London Borough of Lambeth (202219263)

REPORT

COMPLAINT 202219263

Lambeth Council

30 April 2025

Our approach

The Housing Ombudsman’s approach to investigating and determining complaints is to decide what is fair in all the circumstances of the case. This is set out in the Housing Act 1996 and the Housing Ombudsman Scheme (the Scheme). The Ombudsman considers the evidence and looks to see if there has been any ‘maladministration’, for example whether the landlord has failed to keep to the law, followed proper procedure, followed good practice or behaved in a reasonable and competent manner.

Both the resident and the landlord have submitted information to the Ombudsman and this has been carefully considered. Their accounts of what has happened are summarised below. This report is not an exhaustive description of all the events that have occurred in relation to this case, but an outline of the key issues as a background to the investigation’s findings.

The complaint

The complaint is about the landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of leaks, damp and mould.
The Ombudsman has also investigated the landlord’s handling of the associated complaint.

Background

The resident holds a secure tenancy for a flat in a residential block owned by the landlord.
In August 2021, the resident initiated the Pre-Action Protocol for Housing Conditions. Under the framework of the protocol, a single joint expert surveyor inspected the property in October 2021. They reported damp and mould in the bedroom emanating from leaks from the property above, as well as leaks from various external defects in the structure of the property, the gutter, drainage, and blocked gullies.
In December 2021, the resident also reported a sewage leak in the bathroom. The resident’s solicitor negotiated a settlement agreement with the landlord in July 2022. The agreement said the landlord would complete the necessary works in the bedroom and bathroom by November 2022, and it would pay the resident £2,000 in compensation.
The work did not progress, leading to the resident approaching the Service for advice in November 2022 and raising her formal complaint in June 2023. The resident sent pictures of the property to the landlord. She said that these would not portray the full extent of the property’s unsanitary conditions, the smell, damp, and mould, but she hoped to get the landlord’s urgent attention and a plan of action to complete the works. There is no evidence that the landlord replied to the resident’s complaint, and there was no progress with the repairs.
The resident returned to us for advice in August 2023. We contacted the landlord and requested its formal complaint response. The landlord addressed the complaint at stage 2 and provided its final response letter on 10 October 2023. It said that the communal soil stack, which runs through the height of the building, was leaking and that access to the 3 properties above the resident was required to repair the leak. It said it had now arranged access, and its operatives would attend the leak on 17 October 2023.
The resident asked us to investigate her complaint on 16 October 2023. She said the issue had been ongoing for 3 years, and she had damp and mould in every room, making her living situation unbearable. In November 2023, she informed us that the landlord had postponed the work from October 2023 to November 2023 but failed to attend the property.
The landlord moved the resident to temporary accommodation in February 2024, where she currently resides. The resident told us she had visited her permanent address in April 2025 and saw operatives working on the site. She had no updates from the landlord or an estimated date for completion.
We asked the landlord in April 2025 to give us an update about the works, but the landlord was unable to do so. To resolve the complaint, the resident would like the landlord to commit to carrying out the works and provide her with a firm completion date.

Assessment and findings

Scope

The resident’s solicitor had negotiated a settlement agreement with the landlord covering events up to November 2022. This assessment will focus on events from November 2022 until February 2024, when the resident was moved to temporary accommodation. References for events outside this period are for context only. If the resident remains dissatisfied with the landlord’s actions from February 2024 onwards, she can raise a new complaint. If she is dissatisfied with the landlord’s final response to her new complaint, she has the option of asking the Ombudsman to investigate her new complaint.

