Hyde Housing Association Limited (202346113)

REPORT

COMPLAINT 202346113

Hyde Housing

21 October 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

The complaint is about the landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of:
1. A damaged kitchen wall and cupboard (after removal of a gas meter) and associated damp and mould.
2. Leaks to her bathroom.
3. A replacement front entrance door (fire door).
4. A faulty bedroom door.
We have also considered the landlord’s complaint handling.

Background

The resident is an assured tenant of the landlord. This is a 5-year fixed term affordable rent assured shorthold tenancy. She lives with her young child, and this is a 2-bedroom ground floor flat. There are no resident vulnerabilities noted on file.
The resident first reported a hole in her kitchen wall on 8 November 2021. She said this made her flat cold and had caused damp and mould. She sent photographs of this to the landlord. The landlord acknowledged her reports of the hole in the kitchen on the same day. She reported further damp and mould in one of the bedrooms on 12 November 2021 and 15 December 2021 and attached further photographs.
The resident reported the hole in the kitchen wall again on 17 November 2022. The landlord raised works for this. The resident also reported a leaking toilet on 17 November 2022. She raised further bathroom and toilet leaks in September 2023.
She made a stage 1 complaint on 15 January 2024. She said:
1. The landlord had removed an old gas meter when she moved into the property on 3 November 2021. This had left a hole in the kitchen, making it cold. She had reported this in November 2021, but the landlord had not sent a contractor to repair it.
2. She had complained about mould to her second bedroom on 8 November 2021, but the issue remained unresolved. She had resolved the issue at her own expense.
3. In December 2021, the landlord had changed her front entrance door, due to health and safety reasons. The contractor had installed the door incorrectly and had still not resolved this.
4. She had issues with the second bedroom door. It had shut and was temporarily unopenable with her baby inside. This had not been resolved, despite her complaints. She was concerned for the safety of her child so her child could not use their bedroom.
5. She had numerous issues with leaks and flooding in the bathroom.
6. She wanted to be reimbursed for her expenses incurred, and for the repairs to be carried out. She also wanted access to all her repair records.
The landlord responded to the stage 1 complaint on 2 February 2024. It apologised for the delays to the repairs and offered £150 compensation (for the delays and distress and inconvenience). It said:
1. In line with its complaints policy, it could not investigate service failures beyond 6 months of receipt of the complaint. But it acknowledged the resident had been contacting it prior to this period.
2. It had reviewed its repairs history and had only found one report of a toilet leak on 14 September 2023. This had been repaired on 5 October 2023, within its repairs policy timescales.
3. In respect of the kitchen repairs history, the resident had said she first reported this in November 2022, but it could not investigate this far back. It did acknowledge she had been waiting a long time, however.
4. It had found no evidence of the resident reporting damp and mould in the kitchen, although it understood this happened because of the hole in the kitchen wall. It could not uphold this element of the complaint.
5. It had attended on 1 February 2024 and completed all kitchen repairs, as well as a mould wash behind her kitchen sink and the second bedroom. It would be returning on 9 February 2024 to finish all decorative works in the kitchen.
6. It was taking steps to ensure that it responded in a timely manner when residents reported repairs in the future.
The resident made a stage 2 complaint on 12 February 2024. She said:
1. The toilet had been repaired but she now had another leak which was causing water pressure problems.
2. She had first reported the kitchen repair issues (the hole in the kitchen) on 8 November 2021 and not in November 2022.
3. The landlord had repaired the bedroom door (on 1 February 2024). But the front entrance door opened into the flat and obstructed access to her young child’s bedroom.
4. She wanted to know when the mould wash to the second bedroom had been done.
5. She wanted increased compensation and reimbursement for the plastering she had paid to have done privately in the second bedroom.
6. She reiterated her request for access to all her repair records under the Freedom of Information Act (FOI).
The landlord responded to the resident’s stage 2 complaint on 29 May 2024. It apologised for the further delays and communication issues. It also acknowledged its complaint handling failures. It increased its compensation offer to £500 (£100 for the complaint handling failures, £300 for distress and inconvenience and £100 for time and trouble). It said:
1. It could not investigate back to 2021 but acknowledged the repairs to the kitchen had been ongoing for a long time, resulting in mould and damage. The repairs had all been completed and it had completed decorating works on 9 February 2024.
2. It could not compensate the resident for the plastering and decoration works to the second bedroom as it had no evidence the resident had reported this and given the landlord the opportunity to carry out these repairs.
3. It had attempted to address the front entrance door issues on 16 May 2024, but the resident was not home to allow access. It had attempted to contact her on several occasions to arrange an appointment but had been unable to get through. It asked the resident to contact its contractors directly to reschedule the appointment.
The resident contacted this Service on 30 September 2024, as she wanted the landlord to reimburse her for the plastering works in her second bedroom. She also said the front entrance door had not yet been replaced. And the landlord had not told her when this would happen.

