London Borough of Croydon (202502469)

Decision
Case ID	202502469
Decision type	Investigation
Landlord	London Borough of Croydon
Landlord type	Local Authority / ALMO or TMO
Occupancy	Leaseholder
Date	27 November 2025

Background

The resident rents her property to a parent with young children. This is a 2 bedroom ground floor flat in a 2 storey building. The flat above is also owned by the landlord and occupied on a secure tenancy. The resident approached us as she complained of damp and mould in the property and wanted the landlord to resolve the issue. She also wanted increased compensation.

What the complaint is about

The complaint is about the landlord’s handling of the resident’s:
1. Reports of leaks, damp and mould in the property.
2. The associated complaint.

Our decision (determination)

There was severe maladministration in the landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of leaks, damp and mould in the property.
There was reasonable redress in the landlord’s complaint handling.

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

Summary of reasons

The landlord did not abide by its repairs policy and obligations. Although it offered compensation, it did not do enough, and the damp and mould are still outstanding.
It did not abide by its complaints policy or the Housing Ombudsman’s Complaint Handling Code (the Code). But it apologised for the complaint handling delays and offered £125 compensation.

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 provided by the chief executive. 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 06 January 2026
2	Compensation order The landlord must pay the resident £1500 to recognise the distress and inconvenience caused by the delays in remedying the water leaks into her flat. And the lack of action in investigating the underlying causes of damp and mould. This replaces any compensation previously offered. 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 06 January 2026
3	Inspection order The landlord must contact the resident to arrange an inspection by an independent damp and mould specialist. 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 drainage system, damp proof course and external and internal walls. It must provide humidity readings and possible sources of water ingress. 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 damp and mould. Whether the landlord is responsible to repair or resolve the issue together with reasons where it is not responsible. A full scope of works to achieve a lasting and effective repair to the issue (if the landlord is responsible). The likely 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.	No later than 06 January 2026
4	Training order The landlord must provide training to all relevant staff to ensure it complies with the timescales in its repairs policy.	No later than 19 January 2026
5	Landlord Insurance Details order The landlord must provide the resident with details of its public liability insurance so that its insurer can establish liability for damage to the resident’s property (internal damage).	No later than 06 January 2026

Recommendations

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

Our recommendations
The landlord should pay the resident the £125 offered for the complaint handling delays if it has not already done so.

