Two Rivers Housing (202526719)

Decision
Case ID	202526719
Decision type	Investigation
Landlord	Two Rivers Housing
Landlord type	Housing Association
Occupancy	Assured Tenancy
Date	3 March 2026

Background

The resident lives in a 3-bedroom bungalow. She reported ongoing damp and mould issues. She believed the damp and mould had affected her health, by exacerbating her existing breathing problems.

What the complaint is about

The complaint is about:
1. The landlord’s handling of reported damp and mould.
2. We have also investigated the landlord’s complaint handling.

Our decision (determination)

We have found there was:
Maladministration in the landlords handling of reported damp and mould.
No maladministration in the landlord’s handling of the associated complaint.

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

Summary of reasons

The landlord’s handling of reported damp and mould.

There were delays in identifying the cause of the damp and mould and in completing the follow-on repairs. The delays caused prolonged inconvenience and contributed to damage to the property. The landlord accepted that its failures contributed to the delays and offered compensationfor redecoration. However, this redress did not sufficiently consider the distress and inconvenience the delays caused. The recurring damp and mould also led to a bedroom being emptied for required works. The works were delayed for a considerable time,which left the room unusable and disrupted the rest of the property. The landlord has not fully acknowledged the detriment the resident reported.

The landlord’s handling of the associated complaint.

The landlord responded to complaints within timescales set out in its policies.

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 specific to the failures identified in this decision, meaningful and empathetic. It has due regard to our apologies guidance.	No later than 31 March 2026
	Compensation order (based on rent) The landlord must pay the resident £876.33. This is to recognise the loss of use of the bedroom for the period between February 2025 and when the issue was resolved in November 2025 (minus a reasonable timescale to complete works).	No later than 31 March 2026
	Compensation order The landlord must pay the resident £500 (in addition to the £60 for redecoration). This is to recognise the distress and inconvenience caused to her by the failings in its handling of reports of damp and mould, and the associated repairs. The total of £1,376.33 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 31 March 2026
	Action / Contact order The landlord must contact the resident to confirm whether all identified works relating to the damp and mould have been completed to the resident’s satisfaction. If any works remain outstanding, the landlord must take all reasonable steps to agree a timetable for completion. The landlord must also confirm how it responded, and what action it took, after receiving our material change notice of 6 November 2025 in respect of its Awaab’s Law obligations. The landlord must provide us with evidence that it has completed these actions by the due date. If the landlord cannot contact the resident, it must provide us with documentary evidence of its attempts to make contact.	No later than 14 April 2026

Our investigation

The complaint procedure

Date	What happened
14 January 2025	The resident complained that she had experienced damp and mould issues for 12 years. She said she had reported the issue regularly, but it had not been properly resolved. She said she had treated the damp and mould as the landlord previously advised; and had painted the affected areas but this had not resolved the recurring issue. She said the damp and mould were affecting her mental health and worsening her breathing difficulties. The resident asked the landlord to resolve the damp and mould. She also asked it to install a new heating system. She believed the existing poor heating system was contributing to the damp and mould. Notes show the landlord acknowledged the complaint the same day.
31 January 2025	The landlord upheld the complaint. In its stage 1 response it said it had arranged the following actions to put things right: A damp and mould inspection for 10 February 2025 to establish the root cause and arrange any required works to alleviate the issue. Compensation of £35 as a contribution toward decoration of Lounge, and £25 toward decoration of the bedroom. The compensation payment was processed days after.
12 – 14 May 2025	On 12 May 2025 the resident asked to escalate her complaint. She said: The promised works following the stage 1 response had not been completed. Guttering that was repaired a year earlier had not been fitted properly and was causing further damp and mould. Water was coming up through the flooring. She spent £400 on carpet 3 years earlier and it was now mouldy because the issues were unresolved. Contractors visited in February to treat the mould and told her the property needed to be evacuated for 2 hours. She had not been warned in advance and could not leave at such short notice due to caring for her grandchild and having her dogs. The work was not completed because she could not leave the property. She could not use a bedroom because contractors instructed her to clear the furniture and belongings. These items were stored in other parts of the property and caused significant clutter. Her grandchildren were unable to stay over while the room remained unusable. She was left living in unacceptable conditions, and was living out of boxes as lots of things had to be cleared to allow access for works. The situation was affecting her mental and physical health, as well as her husband’s mental health. She had not received any further communication since and had chased for updates. She had texted the surveyor on multiple occasions but did not receive any response. The landlord acknowledged the stage 2 complaint on 14 May 2025.
11 June 2025	The landlord upheld the complaint in its stage 2 response and apologised for the delays. It explained that: There were unexpected delays in obtaining the required quotations before it could progress the works. The damp and mould works could have been completed while the resident remained in the property in a different room. It apologised if the resident was given incorrect information by the contractor, and for any inconvenience this caused. The resident’s request for a new heating system had been added to the grant-funded programme. An assessment of her property was booked for 26 June 2025, and work would be scheduled. A meeting had been booked for 20 June 2025 for a landlord officer, surveyor and contractor to visit the resident and plan the full work schedule. It would arrange professional cleaning of the carpets to remove any damp and mould marks or staining.
Referral to the Ombudsman	The resident brought her complaint to us on 19 September 2025. She said the down pipe and guttering remained in disrepair and continued to cause damp and mould. She said there was still mould in 3 rooms. She also said that the new heating was being installed at that time.

