London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham (202346048)

Decision
Case ID	202346048
Decision type	Investigation
Landlord	London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham
Landlord type	Local Authority / ALMO or TMO
Occupancy	Secure Tenancy
Date	10 March 2026

Background

1. The resident lives in a flat with her 2 children. She reported to the landlord that there was damp and mould in the property. She later complained that when one of the landlord’s operatives came to repair her kitchen light, they damaged the ceiling.

What the complaint is about

2. The complaint is about the landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of:
   1. Damp and mould.
   2. Damage to the kitchen ceiling.
3. We have also investigated the landlord’s complaint handling.

Our decision (determination)

4. We found maladministration in the landlord’s handling of reports of damp and mould.
5. We found no maladministration in the landlord’s handling of reports of damage to the kitchen ceiling.
6. The landlord offered reasonable redress for its complaint handling.

We have made an order for the landlord to put things right.

Summary of reasons

Damp and mould

7. The ongoing detriment to the resident may have been avoided if the landlord properly investigated and repaired the external issues.

Damage to the kitchen ceiling

8. The landlord acted reasonably by inspecting the damage and repairing it as part of its internal damp and mould works.

Complaint handling

9. The landlord’s apology for not acting on the resident’s January 2024 escalation request was a fair and proportionate way to put things right.

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	Starting the works The landlord must take all steps to ensure that the works identified in its January 2026 inspection to resolve the damp and mould are started no later than the due date. The works are: Kitchen Extractor fan – repair and service/ replace if required. Bathroom Remove grout and re-grout – 1.5sqm. External (bedroom 2) Seal and repair the DPC base level to prevent moisture penetration. External (bedroom 2) Re-route or extend the external pipe to discharge water away from the wall and DPC External (bedroom 2) Inspect and repair brickwork, mortar joints, and wall junctions for defects – 3lm External (bedroom 2) Dehumidifier to be provided in the bedroom If the landlord cannot start the works in this time, it must explain to us, by the due date: Why it cannot start the works by the due date and provide evidence to support its reasons. It must provide a revised timescale of when it will start and finish the works; or   The steps it has taken to start the works and provide us with documentary evidence of its attempts to ensure the works were started by the due date. It must provide a revised timescale if it is able to or explain why it cannot.	No later than 09 April 2026

 

Our investigation

The complaint procedure

Date	What happened
3 January 2024	The resident made a formal complaint. She said the landlord had not taken any action to deal with the damp and mould in her home, even though she had chased it many times. She also complained about delays in fixing her kitchen light and asked for the light to be replaced urgently.
17 January 2024	The landlord issued its stage 1 response. It said the kitchen light had now been repaired. It explained that the damp and mould works had been passed to a specialist subcontractor, who would contact the resident as soon as possible to arrange the works. It offered £200 in compensation for the delays.
18 January 2024	The resident escalated the complaint. She said the landlord had not provided a long‑term solution to fix the damp and mould, and that the problem was affecting her family’s health. She explained that she had spent a large amount of money decorating her home and had been forced to throw away furniture because of the mould. She felt it was unfair for her family to live in such conditions and said that drops of water were falling on her child’s head during the night. She also complained that the operative who repaired her kitchen light had damaged the ceiling.
12 March 2024	The landlord issued its final stage 2 response. It said that on 16 February 2024 a plumber visited the property and noted a possible issue with rainwater coming from the balconies above. After checking the communal area, the landlord found that some of the water from the balconies was running backwards and damaging the outside of the building. It said it would arrange an appointment to carry out the necessary works to resolve the damp and mould and would monitor the repairs through to completion. The landlord apologised for the delays and for its poor communication. It offered a further £600 in compensation, made up of £500 for failing to resolve the damp and mould and £100 for the time and trouble caused by the resident having to chase it. It also confirmed that the resident had made a claim through its insurers for damaged belongings.
Referral to the Ombudsman	In July 2024 the resident said that the landlord had completed the agreed works and that there was no longer any damp or mould. However, she was unhappy with how long it had taken the landlord to complete the work and said the damp and mould had damaged her belongings. In 2026 the resident told us that the damp and mould still exist and returned after she brought this complaint to us.