Our investigation

The complaint procedure

Date	What happened
2019 to January 2021	The resident reported penetrating damp through the walls. The landlord arranged an inspection for 21 January 2021 but did not attend.
9 May 2024	The resident made a stage 1 complaint to the landlord. She said: She had raised numerous outstanding repairs over 4 months ago. This included: sewage waste into her garden from the upstairs flat downpipe, leaks into her kitchen from the flat above, and an ongoing longstanding issue with penetrating damp and mould. The landlord had arranged a damp survey in 2021 but had not attended. The damp had got steadily worse over the past 3 years. This was despite the resident purchasing dehumidifiers, daily washing of walls, air circulation measures, and keeping the windows open. Nobody had attended to inspect the property, and she was concerned for her tenant, who lived there with 2 small children. She wanted an urgent update as to when the landlord would inspect the property, as it was responsible for the structure.
22 May 2024 to 7 July 2024	The landlord repaired the external downpipe on 22 May 2024 and carried out a survey of both the resident’s flat and the flat above on 1 July 2024. It identified various works needed to the flat above, which were causing leaks into the resident’s property. It also identified works needed to the guttering in the block. It recommended an air brick be fitted into the resident’s wall.
9 July 2024	The landlord responded to the resident’s stage 1 complaint. It said: Its contractor had cleared the communal guttering at the front of the property on 4 July 2024. It now needed access to the rear of the property. A contractor would attend on 11 July 2024 to instal an air brick in the resident’s porch area. This would improve ventilation to the resident’s property. It apologised for the delays in dealing with the repairs. It upheld the resident’s complaint and offered her a total of £250 compensation. (This included £50 for the delays in complaint handling).
22 October 2024 to 3 February 2025	The resident contacted the landlord on several occasions. She asked for an update on the damp and mould in her home. She said nobody had contacted her or visited. She sent photographs of water penetration rising up her walls. She said leaks from the property above were also ongoing, and damp and mould were now present in the kitchen, as well as the living room.
15 February 2025	The resident made a stage 2 complaint. She said: She still had ongoing damp in the property and that one room was uninhabitable due to this. She had spent several hundred pounds trying to rectify the issues inside her property, which were caused by the landlord’s inactions. The kitchen electrics were also unsafe due to persistent water ingress from the flat above. She wanted the landlord to conduct a survey to identify the cause of the damp and mould to the structure of the building and to carry out remedial works.
22 April 2025	The landlord carried out an inspection of both the resident’s property and the property above. It identified several repair needed to the structure of the building. These included blocked drainage channels, a damp ceiling and wall. It recommended its damp and mould team review the findings. This was so the team could determine if a specialist surveyor should attend. It also recommended several repairs to the flat above ss the repair issues above were causing water ingress to the resident’s property.
5 June 2025	The landlord responded to the resident’s stage 2 complaint. It said: Between May and July 2024, it had completed all works to the guttering, which had affected the damp proof course. It had also repaired pipework from the flat above in July and August 2024. It had carried out a damp and mould inspection on 1 July 2024. This had not identified any structural defects. The resident was responsible for any internal works as she was a leaseholder. It had attempted to instal an air brick in September and October 2024 but could not gain access. It had subsequently cancelled these jobs as these would be the responsibility of the resident. It had carried out further inspections on 12 November 2024 and 10 February 2025. These identified no structural defects. It had resolved the leak from the flat above on 26 March 2025. It had carried out various further repairs to the flat above to resolve water ingress. Its inspection in April 2025 had identified external drainage issues. It had repaired the drainage on 1 May 2025. None of the inspections had identified any structural issues. It recommended the resident increase air flow to her home. She could instruct her own damp surveyor, and it would reimburse the cost if there were agreed structural issues. It apologised for the delays to the full inspection of her flat and the flat above. It increased its compensation offer to £525. (This included £125 for complaint handling delays).
Referral to the Ombudsman	The resident approached us. She was unhappy with the level of compensation and advised us that the flat still has damp and mould. She said this had not been resolved. She wanted an independent survey to identify the underlying cause of the damp. She also wanted increased 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.

Complaint	Leaks, damp and Mould in the property.
Finding	Severe maladministration

