could not resolve the issues, she wanted the landlord to re-house her. She also wanted compensation for stress.

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 landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of damp and mould
Finding	Maladministration

What we did not investigate

7. The resident told us that the issues impacted her and her family’s health. It would be fairer, more reasonable and more effective for the resident to make a personal injury claim for any negative impact. 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 issue and how long it will last. We have not investigated this further. We can decide if a landlord should pay compensation for distress and inconvenience.  
8. The resident said there had been damage to personal belongings. While we can consider the impact the issues reported have had on the resident and whether the landlord acted reasonably, we cannot determine liability in the same was as a court or insurer may. The resident may wish to pursue an insurance claim via the landlord’s insurance team should she feel that the landlord is liable for the damage.  

What we did investigate

9. The resident reported damp and mould in her property on 22 July 2023. The landlord completed an inspection on 21 September 2023. It did not complete a thorough clean of the affected surfaces within 3 working days, as stated in its repairs policy. Further, the landlord did not provide us with a record of this inspection, which is a record keeping failure. However, it raised a programme of works which included installing bathroom and kitchen extractor fans, a PIV unit and vents in a cupboard door. It cancelled the job to install an extractor fan in the bathroom and PIV on 23 October 2023. It is unclear why. It did not raise any orders for the other work.
10. There is no evidence that the resident contacted the landlord until October 2024. The landlord said it would arrange a mould wash on 15 October 2024 but did not do so at this point. The resident provided photographs of the property on 21 October 2024.
11. In its stage 1 response the landlord said it was likely to complete the package of works raised in September 2023 in the new year. Its report on ensuring damp and mould compliance (published in April 2023) said it would place all planned works on a 40 working day priority order. The estimated time to complete this work went beyond this. Considering it had been over a year since the landlord was on notice of the repairs needed, and it had raised this work, it could have prioritised this.
12. The landlord’s records indicated that it completed an inspection for damp and mould and an assessment of the roof on 6 November 2024. The landlord agreed to this in its stage 1 response after reviewing the resident’s photographs. However, it has not provided a record of the inspection.
13. It raised a job for an asbestos survey on 7 November 2024 so it could install an extractor fan in the kitchen. The landlord completed the survey on 13 November 2024, although it has not provided a record of this. The landlord cancelled the job raised the following day to fit the extractor fan. It is unclear why.
14. On 8, 18 and 21 November 2024 the landlord raised jobs for the damp and mould, including cleaning the gutters to the front and rear of the property, installing ventilation grilles and a mould wash. It raised these under a planned repair which it said it would complete within 90 working days despite the 40-day priority time stated in its report on damp and mould compliance. The only job the landlord completed in this timescale was the mould wash on 19 December 2024. However, this was the first time the landlord had arranged a mould wash despite its report on damp and mould compliance stating it would do this within 3 working days of a report of damp and mould. This was unreasonable.
15. The landlord raised further works for damp and mould on 21 and 23 January 2025. These included installing an extractor fan and drilling ventilation holes. It raised these as a planned repair and said it would complete them within 90 working days. It completed them on 2 April 2025. This was beyond the timescale stated in its report on damp and mould compliance.
16. In its stage 2 response the landlord acknowledged its delays and lack of communication when dealing with the damp and mould and offered compensation for this. Following the stage 2 response, it offered the resident advice on increasing ventilation in the property. It made some effort to put things right. However, the landlord did not acknowledge all the failings identified in this investigation. It also did not specify the amount of compensation it attributed to its failings regarding the damp and mould. For the purpose of this investigation, we have considered that it attributed half of the £680 compensation paid which is £340.
17. This does not adequately reflect the distress and inconvenience caused to the resident. She outlined the impact this was having on her and her family to the landlord and that she felt it was ignoring her. The resident told us that she could not sleep upstairs, her children slept in a bedroom covered in damp and mould and the issues were ongoing. The landlord’s records confirm this with it raising a mould wash as late as 10 October 2025. Therefore, we have made orders for the landlord to apologise, pay additional compensation in line with our remedies guidance and inspect the resident’s property for damp and mould.