Assessment and findings

Scope of Investigation

The resident has said that she would like us to investigate from November 2021 when she first reported the hole in the kitchen and damp and mould to the second bedroom. While we appreciate the resident’s frustration, we would not normally investigate beyond a year after matters were raised with the landlord. We have, however, investigated matters from November 2022, (when the resident contacted the landlord again to raise her repair issues) to 27 November 2024. This is because the front entrance door had not been replaced as of 27 November 2024 (the landlord’s most recent repair records).

Damaged kitchen wall and associated damp and mould

The landlord’s repairs policy says it complies with Section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act, amongst other relevant legislation. It is responsible for the structure of the building. This includes internal walls, and internal cupboard doors. It aims to provide a “prompt” and “customer focussed repairs service.” It responds to emergency repairs within 24 hours and other responsive repairs within 20 working days, based on an appointment system. Major or complex works will be placed on “stock investment” schedules.
Its damp and mould policy states that it will inspect properties when residents report mould, where it cannot identify the root cause from speaking to the resident. It will raise repairs within its repair timelines or refer to its planned works team for major works.
There is no dispute that there were delays to the kitchen wall and cupboard repairs. The landlord has apologised for these, completed the kitchen works and mould wash and offered the resident compensation. However, it did not do enough to remedy the significant delay to completing the repairs. It did not act within its policy timescales and this is a failing, which caused the resident distress and frustration, and impacted on the enjoyment of her home.
The landlord’s repair logs note that the resident reported the damage to her kitchen wall and cupboard on 17 November 2022. The landlord raised a job for this on the same day and added a target completion date of 10 December 2022.
However, it did not repair the damage to the wall and cupboard until 1 February 2024. It did not complete the repairs until after the resident had made a stage 1 complaint. This is inappropriate and caused the resident frustration and time and trouble in pursuing the repair. As noted above our investigation will focus on events from November 2022 onwards. However, it is not disputed that the issues were reported in November 2021. From her further report of 17 November 2022, this is 305 working days from when the resident reported the issue on 17 November 2022 to 1 February 2024. This is unreasonable and not resident focussed. It is also contrary to the landlord’s policy. This was neither “prompt”, nor resident focussed. This impacted on the enjoyment of the resident’s home and on the landlord and resident relationship.
Strong record keeping is a prerequisite to providing a good housing management service. The resident reported damp and mould in her child’s bedroom in her stage 1 complaint of 15 January 2024. In its complaint response of 2 February 2024, the landlord told the resident it had completed a mould wash to the second bedroom on 1 February 2024. However, there is no evidence on file of this. The repair record of that day lists various completed repairs. None of these include a mould wash to the bedroom. This points to poor record keeping and information management by the landlord. This is further inappropriate. It is unclear why the landlord stated the bedroom had been mould washed, when the records do not evidence this.
Also, in our telephone conversation with the resident of 14 October 2025, the resident stated that the bedroom did not need a mould wash, as she had the wall replastered in 2021.
Due to the long delays in completing the repairs and the record keeping issues, we have made a finding of maladministration along with orders for redress. We have ordered £600 compensation. This figure is in line with our remedies guidance where there has been a failure which adversely affected the resident. And the landlord has made some attempt to put things right, but the offer was not proportionate to the failings identified by our investigation. We have also ordered the landlord to arrange record keeping training for all relevant staff.

