London & Quadrant Housing Trust (202527715)

Decision
Case ID	202527715
Decision type	Investigation
Landlord	London & Quadrant Housing Trust
Landlord type	Housing Association
Occupancy	Assured Tenancy
Date	22 May 2026

Background

The resident lives in a 2-bedroom flat with her 2 sons. She reported damp and mould in her bathroom, and her children’s bedroom, to the landlord. She complained because she was unhappy with its communication, and said it delayed to complete repairs to resolve the damp and mould. The resident remained unhappy and instructed solicitors to pursue a disrepair claim.

What the complaint is about

The complaint is about the landlord’s handling of the resident’s:
1. Damp and mould reports.
2. Complaint.

Our decision (determination)

We found:
1. Maladministration in the landlord’s handling of the resident’s damp and mould reports.
2. Service failure in the landlord’s handling of the resident’s complaint.

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

Summary of reasons

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

The landlord did not complete remedial work to resolve the damp and mould in line with its policy timescales. Its communication was poor. It apologised and offered compensation, which was not proportionate to the failings we identified.

The landlord’s handling of the resident’s complaint

The landlord did not respond to the resident’s stage 2 complaint in line with its complaints policy timescale. It did not address any complaint handling failures in its 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 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 19 June 2026
2	Compensation order The landlord must pay the resident £690, made up as follows: £640 for the distress and inconvenience caused by its poor communication, and delays in its handling of the resident’s damp and mould £50 for the time and trouble caused by its complaint handling delays 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 19 June 2026
3	Inspection order The landlord must contact the resident to arrange an inspection of her bathroom. It must take all reasonable steps to ensure the inspection is completed by the due date. 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 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 whether the landlord is responsible to repair or resolve the issue together with reasons where it is not responsible 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 17 July 2026
4	Starting the works The landlord must take all steps to ensure the ventilation work in the children’s bedroom, as recommended in its January 2025 inspection, is started no later than the due date. If the landlord cannot start the works in this time it must explain to us, and the resident, by the due date: why it cannot start the works by the due date and provide evidence to support its reasons. It must provide a revised timescale of when it will start and finish the works; or the steps it has taken to start the works and provide us with documentary evidence of its attempts to ensure the works were started by the due date. It must provide a revised timescale if it is able to or explain why it cannot	No later than 17 July 2026

Our investigation

The complaint procedure

Date	What happened
14 May 2025	The resident complained to the landlord. She was unhappy it did not get back to her about her ongoing damp and mould repairs.
20 May 2025	The landlord sent the resident its stage 1 response. It said its inspection found issues in the bathroom and bedroom, and it raised work in March 2025. It told her its contractor would start work after it completed an asbestos check on 21 May 2025, if it found no issues. It apologised for its communication, and acknowledged its contractor failed to attend on 6 May 2025. It upheld her complaint and offered £60 compensation, which included: £20 for the missed appointment £40 for the inconvenience caused
30 July 2025	The resident asked the landlord to escalate her complaint and said she would send an email.
6 August 2025	The resident escalated her complaint. She said the landlord did not complete any remedial work to resolve the damp and mould and she remained unhappy with its communication and compensation. She said its contractor cancelled an appointment for 5 August 2025, which she booked in advance, and was the only day she could take off work. She asked why it cancelled without reasonable notice and requested compensation for loss of income and leave. She said its compensation offer did not reflect its delay, or the disruption it caused her. She requested increased compensation and asked it to confirm when it would start and complete all outstanding work. She also asked it to confirm it would handle future communication professionally and honour appointments.
16 August 2025	The resident was unhappy the landlord did not get back to her and complained again. She raised health concerns due to the ongoing damp and mould and was unhappy it did not complete a mould wash. She asked why its contractor arranged another inspection for 26 August 2025 instead of scheduled work. She repeated her points from her previous escalation email and said she sought £1900 compensation for the impact its delays and poor communication caused. She set out how she calculated this from February 2025 and requested half as interim compensation.
29 August 2025	The landlord sent the resident its stage 2 acknowledgement and said it would respond within 20 working days.
30 August 2025	The resident was unhappy with the landlord’s timescale for its stage 2 response. She asked for a response within 10 working days and requested daily compensation until it completed the work. She requested all communication in writing.
1 September 2025	The landlord acknowledged the resident’s preferred method of communication. It sent a further stage 2 acknowledgement and said it would respond by 23 September 2025. It confirmed it would consider the damp and mould, repair delays and compensation. The resident said she wanted the landlord to investigate the cancelled appointment on 5 August 2025, the ‘wasted’ appointment on 26 August 2025 and its duplication of inspections, as it arranged another inspection for 5 September 2025. She said she wanted it to look into its failure to carry out a mould wash, its communication, and the ongoing health risks to her since February 2025. She set out the compensation she sought, including £15 per day on an ongoing basis, and requested an interim payment.
23 September 2025	The landlord sent the resident its stage 2 response. It confirmed it completed a damp and mould wash in December 2024 and an inspection in January 2025. It said its inspection found contributing issues with the bathroom extractor fan and a lack of ventilation in her children’s bedroom. It said it did not compensate for loss of earnings and explained any adult over 18 could provide access for work. It said its contractor outlined the repair work to her and it referred this to her point of contact to provide more details. It confirmed her point of contact for repairs and said it would keep her updated. It gave her its insurers details for any personal injury claim. It partially upheld her complaint and increased its stage 1 offer to £140. This included an additional £80 for the inconvenience caused for chasing repairs.
Referral to the Ombudsman	The resident remained unhappy with the landlord’s response and brought her complaint to us. She was unhappy the damp and mould work remained outstanding and the landlord’s compensation offer. The landlord attended in October 2025 to complete repairs and as part of this, removed a partition wall in her bathroom. The resident is unhappy and wants it to reinstate the wall and resolve the ongoing damp and mould.