The landlord is responsible for the structure of the building. This includes, walls, floors, drains, gutters and downpipes, and external decoration of communal parts. Its repairs policy says that it will attend to urgent repairs within 24 hours and 3 working days, depending on the severity of the issue. Routine repairs will be carried out within 15 working days. Larger, non urgent repairs affecting the structure of the building will be carried out within 60 working days. Leaseholders are responsible for their own internal works and decoration.
There is no dispute that there were delays to the landlord’s inspection of the resident’s property and follow on works. It has apologised for this and offered the resident compensation. But it did not do enough. It did not carry out a thorough investigation of the structural issues, causing damp and mould.
Strong record keeping is a prerequisite to providing a good housing management service. The landlord acknowledged that the resident raised repair issues “some time ago” but there are no records available to determine when the issues were logged or what actions the landlord took. By its own admission, it had not attended to repair these issues. The poor record keeping is a failing which impacted on the landlord’s ability to monitor works. The delays caused the resident distress and inconvenience and time and trouble in pursuing the issues. They impacted on the enjoyment of her home.
The resident reported sewage ingress into her garden, sometime in December 2023 and the landlord did not repair this until 22 May 2024. Sewage ingress is classed as a serious health hazard under the Housing, Health and Safety Rating System. (HHSRS). It is a significant failing that the landlord did not repair the stack pipe in a timely manner. It took 5 months to repair it. This is significantly outside its policy time frame of 24 hours to 3 days. This is a failing and impacted on the resident’s enjoyment of her home.
The resident reported leaks from the flat above into her property around December 2023 and the landlord did not attend to inspect the flat above until 1 July 2024. It found a leak from the kitchen, which it repaired on 9 July 2024. This is 7 months, a failing and significantly outside the landlord’s time frame of 15 working days. The delays to the works meant the resident continued to be affected by water ingress to her property, which caused damp and mould. This caused her distress and frustration and continued to impact on the enjoyment of her home.
Additionally, in its stage 1 complaint response, the landlord told the resident that it would fit an air brick on the external porch wall on 11 July 2024. It later told the resident that it would not do this, as this was her responsibility as a leaseholder. This is unreasonable as an airbrick in an external wall would form part of the structure of the building. This conflicting information caused the resident distress and frustration and impacted on the resident/landlord relationship.
Damp and mould may be classed as a category 1 hazard under the HHSRS and the delays to the works and lack of appropriate investigations were unreasonable. This caused the resident significant distress and impacted on the enjoyment of her home.
In respect of the penetrating damp and mould in the resident’s property, there is no evidence that the landlord carried out any comprehensive investigation until April 2025. The landlord advised the resident that it had carried out an inspection of the structure of the building on 10 February 2025. But there is no evidence of this inspection or findings on file. And the resident reports that this did not happen.
The report of 22 April 2025 identified several remedial works needed. This included blocked and broken communal perimeter drainage channels, which needed a follow up inspection, and a broken waste and stack pipe from the flat above. Although these were repaired on 1 May 2025, had the inspection been carried out earlier, when the resident first reported the issues, then this could have been resolved much sooner. The long delays from when the resident reported the issues, to the landlord inspecting caused the resident significant distress and inconvenience, and time and trouble in pursuing the issue. The delays to the repairs continued to impact on the enjoyment of her home.
Additionally, the landlord’s inspection of 22 April 2025 recommended its damp and mould team consider whether a follow up inspection was necessary. The landlord’s internal emails show that its damp and mould team did not attend as it conclude that the “gutters were cleared” in July 2024. This shows a lack of inquisitorial approach and that it did not undertake a thorough investigation into establishing the cause of the damp and mould. This is a failing which caused the resident distress and frustration and impacted on the resident/landlord relationship. The damp and mould team recommended the resident instal extractor fans and improve ventilation in her home. It did not investigate the root cause of the damp and mould. It simply referenced the resident’s lifestyle. This was unreasonable. The resident felt dismissed, and her concerns were not investigated. The fact that the damp and mould team did not carry out any investigations is a serious failing.
The inspection of 22 April 2025 also noted multiple repairs in the flat above, which needed addressing as these were causing water ingress to the resident’s property. It is unclear from the evidence on file if these were addressed. This points to further poor record keeping and is a failing.
The resident reports ongoing damp and mould as at November 2025. The landlord’s correspondence to us states that no further works or inspections are necessary. This is despite the resident reporting ongoing damp and mould. The fact that the landlord has not carried out a further inspection is a failing. She has also told us that she has requested information on the landlord’s public liability insurance details, but the landlord has not responded. We have made an order for the landlord to provide these details to the resident.
Due to the delays in rectifying the leaks into the resident’s property and the fact that the penetrating damp and mould is continuing, we have made a finding of severe maladministration. We have made an order for the landlord to pay the resident £1,500 compensation. This replaces the compensation already offered. This is in line with our remedies guidance where there have been significant failures, which have had a serious adverse effect on the resident. We have also made an order for the landlord to arrange and pay for an inspection by an independent damp and mould specialist. We have also made training orders. We have not made orders for a policy review as the landlord now has a damp and mould policy.

Complaint	The handling of the complaint
Finding	Reasonable redress

The Ombudsman’s Complaint Handling Code (the Code) 1 April 2024 requires landlords to acknowledge a complaint or escalation request within 5 working days. Landlords must issue a stage 1 response within 10 working days of acknowledging the complaint. They must also issue a stage 2 final response within 20 working days of an escalation acknowledgement. The landlord acknowledges these expectations within its complaints policy.
The landlord did not send its stage 1 and stage 2 responses within the required periods. It also failed to provide a response within its agreed extension requests. However, it apologised to the resident for the delays and offered her £125 compensation. This is reasonable and consistent with our remedies guidance.
We make a finding of reasonable redress on the understanding the landlord pays the resident the compensation offered in its stage 2 response.

Learning

We identified poor record keeping in respect of the inspection reports and repairs to the leaks and water ingress. We identified a need for the landlord to ensure that it completes repairs within its specified timescales and responds to complaints within the Code’s timescales.

Knowledge information management (record keeping)

We identified poor record keeping in respect of repair records and logs. The landlord should ensure it logs all repairs and monitors progress of these repairs.

Communication

We identified confusing and conflicting information provided to the resident. The landlord should be mindful of its communication and be consistent with the information it provides to residents.