Leeds City Council (202406400)

Decision
Case ID	202406400
Decision type	Investigation
Landlord	Leeds City Council
Landlord type	Local Authority / ALMO or TMO
Occupancy	Secure Tenancy
Date	27 March 2026

Background

The resident reported damp and mould in her property and complained to the landlord that it had not resolved the issue. She has Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disorder (COPD) and is immunocompromised, which the landlord was aware of during the reports she made about the damp and mould.

What the complaint is about

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

Our decision (determination)

We have found there was:
1. Maladministration in the landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of damp and mould.
2. No maladministration in the landlords handling of the resident’s complaint.

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

Summary of reasons

Reports of damp and mould

The landlord did not evidence it had determined the possible cause of the damp and mould it found in the property in its earlier inspections. It did not communicate clearly with the resident about the repairs needed to remedy the issue. This delayed its attempts to remedy the issue and caused distress and inconvenience to the resident.

The handling of the complaint

There were no failures in how the landlord handled the 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 24 April 2026
2	Compensation The landlord must pay the resident £250 compensation for the distress and inconvenience caused by its handling of the resident’s reports of damp and mould. It must pay the compensation directly to the resident by the due date. It must provide documentary evidence of payment by the due date.	No later than 24 April 2026

Order

What the landlord must do

Due date

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

24 April 2026

Compensation

The landlord must pay the resident £250 compensation for the distress and inconvenience caused by its handling of the resident’s reports of damp and mould.

It must pay the compensation directly to the resident by the due date. It must provide documentary evidence of payment by the due date.

No later than

24 April 2026

Our investigation

The complaint procedure

Date	What happened
Between 29 August 2023 and 16 November 2023	The resident reported to the landlord 3 times that there was damp and mould in the living room and bedroom. She said that this had damaged her furniture. In that time the landlord recorded she had COPD.
22 March 2024	The resident complained to the landlord because it had not remedied the damp and mould in her property. She said there was mould above the living room window, her carpets were damp, and the property smelled damp. She said she could not replace furniture until it remedied the issue.
8 April 2024	The landlord provided its stage 1 response to the resident. It said it had installed vents in the property, but it had not completed one of its other repairs correctly. It arranged a new inspection of the property to determine what repairs it needed to complete.
9 April 2024	The resident escalated the complaint because she said she could not get through to the landlord to make an insurance claim for the damage to her belongings. She said the delay in remedying the damp and mould had affected her COPD and mental health.
30 April 2024	The landlord explained to the resident it needed an extension to respond to her complaint. It said it would respond by 22 May 2024.
14 May 2024	The landlord provided its stage 2 response to the resident. It said it had inspected the property and found the carpets were not damp. It said it had bio‑washed the kitchen wall and skirting board. It said it would: replace the dry rot found on the kitchen door frame and architrave install a passive air vent to the underside of the kitchen worktop reseal the windows with antifungal sealant It apologised for the delay in arranging the repairs to remedy the damp and mould and for the time and trouble the resident experienced in pursuing her complaint. It said it had fed back to its repair services the improvements needed to prevent missed appointments, minimise delays, and improve communication.
Referral to the Ombudsman	The resident said the landlord had installed vents, replaced the dry rot on the kitchen door and architrave, and resealed the windows with antifungal sealant. She said she continued to report damp and mould after the landlord’s complaint response, and it completed further repairs that remedied the issue. She said she wanted an apology, for it to acknowledge the impact the damp and mould had on her, and compensation for: damage the damp and mould caused to her belongings a damp and mould survey she had arranged

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	Reports of damp and mould
Finding	Maladministration

What we have not considered

The resident referred to arranging her own damp and mould survey of the property and further damp and mould reports she raised with the landlord after it had sent its stage 2 response. This investigation will only consider the issues addressed in the landlord’s stage 2 response on 14 May 2024. Any concerns since that time can be raised as a new complaint with the landlord if required.