The resident’s reports of leaks, damp and mould

When investigating a complaint, the Ombudsman applies its Dispute Resolution Principles, which include treating people fairly, following fair processes, putting things right, and learning from outcomes. The Ombudsman must first consider whether a failure on the landlord’s part occurred and, if so, whether this adversely affected or caused detriment to the resident. If a failure by the landlord adversely affected the resident, the investigation will then consider whether the landlord took enough action to ‘put things right’ and learn from the outcome.
The tenancy conditions reflect the landlord’s repairing obligations under section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 to repair and to keep in repair the structure and exterior of the property, including water and drainage systems.
In October 2021, the single joint expert working under the Pre-Action Protocol for Housing Conditions reported that in their professional opinion, the landlord was in breach of its repairing obligations under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985.
In December 2021, the resident reported that a “strange sticky substance was oozing” from the communal stack pipe, which was concealed within the walls of her bathroom. She reported it again in February 2022, and the landlord attended in March 2022, removed the plasterboard in the resident’s bathroom and exposed the communal soil pipe to confirm the source of the leak. They said access to all properties would be required to repair the leak. Operatives taped the hole in the resident’s bathroom with a plastic bag during the interim period. Meanwhile, the resident’s solicitor agreed a settlement with the landlord in April 2022. The landlord committed to starting the works in July 2022 and completing them by November 2022. The agreement said the work would include any work identified in the resident’s bedroom and bathroom.
It is not disputed that operatives inspected the property several times throughout the period of the complaint, but the work did not progress. The lack of progress and lack of communication from the landlord led to the resident raising a formal complaint in June 2023, but there was still no response from the landlord.
The resident approached her councillor for help, and they inspected her property in July 2023 and subsequently wrote to the landlord and said a decant should be considered because of the unpleasant nature of the sewage leak. In addition to the sewage leak, the councillor reported that the toilet had stopped flushing, requiring several buckets of water after each use. There was damp and mould in the bedroom, bathroom, and kitchen. The kitchen cupboards were unstable due to the damp. The gutter system directed water below the door threshold, causing rising damp inside the property. There was a defect with the windows that allowed water to enter the property, along with blocked gullies and sewage overflow outside the property.
The landlord’s damp charter outlines it will inspect properties with damp to diagnose the issue within 28 days of a report. It continues that if a home has persistent damp, a surveyor will act as the resident’s point of contact. They will arrange the necessary work and stay in touch until the works are completed. In this case, however, the resident did not have a point of contact. The work did not progress, and there is no evidence of any updates from the landlord.
As part of this investigation, we requested that the landlord provide evidence, including correspondence with the resident, repair logs, survey reports, details of its efforts to complete the repairs, and an update on the current status of the works. It is concerning that almost all of the evidence provided to us relates to engagement under the pre-action protocol. From November 2022 and January 2024, we have evidence that the landlord:
1. Identified a further leak from the outside downpipe in June 2023, but no repair took place.
2. In September 2023, its operatives reported that “the sewer was going through to the room below the kitchen”. No repair took place.
3. In its October 2023 final response letter, it gave assurances that work would commence in October 2023, which failed to materialise.
4. In January 2024, the landlord’s records show the resident accepted a temporary move from February 2024.
It is concerning that despite repeated requests, the landlord was unable to provide us with an update about the works. We also asked the landlord to explain why the repair log shows some jobs were completed before they were raised, but the landlord was unable to explain this or provide us with alternative evidence. Similarly, it was unable to provide audit trails of its decision-making process. In failing to provide evidence to the Ombudsman, the landlord has not met its membership obligations under the Scheme.
The resident’s distress was evident throughout the complaint, such as in her June 2023 complaint to the landlord when she said her living conditions were “horrific” and the property was in an “appalling” and “unsanitary” state. Her councillor also reported that the resident was embarrassed to invite people to her home. The landlord was unable to provide evidence that it acted appropriately according to its legal obligations, policies, procedures, or good practice. Considering that the resident had lived in these conditions since at least 2021 and has remained in temporary accommodation since February 2024 without updates from the landlord, the landlord’s failures amounted to severe maladministration.
The landlord’s compensation policy states that when a resident has been deprived of the full use and enjoyment of their home for a period and has experienced distress due to a lack of repair, the landlord will arrange a loss of amenity payment. This payment is calculated as a percentage of the rent paid. We therefore relied on the landlord’s policy and calculated the resident’s compensation based on her average weekly rent of £130.
We have considered that back in 2021, the single joint found that the landlord had failed in its repair obligations concerning leaks, damp, and mould in the bedroom. The sewage leak in her bathroom began in December 2021. The resident’s councillor stated in 2023 that the condition of the property had deteriorated to the point where the kitchen cupboards became unstable due to leaks, damp, and mould. There was also rising damp, and a sewage leak outside her back door. We therefore calculated the loss of room and the loss of enjoyment as 50% of the rent. For the 66 weeks between November 2022 and February 2024, we calculated £4,290.
The landlord’s compensation policy says that the landlord will offer an additional payment to reflect the resident’s distress, time, and efforts. We have relied on our own remedies guidance, and for situations where there were repeated failures to provide a service over a significant period, and where the landlord’s response (or lack thereof) exacerbated the situation and undermined its relationship with the resident. In accordance with this guidance, a further order for £1,000 in compensation has been made below.
The landlord must also form an action plan to complete the work and provide the resident with fortnightly updates as specified below.

The landlord’s handling of the associated complaint

It should not have been necessary for the resident to chase the landlord for its complaint responses, nor should she have needed to approach her councillor and the Service to assist in progressing her complaint. The landlord’s handling of her complaint exacerbated her inconvenience and compounded her distress. It also damaged the relationship between the landlord and the resident. This was evident from the residents’ comments to us when we started this investigation. She said she was unsure what we could do to help because the landlord does not care.
In February 2022, the Ombudsman issued a special report about the landlord, highlighting issues with the landlord’s ability to address recurring complaints, track repairs to completion, and learn from these complaints to improve services. The Ombudsman’s casework continued to raise concerns between April 2022 to March 2023. We therefore inspected the landlord in June 2023. Subsequently, we issued another report about the landlord in January 2024, covering the period between June 2023, when the resident raised her formal complaint, and October 2023, the date of the landlord’s final response letter. Our 2024 report recognised some improvement with the landlord since February 2022. However, we were clear that further progress was required. We continue to work closely with the landlord. Therefore, no further learning orders in relation to complaints handling are necessary in this case.
Nevertheless, the impact on the resident is recognised. A further compensation order has been made below to put things right.

Determination

In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, there was severe maladministration by the landlords in respect of its handling of the resident’s reports of leaks, damp and mould.
In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, there was maladministration by the landlords in respect of its handling of the associated complaint.

Orders

Within 4 weeks of the date of this report, the landlord must write to the resident with an action plan to complete the work, including timelines and goals for completion, to be adhered to. It must commit to updating the resident on a fortnightly basis, even if it has no news to report. This must continue until the resident moves back to her home, following completion of the works. A copy of its action plan must be sent to the Service.
Within 4 weeks from the date of this report, the landlord will pay the resident directly £5,390, comprising:
1. £1,000 for the distress and inconvenience caused by its handling of the resident’s reports of leaks, damp and mould.
2. £ 4,290 for the distress and inconvenience caused by the loss of room and the loss of enjoyment of our home.
3. £100 for the distress and inconvenience caused by its handling of the associated complaint.
4. Evidence of payment must be sent to the Service within 4 weeks.