A2Dominion Housing Group Limited (202405725)

Decision
Case ID	202405725
Decision type	Investigation
Landlord	A2Dominion Housing Group Limited
Landlord type	Housing Association
Occupancy	Assured Tenancy
Date	27 October 2025

Background

1. The resident reported a bathroom leak in July 2022 affecting the kitchen ceiling and raised concerns about electrical safety. She submitted a stage 1 complaint in November 2022 and a stage 2 in August 2023. In May 2024, she contacted this Service due to lack of response from her landlord and unresolved repairs. Following our intervention, the landlord issued a stage 2 response in September 2024. The resident states the repairs remain incomplete as of 17 October 2025.

What the complaint is about

2. The complaint is about the landlord’s management of repairs and its communication.
3. This Service has also investigated the landlord’s complaints handling.

Our decision (determination)

4. We found the landlord responsible for:
   1. Maladministration in its management of the repairs and its communication.
   2. Maladministration in its complaints handling.

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

Summary of reasons

Repairs and Communication

5. This Service found that the landlord took longer than reasonable to complete repairs, did not communicate effectively with the resident, and failed to maintain adequate records, hindering its ability to manage the repairs appropriately.

Complaint Handling

6. This Service found that the landlord did not follow its complaint policy, delayed its responses, and did not demonstrate learning from the issues raised, resulting in poor complaint handling.

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 person to the resident for the failures identified in this report. The landlord must ensure: The apology is provided by a senior member of the landlord’s management team. 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 28 November 2025
2	Inspection order The landlord must contact the resident to arrange an inspection. It must take all reasonable steps to ensure the inspection is completed by the due date. The inspection must be completed by someone suitably qualified to complete an inspection of the type needed. 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, kitchen ceiling and electrics of the property and produces a written report with photographs. The survey report must set out: Whether the property is free from any immediate or elevated hazards or risks to its occupants. Diagnosis of the cause(s) of the leaks and mould. Whether the landlord is responsible to repair or resolve the issue together with a clear statement of reasons where it considers that 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 planned 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 and what provisions will be made available should this prove to be an actuality.	No later than 28 November 2025
3	Completing the works The landlord must take all reasonable steps to ensure the work identified in the survey report is completed promptly and in any event by the due date. If the landlord cannot complete the works in this time, it must explain to us, by the due date: Why it cannot complete the works by the due date and provide evidence to support its reasons. It must provide a revised timescale of when it will finish the works; or Explain the steps it has taken to ensure the works were completed and provide supporting evidence. It must provide a revised timescale if it is able to or explain why it cannot. Whether suitable alternative accommodation is necessary and will be made available to the resident until the work is completed.	No later than 09 January 2026
4	Compensation order The landlord must pay the resident the £2250 compensation it offered, if it has not already done so. This must be paid directly to the resident by the due date. The landlord must provide documentary evidence of payment by the due date.	No later than 28 November 2025
5	Learning Order To ensure accountability and service improvement, the landlord must: conduct a thorough internal review of the service failures and associated learnings in this case, including delays in repairs, lack of electrical safety checks, poor communication, inadequate record keeping and poor complaints handling. produce a written report detailing its findings and a Service Improvement Plan outlining specific actions to prevent recurrence, with clear timelines for identified changes to be brought into its day to day operations and responsible officers identified. The landlord must submit both the report and the Service Improvement Plan to this Service by the due date.	No later than 09 January 2026

Our investigation

The complaint procedure

Date	What happened
11 November 2022	The resident raised her stage 1 complaint. She complained that repairs raised in July 2022 to her bathroom and kitchen ceiling had not been completed.
14 November 2022	The landlord acknowledged the resident’s complaint by email.
29 November 2022	The landlord responded to the resident’s stage 1 complaint. It upheld her complaint, offered £125 compensation and said it would complete all repairs by 13 January 2023. It said it had carried out staff training to improve record keeping.
17 August 2023	The resident emailed the landlord with her stage 2 complaint. She complained she had not had any communication from the landlord since her previous contact on 16 July 2023, in which she told the landlord the repairs had not been completed, and she had not received the compensation offered.
21 March 2024	The landlord acknowledged the stage 2 complaint.
12 April 2024	The landlord notified the resident that its stage 2 response would be delayed and would be issued as soon as possible.
Referral to the Ombudsman	The resident contacted this Service on 13 May 2024. She complained that the landlord had not done anything about the repairs and had not responded to her stage 2 complaint.
25 September 2024	The landlord responded to the stage 2 complaint following intervention from this Service. It upheld the resident’s complaint and offered compensation of £2250. It committed to completing all works by 25 October 2024.
14 January 2025	The resident confirmed she would like this Service to investigate her complaint. She said that the repairs were still outstanding, and she was unable to reach the landlord on the telephone.

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 management of the resident’s repairs and its communication
Finding	Maladministration