Leaks to the resident’s bathroom

Under Section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, the landlord is responsible for the installations for supply of water and sanitation. This includes basins, baths and toilets, and any associated leaks.
The resident reported a leaking toilet on 17 November 2022 and again on 14 September 2023.
It is unclear from the landlord’s repair records if it attended to the report of 17 November 2022. The records show only a target completion date of 12 December 2022. It is unclear if this was completed. This poor record keeping is inappropriate and has hampered the ability to complete a thorough investigation.
The records show that it did attend to the resident’s reports of an “uncontrollable” leak from her toilet, on 14 November 2023. It attended within 24 hours, as per its emergency timescales, and then attended and completed any outstanding works on 5 October 2023, within its 20-day timescales. This was a reasonable response.
As it is not clear if the landlord attended to the reported leaks on both occasions, a finding of service failure is made. This is because of the poor record keeping. We have made an order for £50 compensation. This is in line with our remedies guidance where there has been a minor failure by the landlord and it did not appropriately acknowledge this or fully put things right. We have also made an order for the landlord to arrange training for all relevant staff to make sure all repairs and follow on actions are logged.

Replacement Front Entrance Door

The landlord’s repairs policy states that it is responsible for external doors and complies with the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005.
The resident reported issues with her front door in her stage 1 complaint of 15 January 2024. She said the door opened in a way that obstructed her child’s bedroom, and this had been an ongoing issue since December 2021.
This Service understands that this was a fire door and would need a specialist contractor to carry out a site survey and then replace the door. It would be reasonable that this may take longer than 20 working days.
However, there is no evidence on file that the landlord contacted its fire safety department or its specialist contractor until 13 May 2024. This was 4 months after the resident reported the issue and an inappropriate delay. This is significantly outside of the landlord’s 20-day timeline for repairs. This is particularly pertinent as the resident had told the landlord she was concerned for the safety of her child. This delay in progressing the matter was not resident focussed. This caused the resident distress and frustration and impacted on the enjoyment of her home. It could also have impacted on the resident/landlord relationship.
The records show that the landlord’s contractor did make an appointment with the resident to survey the door on 16 May 2024, but the resident was not home. This demonstrates that the landlord was trying to resolve the issue, albeit not in a timely manner. Also, from 17 May 2024 to 29 May 2024, the specialist contractor called the resident to arrange an alternative appointment with the resident on at least 4 occasions. This demonstrates that it was trying to get the door fitted for the resident and was willing to accommodate alternative dates for her.
It also asked the resident to contact the supplier directly in its stage 2 complaint response of 29 May 2024. It gave her the contact details, which was a reasonable response.
It also directly liaised with its specialist contractor and chased the front entrance door replacement on 28 June 2024. This was reasonable. The contractor advised that it had spoken to the resident and was attending to carry out a survey on 3 July 2023. This was further reasonable.
It chased its contractor on several more occasions between 28 June 2024 and 3 October 2024 and was informed that the door had been ordered with the contractor’s manufacturer. It was reasonable that the landlord attempted to get the issue resolved. It chased its contractor on several occasions for an update.
However, it did not communicate its actions or the proposed installation date with the resident. It failed to manage her expectations, and this caused her frustration and continued to impact on the enjoyment of her home.
As of 27 November 2024, the resident had received no updates from the landlord and the door had still not been replaced.
Although the landlord did try to resolve the front entrance door issues, it took too long to contact its safety team and specialist supplier. We do acknowledge that it attempted to resolve the issue in May 2024, and there were mitigating factors, due to the resident not being available for the initial appointments. However, once it rearranged the appointment after 3 July 2024, it did not communicate any progress or lack thereof with the resident. It failed to manage her expectations. This is not resident focussed. Also, the resident was still waiting for a replacement door, 9 months after she reported the issue. This continued to impact on the enjoyment of her home.
We contacted the landlord in October 2025 to ask when the front entrance door was replaced, but we have not had a response. We spoke to the resident on 14 October 2025, and she advised us that the front door was replaced in July or August 2025.
Due to the delays in the works and the poor communication with the resident in keeping her updated, we have made a finding of maladministration. We have made an order for £500 compensation. This is in line with our remedies guidance where there was a failure which adversely affected the resident. And the landlord made some attempt to put things right but did not do enough. We have also ordered the landlord to arrange training for all relevant staff. This is to ensure all relevant staff communicate any repairs appointments and updates with residents.