Complaint	The landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of repairs in the property
Finding	Maladministration

18. The landlord was aware of the resident’s reports about the bath on 4 August 2023. The resident raised further concerns about the bathroom on 29 August 2023. The landlord compiled a programme of works on 21 September 2023. This included removing the old shower and stud wall, replacing the bath, hacking off tiles and making good the plaster. It had already gone beyond the 20 working days stated in its repairs policy for routine repairs to replace the bath. Even so, the landlord did not raise a work order for this or the other repairs. An asbestos report dated 17 October 2023 stated that there was no asbestos detected in the bathroom walls or downpipes.
19. Following the resident complaining in October 2024, the landlord raised several repairs and completed some within its 24-hour emergency repair timescale and 20 working day routine repair timescale as set out in its repairs policy. These included repairing a kitchen light and replacing perished window and door seals.
20. The landlord raised a job for tiling around the bath and splashback on 24 October 2024 alongside repairs for plastic window trim. The landlord said it would complete the tiling on 30 October 2024 in its stage 1 response, which it did. However, it did not complete the repair for the plastic window trim until 5 March 2025, which was beyond its timescales for a routine repair.
21. In its stage 1 response the landlord said it would inspect the resident’s bathroom on 6 November 2024. It completed this inspection as promised. However, it recommended the same work included in the programme of works from September 2023 that it failed to raise. Despite this, there is no evidence the landlord raised these repairs until after it issued its stage 2 response on 29 May 2025.
22. In its stage 2 response the landlord said it was unable to complete work in the bathroom as it did not hold correct asbestos information. It apologised for this. However, it is unclear why it did not request a report sooner as an asbestos report had already been completed in October 2023.
23. The landlord acknowledged its delays and poor communication with the resident regarding repairs in the property in its stage 2 response. It paid compensation for this on 5 June 2025 and has raised further work orders. In doing this the landlord attempted to put things right. It did not stipulate how much of the compensation it attributed to its failings around the other repairs in the property. We have considered that it attributed half of the compensation paid for its delays and lack of communication when completing the other repairs to this.
24. This does not adequately reflect the impact the landlord’s failures had on the resident. It did not complete some of the work in the bathroom until after its stage 2 response, almost 2 years after it initially included them in a programme of works. The resident raised concerns about having to bathe her newborn baby in an unsafe bathroom. She told us that the landlord had only completed half of the jobs in her bathroom. Its records indicate that there have continued to be issues completing repairs. Therefore, we have ordered the landlord to apologise, pay additional compensation in line with our remedies guidance and inspect the resident’s property.

Complaint	The landlord’s handling of the complaint
Finding	Maladministration

25. The landlord operates a 2-stage complaint policy that is compliant with our Complaint Handling Code (the Code) published in April 2024.
26. The resident first complained on 29 August 2023. However, the landlord failed to raise a complaint. This was not in line with the Code in place at the time which stated that landlords should raise a complaint when a resident raised dissatisfaction.
27. There is no evidence that the resident complained again until 8 October 2024. The landlord discussed the resident’s complaint with her on 15 October 2024. It followed up with an email the same day outlining her complaint. The landlord provided its stage 1 response on 21 October 2024. This was within 10 working days of it discussing the complaint with the resident. Its complaint policy states that it would provide its stage 1 response within 10 working days of acknowledgement.
28. The resident asked to escalate her complaint on 20 January 2025, but the landlord failed to do so. We wrote to the landlord 3 times in May 2025 and asked it to provide a response. The landlord provided its stage 2 response on 29 May 2025. The Code sets out that landlords should be able to identify and respond to complaints without the intervention of this Service. In its response the landlord acknowledged the delay in providing its stage 2 response and offered compensation.
29. However, the compensation did not adequately reflect the impact the landlord’s complaint handling failures likely had on the resident. The stage 2 response was issued almost 2 years after she initially complained. Additionally, the landlord’s failure to escalate the complaint delayed the resident in being able to bring the complaint to us. The resident told the landlord that she felt as if it was ignoring her. Therefore, we have ordered the resident to pay additional compensation to put things right.

Learning

30. The accompanying factsheet the landlord sent with its stage 2 response contained incorrect information on how the resident could refer her complaint to us. For example, it said she had to wait 8 weeks before making contact which is incorrect. We have made a recommendation related to this.

Knowledge information management (record keeping)

31. The landlord did not maintain adequate repair records. This included providing inspection reports and the reasons why jobs were cancelled. At times this made it difficult to assess its actions.  

Communication

32. Although at times the landlord kept in regular contact with the resident, there were times when it delayed in responding. It is unclear if the landlord confirmed all appointments with the resident. The resident has told us that operatives attended her property without prior notice when she was at work or had been unable to prepare. The landlord’s records support this. The landlord demonstrated a lack of oversight of its operatives, which may have contributed to the failings identified.