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 reported damp and mould.
Finding	Maladministration

We are very sorry to hear about the resident’s circumstances, that she believed the landlord’s failures contributed to a deterioration in her health. This Service does not doubt the resident’s comments about the impact on her health. However, it is not with our remit to determine causation, liability, or the impact on health. Matters of personal injury or damage to health fall outside the complaints process and are more appropriately addressed through the courts or the landlord’s insurer. We do expect landlords to demonstrate that they have listened to resident’s reports about their health and have factored these reports into their response on any issue.
The resident said that damp and mould had been an issue in her home for 12 years. Records show long‑standing reports of damp and mould from at least 2019. We acknowledge the resident’s account of long‑term issues. However, we normally consider events from around a year leading up to a complaint. Historical records are limited and may not be complete or fully reliable. If the resident raised a formal complaint sooner with the landlord, it may have allowed earlier review of the landlord’s actions. In this case, it is proportionate for us to focus on the evidence from 2023 onwards, given the records available. We have also assessed events after the landlord completed its internal complaint process (after June 2025). This is to see whether the landlord followed the agreements made during the complaint process. This approach is appropriate when it is fair to both parties and focusses on achieving a resolution.
The resident reported ongoing issues of damp and mould on 18 January 2023. A job was raised for a surveyor to attend. However, this visit was unreasonably delayed until 9 June 2023. This was around 4 months beyond the timescales set out in the landlord’s policy. The June 2023 inspection noted that a damp and mould wash was completed and the resident was advised to redecorate. However, there is no record of the inspection report, so we cannot determine the extent of the mould.
The resident reported recurring damp and mould on 17 January 2024. It was positive that the landlord arranged an inspection for 22 January 2024. The inspection found mould in the 2 double bedrooms, the bathroom, the walls, and the front door. The record also stated that these issues had not been resolved since a previous inspection (which was 7 months earlier). This raises a question about whether it was appropriate for the landlord to only instruct a mould wash after the June inspection. There is no evidence that the landlord arranged any follow-on works following the inspection on 22 January 2024, and the case was marked as completed. This was not appropriate because the issues remained unresolved.
It was unreasonable that the resident had to report the same issues again on 17 August 2024. The landlord completed an inspection on 2 September 2024. However, the landlord did not record any findings from this inspection. Because of this poor record keeping, we cannot confirm what the inspection identified. This meant it did not demonstrate that it identified or addressed the underlying issue. We also cannot confirm whether the landlord recommended any works. The earlier inspections had already identified issues that remained outstanding. Despite this, there is no evidence that the landlord took any follow-on action. Understandably, the resident then made a complaint on 14 January 2025.
As a result of the stage 1 complaint, the landlord completed a damp and mould inspection on 10 February 2025. This was the 4th inspection since June 2023. It was clear that significant issues had been identified, because the landlord raised a substantial list of internal and external job quotes. This included the following works:
1. All 3 bedrooms – liquid damp and mould treatment, and replacement flooring.
2. Back 2 bedrooms – renewal of skirting boards, removal of plaster, replastering to 1 metre, replacement skirting boards, removal of mould affected wallpaper, and redecoration.
3. Rear bedroom – reglazing of a fixed window pane.
4. Kitchen – installation of a condensation-control extractor fan.
5. Bathroom – regrouting tiles, resealing the bath, and painting the walls and ceiling.
6. External building – digging out soil against the building and infilling with gravel, renewing both verges and installing timber gravel boards, replacing front door gaskets, replacing gable fascia box ends, and installing a gully for the front down pipe.
7. Roof – inspection of the roof and loft space.
After the landlord raised job quotes, it did not maintain contact with the resident for the next 3 months. There is no evidence that it provided updates on the planned works during this period. This was a failing of the landlord, and the lack of communication meant the resident did not know what action the landlord intended to take next.
On 1 May 2025 the landlord left a voicemail for the resident stating it was following up after mould treatment. Days later, the resident spoke to the landlord and said she was very upset and distressed about the ongoing issues. She said the situation was having an impact on her physical and mental health. She also said it was affecting her husband’s mental health. She explained they were finding the living conditions unbearable because the issues had continued for a long time. She said the lack of communication was adding to the situation because she did not know when the issues would be resolved.
There is no evidence of the landlord having responded to the resident’s specific concerns about the impact on her and her household’s health. She raised these concerns as part of her complaint and expanded on these concerns in May 2025. While we will not assess the impact of property related issues on tenants, we do expect landlords to demonstrate that they have considered such reports. It is of significant concern here that the landlord has not demonstrated this in this instance.