Faulty Bedroom Door

It is unclear from the landlord’s records when the resident first reported a faulty bedroom door. There is an entry on its repair records that an emergency locksmith was called out on 18 September 2023, but it is unclear which door this relates to. The accompanying notes have no information included. This incomplete record keeping is a failing and has affected our ability to investigate fully.
Also, the landlord’s internal notes of 15 January 2024, state that there had been a previous complaint about the child’s bedroom door but that it could not “remember the outcome.” Once again, we have no record of the report or the landlord’s actions. This has impacted our ability to fully investigate the matter. The landlord’s poor record keeping is a failing, which may have contributed to the delays in the door being repaired. By its own admission, the resident had raised this previously, albeit we do not know when, or what the landlord did. The fact it had no record of its actions is not appropriate and may have caused the resident distress and frustration.
The landlord did replace the bedroom door on 1 February 2024. This is 13 working days after the resident’s complaint on 15 January 2024. On this occasion, it responded within its 20-working day repair timescale. This was reasonable. However, due to the poor record keeping and the lack of available reliable repair records, we have made a finding of service failure. We have ordered £50 compensation. This is in line with our remedies guidance where the resident has suffered inconvenience and time and trouble. And the landlord has put things right but has not acknowledged the detriment to the resident. We have also made an order for the landlord to arrange record keeping training to all relevant staff.

Complaint Handling

This Service’s Complaint Handling Code (The Code) and the landlord’s complaints policy states that stage 1 complaints must be acknowledged within 5 working days. And responded to within 10 working days. Stage 2 complaints must be responded to within 20 working days.
The resident made a stage 2 complaint on 12 February 2024, and the landlord did not respond until 29 May 2024. This is 74 working days and an unreasonable delay. This delay would have impacted on the resident’s ability to contact this Service to investigate. This is because we cannot investigate complaints until they have been concluded through the landlord’s internal complaints process.
We note that the landlord only investigated matters dating back 6 months. This was in line with The Code at the time and a reasonable response.
There is no dispute that there were delays to the landlord responding to the resident’s stage 2 complaint. However, the landlord has apologised for this and offered the resident £100 compensation.
As the landlord has acknowledged its delays, apologised and offered the resident compensation, we have made a finding of reasonable redress.

Determination

In accordance with Paragraph 52 of the Scheme, there was maladministration in the landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of repairs to the kitchen wall and associated damp and mould.
In accordance with Paragraph 52 of the Scheme, there was service failure in the landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of leaks in her bathroom.
In accordance with Paragraph 52 of the Scheme, there was maladministration in the landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of a replacement front entrance door.
In accordance with Paragraph 52 of the Scheme, there was service failure in the landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of a faulty bedroom door.
In accordance with Paragraph 53.b. of the Scheme, there was reasonable redress in the landlord’s complaint handling.

Orders

Within 4 weeks of this report the landlord is ordered to:
1. Apologise in writing to the resident for the failings identified in this report.
2. Arrange record keeping training for all relevant staff in respect of its repair logs and actions. (This is to include progress of repair visits and completion dates for works).
3. Arrange training for all relevant staff to ensure they communicate repair actions and progress with residents.
4. Pay the resident £1,200 compensation. This replaces the £500 compensation previously offered. This must be paid directly into her bank account and not offset against any arrears (if applicable). This is made up as follows:
  1. £600 for the distress and inconvenience and time and trouble experienced due to the delays to the kitchen wall repairs and associated damp and mould.
  2. £50 for the bathroom leaks.
  3. £500 for the distress and inconvenience and time and trouble caused by the delays to replacement of the front entrance door.
  4. £50 for the communication issues with the faulty bedroom door.
The landlord should provide this Service with evidence of compliance with the above orders.