Livin Housing Limited (202333335)
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Case ID |
202333335 |
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Decision type |
Investigation |
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Landlord |
Livin Housing Limited |
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Landlord type |
Housing Association |
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Occupancy |
Assured Tenancy |
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Date |
30 November 2025 |
1. The resident occupies a 2-bedroom house which was a new build at the time he moved in. The resident suffers with physical and mental health concerns and is therefore deemed as a vulnerable person. During October 2023, the resident reported problems with a blocked drain and sewage smells in his home. The resident complained because he said there were delays in the landlord resolving the issues. The developer was responsible for remedying defects and responded to some of the reports about the drain. For the purposes of this report, a distinction between the developer’s actions and those of the landlord have only been made where necessary.
What the complaint is about
2. The complaint is about the landlord’s handling of blocked drains and the smell of waste.
3. We have also investigated the landlord’s handling of the formal complaint.
Our decision (determination)
4. There was service failure in the landlord’s handling of blocked drains and the smell of waste.
5. There was maladministration in the landlord’s handling of the formal complaint.
We have made orders for the landlord to put things right.
Summary of reasons
The landlord’s handling of blocked drains and the smell of waste
6. The landlord took too long to investigate and resolve the repeat drain blockages. This impacted on the resident and caused distress. The landlord’s offer of £50 compensation was insufficient to put things right.
The landlord’s complaint handling.
7. The landlord failed to log and respond to both the stage 1 and stage 2 complaints in line with our Complaint Handling Code. This resulted in excessive delays and the need for the resident to seek our assistance. Although the landlord apologised and offered compensation, the compensation was insufficient and the landlord failed to identify all its complaint handling failures.
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.
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Order |
What the landlord must do |
Due date |
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1 |
Apology order
The landlord must apologise in writing to the resident for the failures identified in this report. The landlord must ensure:
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No later than 08 January 2026 |
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2 |
Compensation order
The landlord must pay the resident £350 compensation broken down as:
This includes the compensation already offered during the landlord’s complaints process and any amounts already paid can be deducted from the total.
This must be paid directly to the resident by the due date. The landlord must provide documentary evidence of payment by the due date.
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No later than 08 January 2026 |
Our investigation
The complaint procedure
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Date |
What happened |
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16 October 2023 |
The resident first reported concerns about the blocked drain and sewage smell. The landlord attended the same day and jet washed the drain. |
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28 November 2023 |
The resident made a complaint to landlord via its website. He complained about the smell of sewage for over a month. He said he had to keep turning away friends and medical professionals and would like the matter resolved as soon as possible. He also requested compensation |
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8 January 2024 |
The resident emailed the landlord to complain about the length of time the landlord had taken to resolve the issues with the blocked drain and sewage smell. |
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22 January 2024 |
The landlord requested additional information from the resident. Following a telephone call on 23 January 2024, the landlord logged a stage 1 complaint. |
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5 February 2024 |
The landlord issued its stage 1 response. It did not uphold the complaint regarding repairs but apologised for the time the resident had to endure then smell. The resident requested escalation to stage 2 the same day. |
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27 June 2024 |
Following contact from the resident, we asked the landlord to provide a stage 2 complaint response by 4 July 2024. |
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11 October 2024 |
We asked the landlord again to provide a stage 2 complaint response. |
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8 November 2024 |
The landlord issued its stage 2 response upholding the complaint. It said that it was probable that the coil and stones found in the drains could have contributed to the blockages between 16 October and 21 November 2023. It offered £50 compensation for the inconvenience caused. It said there was a complaint handling failure for not escalating the stage 1 complaint when requested on 5 February 2024. It offered £25 compensation for the delay. |
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Referral to the Ombudsman |
The resident escalated his complaint to us because he remained unhappy with the overall delays and sought higher compensation. |
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.
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Complaint |
The landlord’s handling of blocked drains and the smell of waste |
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Finding |
Service failure |
8. The drain blockages were not fully resolved until early December 2023, following several attendances over a 6-week period. The landlord responded promptly to the first 2 reports from the resident, attending on the day of the reports to jet the drains and remove debris including a coil and wipes.
9. However, following the resident’s further report of a blocked drain on 27 October 2023, the landlord incorrectly raised a responsive repair rather than referring the matter back to the developer. On several occasions following this the resident reported that the smell was unbearable and he was waiting for an update since the landlord’s plumber attended. The matter was eventually referred to the developer and the drains were cleared on 21 November 2023 when wet wipes were removed. The drains were cleared again on 29 November 2023 and no further reports were made following this.
10. Therefore, while the landlord attended promptly to the initial reports, following this there was a delay in progressing the matter for several weeks. It is acknowledged that the landlord identified some failings and took steps to put things right by apologising to the resident and offering £50 compensation. However, the compensation was inadequate considering the length of time the matter remained unresolved and impact on the resident who reported that they had to stop medical professionals attending their home and travel for appointments. We have ordered the landlord to pay £200 compensation for its service failures. This is in line with our remedies guidance’s recommended range of compensation where there was a failure which adversely affected the resident.
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Complaint |
The handling of the complaint |
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Finding |
Maladministration |
11. On 28 November 2023 the resident submitted a complaint to the landlord. On 9 January 2024 the landlord confirmed to the resident that the complaint had been dealt with as a service request and closed on 30 November 2023. On 12 January 2024 the resident confirmed that he wanted a complaint raised. The landlord subsequently provided a stage 1 response on 5 February 2024. In accordance with our Complaint Handling Code, the landlord should have logged the complaint when it was received on 28 November 2023 and responded within 15 working days. This was a failing.
12. The resident escalated his complaint on 5 February 2024. The resident sought our assistance and on 27 June 2024 we asked the landlord to provide a stage 2 response by 4 July 2024. The landlord responded to us and said that the resident had not detailed his reasons for escalating his complaint and he had subsequently decided he did not want to pursue it further. The resident contacted us for assistance again and on 11 October 2024 we asked the landlord to provide a stage 2 response. The landlord provided the stage 2 response on 8 November 2024.
13. In its stage 2 response the landlord acknowledged there had been a complaint handling failure by not escalating the complaint on 5 February 2024. The landlord apologised and offered £25 compensation. However, this does not reflect the long delay in providing a stage 2 response to the resident, which should have been provided within 25 working days of receipt of the escalation request. Furthermore, the landlord failed to identify and put right the delay in logging and responding to the stage 1 complaint. We have ordered the landlord to pay £150 compensation for its maladministration. This is in line with our remedies guidance’s recommended range of compensation where there was a failure which adversely affected the resident.
Learning
14. The landlord has correctly identified that if a drain blocks more than once a CCTV drain survey may be warranted to find hidden problems like the coil and other debris in this instance.
15. The landlord should ensure complaints are logged and responded to in line with its complaint policy and our Complaint Handling Code. It should also ensure that fair and proportionate redress is offered to reflect the effect on the resident. The landlord may wish to review our remedies guidance and compensation guidance for landlords that is available on our website.