Sovereign Network Group (202445304)

Decision
Case ID	202445304
Decision type	Investigation
Landlord	Sovereign Network Group
Landlord type	Housing Association
Occupancy	Assured Tenancy
Date	30 March 2026

Background

1. The resident lives in a flat and contacted the landlord in February 2025 about ongoing damp and mould affecting her living room wall again after previously complaining about this for several years.

What the complaint is about

2. The complaint is about the landlord’s handling of damp and mould.
3. We have also considered the landlord’s complaint handling.

Our decision (determination)

4. We have found maladministration in the landlord’s handling of:
   1. Damp and mould.
   2. The complaint.

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

Summary of reasons

5. The landlord did not show that it had completed all work it had identified to address and resolve ongoing damp and mould issues.
6. The landlord delayed addressing the resident’s concerns under its complaints process. It appropriately acknowledged this. But it then delayed escalating her complaint.

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 27 April 2026
2	Compensation order The landlord must pay the resident £500 made up as follows: £400 for the distress and inconvenience caused by its handling of damp and mould, which includes the £260 previously awarded £100 for the distress and inconvenience caused by its complaint handling, which includes the £50 previously awarded This must be paid directly to the resident by the due date. The landlord must provide documentary evidence of payment by the due. The landlord may deduct from the total figure any payment it has already made.	No later than 27 April 2026
3	Inspection order We have made an inspection order because the landlord provided inadequate evidence to show the action it took to address issues identified with the wall/cavity wall insulation (CWI). What the landlord must do The landlord must contact the resident to arrange an inspection of her ongoing damp and mould concerns. The inspection must check that all appropriate work has been completed to address any issues with the wall/CWI. The landlord must take all reasonable steps to ensure the inspection is completed by the due date. A suitably qualified person must complete the inspection. 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 identifies the underlying cause or what further investigation should be conducted to identify the underlying cause 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 continued issues with damp and mould whether the landlord is responsible to repair or resolve damp and mould whether the provision of Awaab’s law applies to the findings a full scope of works to achieve a lasting and effective repair to the damp and mould (if the landlord is responsible)  the likely timescales to commence and complete the work	No later than 11 May 2026

 

Our investigation

The complaint procedure

Date	What happened
6 February 2025	The resident complained to the landlord about ongoing damp and mould issues. She said she was waiting for roof renewal works, and she was concerned about holes at the back of the property.
23 May 2025	The landlord provided its stage 1 complaint response. It said its roof replacement work was ongoing and was due to be completed in the next 4 weeks. It said it would complete pointing work after this. It noted the resident had raised concerns about skirting and plastering. It said it would address this once external work was complete. It awarded her £110, which included £50 for complaint handling failings, as it initially refused her complaint and did not respond until we asked it to.
7 August 2025	The resident escalated her complaint. She said the roof was fixed but her concerns about mould on an outside wall and skirting had not been addressed.
9 October 2025	The landlord provided its stage 2 complaint response. It said that all roof work was complete, and the cavity wall insulation (CWI) had been extracted and reinjected. It said it was waiting for the walls to dry before replacing skirting and fitting a vent. It awarded the resident £200 in recognition of ongoing damp and mould issues.
Referral to the Ombudsman	The resident remained unhappy with the landlord’s complaint response as she said it had identified issues with the CWI but had not addressed this. She said that, as a result, she was still experiencing damp on her living room wall.

 

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	Damp and mould.
Finding	Maladministration

What we have not investigated

7. We determined the resident’s previous complaint concerning damp and mould in August 2024. At this time, roof work was outstanding. The landlord was in the process of agreeing this with the leaseholder of the property above. We have considered the landlord’s handling of issues the resident reported since our earlier investigation was completed and not before then. This is because we do not have the authority to investigate complaints that we or another ombudsman have already made a decision on.