The resident explained that in February earlier that year, contractors instructed her to clear out the bedroom for access of works, but the works had not been completed. She described how the boxes and furniture stored around the property were a disruption. She was also upset that her grandchildren could not stay over since the bedroom had been cleared.We acknowledge the detriment caused by the bedroom being unusable for a prolonged period.
In its stage 2 response, the landlord scheduled a meeting to plan the required works. However, the landlord did not record the actions agreed at the meeting on 20 June 2025. This poor record keeping meant there was no evidence of what it intended to do next. Notes from July and August 2025 show the resident expressed further frustration about the outstanding works. She then spent unnecessary time bringing the case to us in September 2025. This was a further detriment to the resident.
It was positive that the landlord followed through with its agreement in its stage 2 response and renewed the resident’s heating system. The landlord endeavoured to have the installation completed during August 2025. However, it was completed in September 2025 because of a delay linked to the government decarbonisation fund grant.
The repair log contained very limited detail, so we cannot confirm when each of the jobs raised were completed. However, it is clear the issues were not resolved because the resident continued to chase gutter and downpipe repairs into November 2025. She also expressed dissatisfaction with still living from boxes. The landlord raised a job on 10 November 2025 to repair the gutter and downpipe. This was an unreasonable delay, considering issues with the gutter and downpipe were identified over 9 months earlier.
In correspondence we received from the resident she said that damp and mould had worsened in one room. She reported that this was further aggravating her asthma and had increased her medication. She also said that the landlord was not aware of this further impact on her health. We wrote to the landlord on 6 November 2025 to notify it that this could be a hazard or material change under the Hazards in Social Housing (Prescribed Requirements) (England) Regulations 2025. It was required to consider and assess it this could be a potential significant or emergency hazard.
A further damp and mould inspection on 18 November 2025 found mould in the hall, lounge, and all bedrooms. It is not known if the landlord undertook this inspection under its Awaab’s Law procedures. The mould was classified as slight. The inspection identified issues with poorly fitted gutters at the front and rear, and with the front downpipe. It stated that water was spilling over onto brickwork during rainfall. The notes confirmed internal work was taking place at that time to address damp and mould. The inspection also recommended external waterproofing, though it is not clear if or when these works were carried out. It is reasonable to assume it was completed, because a post‑inspection was recorded as completed on 11 December 2025. However, the findings were not provided to us, and we have not been updated to confirm whether the resident was satisfied that the works were complete.
For these reasons we have ordered the landlord to contact the resident to confirm whether all identified works relating to the damp and mould have been completed. If any works remain outstanding, the landlord must take all reasonable steps to agree a timetable for completion. If it hasn’t already done so, the landlord must consider if the circumstances in the resident’s home amount to a potential emergency or a potential significant hazard. If the circumstances could be, it must carry out an investigation in line with the provisions of the Hazards in Social Housing (Prescribed Requirements) (England) Regulations 2025.
Overall, the landlord did not apply its policies to resolve the damp and mould issues and the related repairs within a reasonable time. If the landlord had identified the cause earlier and acted promptly, the recurring damp and mould might not have continued for so long. The landlord’s record keeping was poor, and it did not maintain clear communication with the resident throughout the period of concern. This lack of information makes it difficult to understand how the landlord assessed the recurring damp and mould. There is a clear pattern of the landlord not taking substantive action after inspections. This pattern contributed to the ongoing issues throughout the period we assessed. The landlord failed to act proactively and did not identify or address the root cause of the problem. This left the household affected for an extended period. It also failed to respond adequately to the resident’s concerns about the impact on her breathing and living arrangements.
Although the landlord accepted some failures, it did not apply its compensation policy appropriately. It did not fully consider the distress and inconvenience caused to the resident by its failures. As described by the resident, we acknowledge the landlord’s actions resulted in detriment to the resident over a prolonged period from January 2023 to November 2025. Considering this, we have ordered the landlord to apologise and pay £500 to the resident. This aligns with our remedies guidance where failures have adversely affected the resident, and the landlord has not addressed the full detriment. This amount is in addition to the £60 already paid for redecoration.
As noted, the resident lost the use of the bedroom from February 2025 until internal issues were resolved sometime in November 2025. We consider 1 month would have been reasonable to complete the damp and mould related repairs, which also aligns with the landlord’s policy. Although the resident repeatedly raised concerns of the lost use of the room and the disruption to the whole property, the landlord did not respond to this issue. To recognise this further detriment, we have ordered the landlord to pay £876.33. This amount reflects 20% of rent for 8 months equating to 35 weeks at £125.19 per week (based on the Regulator’s average rent).