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 damp and mould reports
Finding	Maladministration

What we did not investigate

The resident said the landlord’s handling of her damp and mould impacted her health. 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. We can decide if a landlord should pay compensation for distress and inconvenience.
The resident is pursuing a legal disrepair claim, which includes the landlord’s removal of a bathroom wall, and issues in addition to the landlord’s handling of the damp and mould in her bathroom and children’s bedroom. We have not considered the other issues being pursued by the resident, or historic damp and mould reports, because it did not form part of the resident’s complaint to the landlord. If she is unhappy, she can make a new complaint and escalate it to stage 2 of the landlord’s complaint procedure if she is not satisfied. If she remains unhappy with its final response, she can ask us to investigate further. We have not investigated the new issues after its final response.

What we did investigate

This investigation focuses on the complaint the resident made to the landlord in May 2025 up to its final complaint response in September 2025. Any reference to events before or after is for context purposes.
On 20 November 2024 the resident reported damp and mould had returned in her bathroom. In line with its damp and mould policy, the landlord completed a damp and mould wash on 6 December 2024, and an inspection on 13 January 2025.
The inspection identified moderate mould and condensation in the bathroom and children’s bedroom, linked to poor ventilation. It found the bathroom extractor fan did not work and was not sufficient for the space. It found damp and mould on a bathroom wall, which the resident said used to be a door that had been boarded, plastered and tiled over in the past. It recommended essential and urgent work which included further investigation, tiling, anti-mould sealant, a mould wash, plastering work, and installation of an extractor fan in the bathroom and a passive wall vent in the bedroom. It is unclear when the landlord raised the recommended work following its inspection.
The resident was unhappy with the landlord’s delay to start remedial work and complained in May 2025. In its stage 1 response, it told her it raised repairs in March 2025 and would complete an asbestos check on 21 May 2025 before it started work. This is not recorded in the landlord’s repair records. In its stage 1 response it apologised its contractor failed to attend on 6 May 2025 and offered £20 compensation. This was in line with its compensation policy for missed appointments.
The landlord’s delay to start work, and its cancelled appointment on 5 August 2025, caused the resident time and trouble escalating her complaint. It is unclear what work the landlord had completed at this point. Its repair records show it raised 3 jobs in 2025 after its inspection, one in June and another 2 in August. It cancelled the mould wash it raised in June and raised another in August, which it cancelled again as it was raised incorrectly. It completed the mould wash it re-raised in August 2025 but has not recorded a completion date.
In her further complaint escalation, the resident was unhappy the landlord arranged another inspection for 26 August 2025. She raised concerns about its repeat inspections and delay to start the work. This inspection is not on its repair records, and it did not provide us a copy.
The resident said the landlord arranged a further inspection on 5 September 2025, but it did not go ahead because she was taken ill to hospital. It completed an inspection on 19 September 2025. It did not provide us a copy of the report or record it on its repair records.
In its stage 2 response, the landlord explained the issues identified in January 2025. It acknowledged she took time off work for appointments but said it did not compensate for loss of earnings, which was in line with its compensation policy. It increased its compensation offer but this did not include the missed appointment on 5 August 2025, which the resident said was cancelled without reasonable notice. It acknowledged its lack of resolution with its damp and mould repairs but said it had investigated. Due to a lack of evidence, we are unable to determine what investigations it did.
