Peabody Trust (202531280)

Background

1. The resident reported damp and mould in her daughter’s bedroom to the landlord. She later complained that it was taking too long to resolve the matter and that her daughter’s furniture and belongings had been damaged by the damp and mould.

What the complaint is about

2. The complaint is about the landlord’s handling of damp and mould.

Our decision (determination)

3. There was service failure in the landlord’s handling of damp and mould.

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

Reasons

4. Once notified about a potential hazard such as damp and mould in a resident’s home, landlords have a legal obligation to resolve it in a timely manner to ensure the property is safe to live in. The landlord’s repair policy says it will complete complex damp and mould works within 60 calendar days.
5. In this case, the landlord took just under 2 years to complete the damp and mould repairs. This was significantly outside of its policy timescale. During this period, the resident’s daughter was unable to fully use her bedroom because of the damp and mould. In addition, the resident incurred distress, inconvenience, time and trouble, as she had to chase the landlord several times to progress the repairs while they went unresolved.
6. In recognition of the delayed repairs, the landlord offered the resident £2,040.26 for the loss of use of her daughter’s bedroom and £1,610 for the distress, inconvenience, time and trouble caused for that period. Taking into consideration the circumstances, this was reasonable, proportionate and in line with our remedies guidance. It was also in line with its compensation policy. It is noted that the landlord also offered the resident £50 for out-of-pocket expenses.
7. However, the resident told the landlord that the damp and mould had damaged some of her daughter’s furniture and belongings. The landlord’s compensation policy says that if it is claimed that it is responsible for any damage to furniture or personal belongings, it will thoroughly investigate to determine if its actions or lack of action caused or worsened the damage before involving its insurers.
8. The evidence provided does not demonstrate that the landlord carried out an investigation or referred the matter to its insurers. Given its delays to resolve the damp and mould, that it did not was unreasonable. There is also no evidence that it provided an adequate response to the resident’s concern. Therefore, an order has been made for the landlord to pay the resident an additional £100 compensation for these failings. An order for it to contact the resident about her concerns regarding the damaged belongings has also been made.
9. We have not investigated matters that have not completed the landlord’s complaints process, such as the resident’s concerns about a trip hazard.

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.