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

10. The landlord accepts that there were failings in how it handled the resident’s reports. When this happens, we assess if the complaint was resolved fairly and if the landlord offered suitable redress. We also look at whether the landlord followed our Dispute Resolution Principles: be fair, put things right, and learn from outcomes.
11. In this case, the resident was left exposed to damp and mould because the landlord did not investigate the issue properly or complete the necessary repairs within a reasonable timeframe. This caused her significant distress. She explained that the situation affected her family’s health and well‑being, damaged her belongings, and caused her considerable time and trouble as she had to keep chasing the landlord for updates.
12. The landlord’s repair records show that it carried out a damp and mould inspection in December 2022. It is unclear what prompted this inspection, which suggests possible issues with the landlord’s record-keeping. This has been identified as a learning point below. Despite the inspection, the landlord did not complete any works until April 2023, almost 4 months later, when it carried out a mould wash, added insulation, and carried out work on the radiators. This was outside its repair policy timescales. The delay caused the resident distress, as the mould returned during this period.
13. There is also no evidence that the landlord examined or investigated the root cause of the problem during this time. In addition, the records show a further significant delay before it carried out another agreed mould wash in January 2024.
14. In February 2024, the landlord inspected the property. The report recommended checking for leaks and completing several internal repairs. It is unclear why these checks were not done earlier when the issue was first inspected in 2022. In its final response, the landlord said it would level the ground to stop water running from the balcony back toward the building. However, we have seen no evidence that this work was carried out
15. The landlord’s final response also said it needed to identify all contributing factors before it could start repairing the internal damage. Its contractors attended on 15 March 2024 and found no leaks, but they did note that the rainwater pipe at the rear of the property was discharging directly onto the ground instead of into a drain. They said this could be a possible cause of the problem. The landlord then told the resident it would inspect the rainwater pipe, but again, there is no evidence that this inspection took place.
16. This is important because the resident told us that the damp and mould keeps returning. We have also seen evidence that in January 2026 the landlord told the resident it would carry out external works, including re-routing or extending the external pipe.
17. Instead, the landlord focused only on completing the internal repairs, which it completed in April 2024. It then carried out a post-inspection of these works in May 2024 and checked again with the resident in August 2024 to confirm that the mould had not returned. These were reasonable steps, but the external actions outlined above remained outstanding.
18. The landlord apologised and paid £800 across its formal responses for the delays in completing and resolving the damp and mould, as well as for its poor communication. This is in line with our remedies guidance, which suggests awards from £600 where failings have had a significant impact on a resident. The landlord also identified learning in line with our dispute resolution principles.
19. However, there is no evidence that the landlord properly investigated or repaired the external issues it had identified. Although we cannot say for certain that this failure caused the ongoing problems, it is reasonable to conclude from the available evidence that at least some of these external issues likely existed at the time of the complaint. This is why we have made an adverse finding and ordered the landlord to begin the works it has already committed to. Had it completed this external work earlier, the resident may have avoided further distress.
20. We have not ordered the landlord to pay further compensation. This is because the amount it has already paid through its formal responses is reasonable for the detriment caused during the period of this complaint and up to the point when the damp and mould were first resolved in April 2024.
21. In addition, the resident has told us that she has received at least 2 other final complaint responses from the landlord after March 2024 about the same issues. If she decides to bring these to us for investigation, we can then assess whether the landlord’s handling of her reports after the damp and mould returned was reasonable. We can also consider whether any compensation the landlord offered through its complaints process was enough to put things right.

Complaint	Damage to the kitchen ceiling
Finding	No maladministration

22. In her escalation request, the resident said that an operative damaged her kitchen ceiling while repairing her kitchen light. Although the landlord did not address this issue directly in its final response, its inspection on 9 February 2024 noted that the kitchen ceiling needed to be made good. The photograph in the inspection report showed peeling around the light fitting.
23. It is reasonable to conclude that the landlord was aware of this issue before the resident’s escalation and had included the repair within its broader damp and mould works in April 2024. This was a reasonable approach, and the resident confirmed that the landlord repaired the damage to the kitchen ceiling.
24. The landlord’s communication about this issue could have been better. It should have explained to the resident how it intended to deal with the damage and addressed the matter properly in its final response. These were shortcomings, and the landlord’s poor repair communication has been identified as a learning point.
25. However, the landlord had identified the issue and later repaired the ceiling as part of its wider works. This was a fair approach, and there is no evidence that its handling of the kitchen ceiling damage caused any significant adverse effect to the resident.

Complaint	The handling of the complaint
Finding	Reasonable redress

26. The landlord responded to the complaint at stage 1 within its policy timescales and in line with our Complaint Handling Code. On 13 February 2024 the resident said that she had first asked to escalate her complaint on 18 January 2024. Although we have seen no evidence of this, the landlord did not dispute this. The resident had to resend her escalation request to move the complaint forward, causing her some time and trouble.
27. The landlord acknowledged the escalation request on 15 February 2024 and apologised for not acting on the resident’s January 2024 escalation request. This was a fair and proportionate way to put right the time and trouble she experienced. The landlord then responded within its policy timescales. Overall, its actions amounted to reasonable redress.

Learning

28. The landlord did well to follow up with post-inspections and to check whether the mould had returned.
29. The landlord should investigate root causes of damp and mould issues more robustly, including external factors, to prevent repeat problems for residents.
30. The landlord should address all issues raised in complaints directly, to reassure residents that their concerns have been fully considered.

Knowledge information management (record–keeping)

31. There were some gaps in the landlord’s record-keeping, particularly before the resident’s formal complaint. Good record-keeping is essential, as it allows the landlord to demonstrate its key actions and show that it has followed its policies.

Communication

32. The landlord acknowledged that its communication fell short. It should communicate clearly and proactively, making sure residents understand what repairs are being carried out and when they will take place. The landlord should also ensure that it keeps residents updated on the actions it intends to take.