After the landlord’s stage 2 response, the resident contacted the landlord several times to clarify the work scheduled for 21 October 2025. It confirmed the agreed scope of work and said it was safe for her to remain in her property. Due to a disagreement between the resident and landlord about the work on the day, it could not complete the work.
The resident said the landlord removed a bathroom partition wall. She said the newly opened area was a waste of space, dark and damp. She asked the landlord to reinstate the wall and put her bathroom back to how it was. She refused further access until it agreed to reinstate the wall and the work remains outstanding. The landlord said it consulted its surveying team who agreed to leave the space open. It said blocking the area in the past caused mould and it was necessary to keep the space open for ventilation. The resident told us its contractor recently said it would reinstate the wall. The landlord did not get back to us about this.
The resident told us she still has damp in her bathroom, particularly in the newly open area. She said the landlord did not treat the area when it attended recently in May 2025 for a survey and a damp wash. In view of the resident’s ongoing damp concerns, we have made an order for it to complete an inspection.
The resident said the ventilation work in her children’s bedroom remains outstanding. The landlord’s repair records have no log of any work raised for this, which was recommended in its inspection in January 2025. In view of this, we have made an order for it to start the work.
Overall, the landlord’s handling of the resident’s damp and mould reports was poor. Its policy says it will raise identified remedial work within 10 working days of its assessment, and keep resident’s clear on timescales and informed throughout. It did not act promptly to address the damp or complete work in line with its damp and mould policy. It delayed completing the essential and urgent work identified in its inspection in January 2025 and did not update the resident. Its poor communication caused her time and trouble contacting it for updates and complaining.
In its complaint response the landlord apologised for its communication and acknowledged the inconvenience it caused. In its stage 2 response, it increased its compensation offer to £140. We have ordered the landlord to pay the resident an additional £500 for the distress and inconvenience its poor communication and delays caused the resident. This is in line with our compensation guidance for failings which adversely affected the resident, and the landlord’s offer of compensation was not proportionate to the failings we identified.

Complaint	The landlord’s handling of the resident’s complaint
Finding	Service failure

The landlord’s complaints policy says it will respond at stage 1 within 10 working days, and at stage 2 within 20 working days of its acknowledgement. The landlord’s definition of a complaint and response timescales are in line with our Code.
The landlord sent its stage 1 response in line with its complaints policy timescale.
While the landlord sent its stage 2 response within 20 days of its acknowledgement, it acknowledged the resident’s complaint escalation 17 working days after she escalated. This was not in line with its policy which says it acknowledges complaint escalations within 5 working days. This delayed its stage 2 response and caused her time and trouble contacting it again. It did not address any complaint handling failures in its response.
In view of the above, we found service failure. We have ordered the landlord to apologise and pay the resident £50 compensation for the time and trouble its complaint handling delays caused her. This is in line with our compensation guidance for failings which the landlord did not acknowledge and may not have affected the overall outcome for the resident.

Learning

The landlord should learn from this case in respect of its management of damp and mould and ensure it is following its policy timescales for repairs.

Knowledge information management (record keeping)

The landlord should ensure its repair records are complete. It should review our repairing trust spotlight report on repairs and maintenance.

Communication

The landlord should consider how it can improve its repair and survey updates with residents by giving clear, timely, and proactive updates.