What we have considered

The landlord inspected the property the day after the resident reported damp and mould on 29 August 2023. It found there was mould on the sofa and furniture, but there was no mould on the walls. It had not commented on the cause of the mould found on the furniture and what steps, if any, it may have needed to take to remedy that. This was not in line with its damp and mould policy set out online, that says it would determine the cause of the mould. If it had done so, it may have set out recommendations to attempt to remedy the issue at that time.
The resident reported damp and mould on 16 September 2023. The landlord inspected the issue on the same day and recommended various repairs to remedy the issue. This included cleaning the kitchen wall cavity, treating the living room walls with bio-wash, resealing the windows with antifungal sealant, and installing passive airs vents in the living room and bedroom. It completed some of the repairs within 25 working days and the others within 51 working days of the resident’s report. This was in line with the tenancy handbook, which allows 60 working days for damp‑proofing repairs.
The resident reported damp and mould on 5 December 2023 and 12 January 2024. The landlord inspected the property and found penetrating damp and condensation. It recommended treating behind the kitchen units and renewing the skirting board. The landlord completed these repairs on 1 March 2024. This was in line with the tenancy handbook that says it would complete damp proofing within 60 working days.
In that time the landlord arranged an inspection for 14 December 2023 which it had cancelled, but the reasons for this are unclear. This is a failure of its record keeping and has made it difficult to assess.
On 22 March 2024, the resident complained that the property smelled of damp and mould, her carpets were damp, there was mould above the living room window and that she is immunocompromised. She said the damp and mould damaged her belongings. The landlord explained to the resident it had not “properly completed” a repair in the property, but it did not say what it was referring to. Its communication to the resident about what it said it needed to do in attempt to remedy the damp and mould was unclear.
The landlord inspected the property on 8 May 2024 and found high humidity. In the complaint response, it set out the recommendations to remedy the damp and mould. This was in line with its repair policy set out on its website to investigate reports of damp and mould to decide the cause and minimise the risk of it returning.
In its complaint response, the landlord apologised for its poor communication and delays in completing the damp and mould repairs. It said it had provided feedback to its repairs service. This was in line with our dispute resolution principles on learning from outcomes.
The landlord had not offered the resident compensation for the distress and inconvenience caused to her by its handling of the reports of damp and mould. She said the delay to remedy the issue meant the property smelled damp, and she felt the damp and mould affected her wellbeing. It had also not set out its response to her concern that the damp and mould damaged her belongings. This was not in line with our dispute resolution principles to be fair and put things rights.
Since the complaint response, the landlord completed the actions as set out in its complaint response. This was reasonable and in line with what it said it would do. It had also provided the resident information on how to make an insurance claim for damage to her belongings, which she had submitted. It was fair and in line with its financial remedies guidance to provide its insurance information for the resident for an insurance claim.
We have made orders to put things right. This includes an apology and compensation in line with our remedies guidance for the distress and inconvenience caused to her by its handling of the issue.

Complaint	The handling of the complaint
Finding	No maladministration

Our Complaint Handling Code (the Code) sets out when and how a landlord should respond to complaints. The relevant Code in this case is the 2024 edition. The landlord’s complaint policy was in line with the timeframes set out in the Code.
The landlord acknowledged the complaint and issued its stage 1 response within the timeframes set out in its complaint policy which says it would acknowledge a complaint within 5 working days and respond within 10 working days.
The landlord acknowledged the escalation of the complaint, informed the resident that it required an extension to respond, and provided its stage 2 response in line with its complaint policy. This sets out it would acknowledge an escalation of a complaint within 3 working days, provide the stage 2 response within 20 working days and that it would update the resident where it may need more time to respond.
Considering the above, we have found no maladministration in the landlord’s handling of the complaint.

Learning

The landlord acknowledged some of its failings and identified learning. This was in line with our dispute resolution principles. However, it did not offer compensation for the resident’s distress and inconvenience, which was a missed opportunity to put things right.

Knowledge information management (record keeping)

Our Knowledge and Information Management (KIM) Spotlight report recommends that landlords keep clear records. The landlord’s record about the damp and mould and inspections were unclear and, at times, this made it difficult to assess.

Communication

The landlord’s communication to the resident about some of the repairs to remedy the damp and mould were not clear. However, it had recognised this and shared its learning with its repair service. This was positive.