bpha Limited (202402182)

Background

1. The resident reported a roof leak in January 2024. The landlord arranged inspections and raised works, but the resident complained that the leak remained unresolved.

What the complaint is about

2. The complaint is about the landlord’s handling of:
   1. The resident’s reports of a roof leak and related repairs.
   2. The associated complaint.

Our decision (determination)

3. We found:
   1. Maladministration in the landlord’s handling of the resident’s roof leak reports.
   2. Maladministration in the landlord’s associated complaint handling.

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

Summary of reasons

4. The landlord did not resolve the roof leak within a reasonable time. The resident reported the leak in January 2024 and the related works were not completed until late June 2024. This exceeded the 90-day timescale in the landlord’s repairs policy. The delay caused inconvenience to the resident.
5. The landlord delayed logging the resident’s expressions of dissatisfaction at both stages of the complaints process.

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.

Recommendations

Our recommendations are not binding, and a landlord may decide not to follow them.

Our investigation

The complaint procedure

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.

6. The landlord’s repair policy says complex repairs, including roof repairs requiring scaffolding, are treated as non-routine. It aims to complete non-routine repairs within 90 calendar days. It also says residents will be updated about delays and repair progress.
7. The resident reported a roof leak in 2021 affecting a bedroom ceiling. The landlord raised repairs for overflowing guttering. It later raised a recall repair because the problem continued. Apart from forwarding on an old email in July 2023, there was no contact from the resident about the roof leak between late 2021 and early 2024.
8. The landlord’s internal records referred to earlier works completed in 2021 and payments made to contractors. There is limited evidence the earlier repairs resolved the cause of the leak on a lasting basis. However, the lack of reports over the subsequent 2 years indicates that the leak was not continuous or affecting the household conditions.
9. The resident reported the leak again in January 2024. He stated it remained unresolved. He also raised concerns about delays, lack of updates and previous repairs not resolving the issue. Following the renewed reports, the landlord raised repair orders and contacted its contractors. It also confirmed additional roof works and follow-on ceiling repairs were required. This was a reasonable approach in the circumstances as the landlord took steps to investigate the ongoing reports and arrange further works.
10. Although the landlord’s initial action in January 2024 approach was reasonable, there were subsequent delays and it did not communicate effectively with the resident. He continued to seek updates from it between January and May 2024. The resident’s emails also show that he was unhappy that internal ceiling repairs progressed before the roofing works were fully completed.
11. The landlord used its June 2024 stage 2 response to address some of its failings. It appropriately acknowledged and explained the reasons for the delay to complete repairs. It was fair to say that roof repairs can be complex, and it needed specialist contractors and scaffolding to complete works. It was resolution focussed and used its response to clarify the timescales required to complete the repairs.
12. The Ombudsman accepts the repairs were complex. They involved roofing repairs, scaffolding, and contractor coordination. It was therefore reasonable for the landlord to treat the matter as a non-routine repair under its policy. The policy provided a target completion timeframe of 90 calendar days.
13. However, the repair exceeded that 90-day timescale. Its records show that it took 5 months between January and June 2024 to complete works. This was made worse by the poor communication with the resident. It did not fully address these failures in its stage 2 response.
14. The resident requested a full replacement kitchen as compensation for the impact of the roof-related repair. The landlord arranged an inspection of the kitchen following this request. The inspection found minor repairs. In the circumstances, the Ombudsman considers it reasonable that the landlord addressed the identified repairs rather than agreeing to a full kitchen replacement. It was not obliged to renew the kitchen.
15. The landlord’s failures caused the resident distress, inconvenience, and time and trouble in pursuing repairs and updates. The Ombudsman therefore considers compensation of £250 appropriate to reflect the adverse impact caused to the resident over several months.

16. The Ombudsman’s Complaint Handling Code explains when and how landlords should respond to complaints. The relevant Code in this is case is the January 2024 edition. The landlord’s policy complies with our Code. It says it will acknowledge complaints within 5 working days of being logged. Stage 1 responses should be issued within 10 working days. Stage 2 responses should be issued within 20 working days. The policy also says residents should be told about any extensions and the reasons for delay.
17. In line with the Complaint Handling Code, landlords should recognise and act on expressions of dissatisfaction at the earliest stage. The resident raised concerns about the ongoing roof leak, delays, and lack of progress on 26 and 29 January 2024. He clearly expressed dissatisfaction before the landlord formally logged the complaint.
18. The resident made further contact on 12 February 2024 and requested escalation of the matter. The landlord formally logged the complaint on 15 February 2024.
19. The landlord missed an earlier opportunity to recognise the resident’s dissatisfaction as a complaint. This was not in line with the Complaint Handling Code. It also caused avoidable delay in the complaints process.
20. The landlord issued its stage 1 response on 28 February 2024, in line with the 10-working day timescale once it logged the complaint.
21. The resident expressed dissatisfied with the stage 1 response on 5 March 2024 and requested escalation of the complaint to stage 2 on 30 April 2024 and 13 May 2024. The landlord failed to formally escalate and log the complaint until 5 June 2024.
22. The Ombudsman finds there was a delay in progressing the resident’s escalation request. This was not in line with the landlord’s complaints policy which says escalation requests should be acknowledged, defined, and logged within 5 working days.
23. The landlord issued its stage 2 response on 19 June 2024. It responded within its 20-working day timescale once the escalation was logged.
24. The landlord’s complaint handling failures caused the resident inconvenience, frustration, and time and trouble. In accordance with our compensation guidance, we have ordered the landlord to pay £100 compensation given the adverse impact on the resident.

Learning

Repairs

25. The landlord should ensure it identifies the root cause of repairs at an early stage, and it takes timely action to resolve these. It should review how it manages repair reports. It should ensure unresolved leaks are appropriately investigated and monitored.

Knowledge information management (record keeping)

26. The landlord should ensure accurate and complete records are maintained regarding repair histories, contractor actions, inspections, and complaint handling activity. This would support effective oversight and case management.

Communication

27. The landlord should ensure communication with residents is clear, timely and consistent. It should provide regular updates where repairs are delayed or works remain outstanding.