Complaint	The handling of the complaint
Finding	No maladministration

The Housing Ombudsman’s Complaint Handling Code (‘the Code’) sets out when and how a landlord should respond to complaints. The landlord has a published complaints policy which complies with the terms of the Code in respect of the timescales.
The landlord followed the Code when managing the complaint. It issued both stage 1 and stage 2 responses within the required timescales. Upon receiving the complaints, it took the concerns seriously by visiting and meeting with the resident to plan works. This demonstrates that it listened and took reasonable steps in attempts to resolve the raised issues.
We are satisfied that the landlord acted in line with the Code during the complaint process. However, although the complaint was handled appropriately, the works agreed during the complaint were not completed without delay. This has been addressed in our assessment above. Landlords should aim to resolve issues within the complaint period wherever possible.

Learning

Knowledge information management (record keeping)

Limited information in the landlord’s records, including missing details of damp and mould inspections and repairs, affected our ability to complete a robust investigation. Our spotlight report on knowledge and information management (KIM) explains that poor data management can prevent landlords from using information effectively to improve services. The landlord should strengthen how it records and uses data, which may involve better training, clearer guidance or additional staff support. The spotlight report also provides eLearning and tools that can assist landlords in improving their information management practice.

Communication

The evidence shows that the landlord had very poor communication with the resident throughout the period of the work. The landlord did not provide regular updates, and it did not explain what actions it planned to take next. This lack of communication made the situation more difficult for the resident, particularly given the scale of the issues identified. The landlord should ensure that residents receive timely and consistent updates when major works are identified. It should introduce a clear process for keeping residents informed during inspections, diagnosis, and repairs. It should also review how it identifies and supports vulnerable residents during prolonged repairs.