7. Typically, this Service investigates issues up to the landlord’s final complaint response, as later events fall outside the formal internal complaint process. However, in this case, it is appropriate to consider subsequent events or inactions up to the date of this report.
8. The landlord’s repairs policy requires emergency repairs within 24 hours, standard repairs within 20 working days, and major works within 90 days.
9. On 13 July 2022, the resident reported a bathroom leak that affected the kitchen ceiling. She also raised concerns about electrical safety. The landlord’s records show that an operative attended and was unable to access the property. There is no evidence seen that the landlord took any further action to follow up the repair until 24 November 2022—95 working days later and after the resident’s stage 1 complaint. This was a significant delay. On 24 November 2022 the landlord carried out some repairs to the bathroom, but there is no evidence that it checked the electrics. Landlords are responsible for keeping electrical, water, and sanitation systems safe. In this case, the landlord did not check the electrics after the leak. This was not in line with its responsibilities and did not provide the resident with reassurance.
10. In its Stage 1 complaint response, the landlord said it would complete repairs by 13 January 2023. However, it did not explain which repairs were still needed, and there is no evidence seen that it raised any works orders following the issue of its response. On 17 July 2023, the resident emailed the landlord to raise another complaint. She reported that water was still leaking near the electrics. There is no evidence seen that the landlord replied to her email.
11. The landlord gave this Service limited documentation in response to our request for evidence. Key records were missing, including repair logs, works orders, and communication with the resident and between staff. This lack of evidence made it harder for this Service to carry out a fully informed investigation and showed poor record keeping. Landlords should have systems to keep clear and accurate records of repairs, responses, inspections, and communications. Good record keeping helps show what action has been taken. Without it, it is difficult to confirm with a reasonable degree of certainty whether processes had worked properly and as expected.
12. In February and March 2024, the resident contacted the landlord about ongoing problems with damp, mould, and leaks from her bathroom. She asked the landlord to respond to her stage 2 complaint and complete the repairs. In May 2024, she contacted this Service for intervention. The landlord acted after our intervention, which, while welcome, should not have been predicated upon the involvement of this Service. This cannot but have caused further inconvenience and frustration for the resident and affected the landlord–tenant relationship.
13. In its Stage 2 complaint response, the landlord said it would complete the repairs by 25 October 2024. It raised works orders and carried out some repairs. However, on 28 October 2024, the resident reported that other repairs, including the electrical safety check, were still outstanding. The landlord did not meet its commitments made, which showed repeated shortcomings.
14. The landlord did not resolve the leaks and mould or keep proper oversight of the repairs. Delays and poor communication caused inconvenience, frustration, time and trouble for the resident. As of October 2025, she still reports leaks, damp, mould, and concerns about electrical safety. She experienced long delays over 3 years while living in poor conditions. This affected her ability to enjoy her home. She also spent considerable time and effort chasing the landlord to complete repairs and respond to her complaint.
15. Consequently, it is the determination of this Service that there was maladministration in the landlord’s handling of repairs, record keeping, and communication.

 

 

. Complaint	The handling of the complaint
Finding	Maladministration

16. The landlord’s Complaints Policy aligned with the Housing Ombudsman’s Code at the time, requiring responses within 10 working days at stage 1 and 20 at stage 2.
17. The landlord issued its stage 1 response 12 working days after acknowledging the resident’s complaint. While this was slightly outside the timeframes set out in its policy, there was no obvious detriment caused to the resident by this delay. 
18. In its stage 1 response on 29 November 2022, the landlord recognised the resident’s time and effort. It also acknowledged the inconvenience she experienced. The landlord offered £125 in compensation. This amount was reasonable and consistent with its Compensation Policy for moderate disruption.
19. The landlord said it would complete repairs by 13 January 2023 and that staff had received training to improve record keeping. However, it did not raise works orders or complete the repairs. The resident continued to report leaks, mould, and concerns about electrical safety. In July 2023, she said she had not received the £125 compensation offered in November, despite chasing in June. The landlord’s records support her account. The evidence shows the landlord repeatedly failed to follow through on its commitments. This could not but have reduced the resident’s trust in its ability to resolve the issues and put things right.
20. Despite the resident clearly expressing a wish to make a complaint in July, the landlord did not treat it as a stage 2 escalation and did not respond. This represented a significant shortcoming in the complaint handling processes.
21. The landlord raised the stage 2 complaint in August 2023 after receiving an email from the resident. However, it did not formally acknowledge or respond within the required timeframe. It also did not explain the delay or provide evidence of any action taken. This highlights ongoing issues with record keeping and complaint handling.
22. The landlord acknowledged the stage 2 complaint on 21 March 2024, 103 working days after it was submitted and only after further contact from the resident. An effective complaints process should support timely resolution and service improvement. The level of delay in this case did not meet the Code’s requirements and limited the resident’s access to the full complaints process and this Service.
23. The landlord did not respond to the resident’s stage 2 complaint until this Service asked the landlord to do so on 16 September 2024. It finally issued its stage 2 response on 25 September 2024—284 working days after the complaint was escalated. This delay was excessive and not justified. As a result, the resident faced inconvenience and had to spend time and effort repeatedly chasing the landlord and seeking help from this Service.
24. In its stage 2 response, the landlord said it would complete repairs by 25 October 2024 and offered £2,250 in compensation. While this was a high level of redress, the landlord did not complete the repairs on time. It also delayed the compensation payment until January 2025 and did not follow the resident’s request for direct payment. These issues repeated earlier problems and showed poor practice in providing redress and learning from past mistakes.
25. Overall, the landlord did not manage the complaint process effectively or follow the Code and its own policy. Although it offered redress, it did not resolve the resident’s concerns in a timely or effective way. It did not do enough to put things right or learn from the issues raised. The complaint process was ineffectual in achieving its purpose of achieving a timely remedy and resolution. As a result, there was maladministration in the landlord’s complaint handling.

Learning

Knowledge information management (record keeping)

26. Landlords must maintain clear records to demonstrate fair and reasonable responses to issues. In this case, the landlord failed to do so, highlighting the need for improved record keeping.

Communication

27. Landlords should provide timely, clear records and updates throughout management of  complaints and repairs. Here, the resident had to repeatedly chase for the landlord to address the repairs and for it to keep repair appointments. The landlord missed its own timeframes in its complaint handling processes. A review of procedures including contact logs, escalation alerts, and staff training will help to improve responsiveness and reduce delays.