What we have investigated

8. In line with the recommendations of our earlier report, the landlord completed a property survey in September 2024. It found no sign of damp or mould or defect in the living room. The resident contacted the landlord to make a new complaint on 6 February 2025. She said it had previously completed plastering, painting, and skirting replacement works. She said the skirting was rotting and she was experiencing damp and mould. She raised concerns that holes in the back of the property might be contributing to these issues. The resident told us that the issues affected her living room wall. The landlord did not act to address these concerns. Instead, it refused her complaint because it said it had already been considered under its complaints process.
9. In line with its damp and mould policy, the landlord should have responded to the resident’s report of ongoing damp and mould within 10 working days. It should then have provided her with clear timelines for completing any repairs. But it took no action to inspect or address the issues until 4 June 2025. That was almost 4 months after her contact in February 2025.
10. On 4 June 2025 the landlord completed a damp and mould wash. It also raised work to replace a section of skirting. However, when it attended on 13 June 2025, it noted that it had only treated the skirting with wood preserve as the damp and mould issue was not resolved. It recorded then that it believed rotten fascias were letting “weather” in, causing damp to the living room. We acknowledge that roof replacement and fascia work was ongoing at this time to address this.
11. When the resident escalated her complaint on 7 August 2025, she said the roof had been renewed but she wanted the external wall fixed and skirting board to be replaced. The landlord attended on 13 August 2025 to replace the skirting. But it did not complete this work as the walls were still wet. It identified jointing was missing outside allowing damp in. It also noted some damp proof course was missing and that external bushes should be cut back to help resolve issues. It had also said in its stage 1 response of May 2025 that pointing work would be completed after roofing work. But repair records do not show this, or the work identified in August 2025, was raised or completed.
12. The landlord attended on 5 September 2025 to check CWI. Its operative later detailed in an internal email that this was filled up “way too much”. They noted a contractor needed to attend to remove insulation so the cavity could breathe and ventilate. The landlord’s stage 2 response of 9 October 2025 outlined the repairs it had completed. This included roof works and damp and mould treatment. It said it was waiting for the walls to dry before replacing the skirting and fitting a vent to the chimney wall. It also said that CWI had been extracted and reinjected. But repair records do not show this work. If work was completed to address the issue identified in September 2025, the landlord should have made clear records to show this.
13. The resident contacted the landlord at the end of November 2025. It noted then that she had said she wanted a contractor to attend to remove CWI to allow the wall to breathe and ventilate. The landlord detailed internally CWI could not be removed as it was required by law, and that the vent should resolve the issues. The landlord later completed work on 10 December 2025 to install 2 vents. But we have seen insufficient evidence that it has taken steps to address the issues it had identified with the wall/CWI.
14. We have found maladministration in the landlord’s handling of damp and mould. The resident told us that she remains concerned that CWI issues have not been resolved. She said she is still experiencing damp issues on her living room wall.
15. Given the failings we have identified, we have ordered the landlord to apologise and address these concerns with an inspection, survey report, and full scope of works. We have also ordered that it make an increased award of £140 further compensation to fully recognise the impact of failings we have identified. This is in addition to the £60 and £200 the landlord previously awarded for this at stage 1 and stage 2 if it has not already paid this. This is in line with our remedies guidance’s recommended range of compensation for when such failures negatively affect the resident.

Complaint	The handling of the complaint
Finding	Maladministration

16. The Housing Ombudsman’s Complaint Handling Code (the Code) sets out when and how a landlord should respond to complaint. The landlord’s complaints policy complied with the Code’s 10-working day stage 1 and 20-working-day stage 2 response timescales and the Code’s definition of a complaint as an expression of dissatisfaction.
17. The landlord delayed responding to the resident’s complaint of 6 February 2025. It incorrectly told her it could not raise the matter as a new complaint. It did not do so until 62 working days beyond its 10-working-day target on 21 May 2025, and only after contact from us. The landlord appropriately apologised for this in its stage 1 response of 23 May 2025. Its £50 award in recognition of this was reasonable. This is because it was in line with our remedies guidance’s recommended range of compensation for such delays in getting matters resolved.
18. The resident asked the landlord to escalate her complaint on 7 August 2025. But it did not do so until she sent her escalation request again on 15 September 2025. At this time, she said it had previously asked her to put her complaint “on hold” while it investigated issues. The landlord made no record of why it did not progress her earlier escalation request. It provided its stage 2 response on 9 October 2025. But it should not have delayed in escalating her complaint. This was contrary to the Code. It also delayed its consideration of the initial escalation beyond its 20-working–day target for stage 2 responses by 25 working days.
19. We have found maladministration in the landlord’s complaint handling from its further delay and lack of records at stage 2. Given the failings we have identified, we have ordered it to apologise and make an increased award of £50 further compensation to fully recognise the impact of these failings. This is in addition to the £50 the landlord previously awarded at stage 1 if it has not already paid this. This is in line with our remedies guidance’s recommended range of compensation for when such failures negatively affect the resident.

Learning

20. The landlord should ensure it responds to ongoing reports of damp and mould issues in line with its policies and procedures.
21. The landlord should ensure all works identified are appropriately raised and completed to ensure repair issues are fully resolved.
22. The landlord should ensure that complaints about new or ongoing concerns are appropriately raised and considered in line with its complaints policy and the Code. It should escalate complaints without delay if all/part of the complaint is not resolved to the resident’s satisfaction.

Knowledge information management (record keeping)

23. The landlord should ensure it makes clear records of all work completed to allow it to fully demonstrate how it has addressed repairs.

Communication

24. The landlord did not communicate clearly to the resident about what it was doing to address her concerns about wall repair issues.