London Borough of Lewisham (202419019)

REPORT

COMPLAINT 202419019

Lewisham Council

30 June 2025

Our approach

Under our early resolution process, the Ombudsman works with the resident and landlord to explore the issues in dispute, identify the matters that remain outstanding and assist in reaching an agreed settlement.

The complaint

1. The complaint is about the landlord’s handling of the resident’s request to remove the old water tank and reports of damp and mould.

Determination (decision)

2. In accordance with paragraph 53.c. of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, the landlord has made an offer of redress following the Ombudsman’s intervention which, in the Ombudsman’s opinion, resolves the complaint satisfactorily.

How the complaint was resolved

3. The resident is a secure tenant of the landlord, living in a 3-bedroom maisonette. She lives in the property with her 2 children.
4. The resident raised a complaint on 30 April 2024 as she had requested the landlord to remove the water tank numerous times over 12 months, but it was still in place despite several inspections. She also reported damp and mould issues. She said her daughter had lost her vision as a result. She added that numerous personal belongings had been damaged. She asked the landlord to remove the water tank and award compensation for her damaged items and the stress caused.
5. The landlord apologised for the ongoing issues in its stage 1 response on 23 May 2024. It attended the property on 13 February 2023 and found signs of stagnant water in the tank. At the time, the contractor suggested the water tank should remain in place, as it was not a repair issue due to the tank being redundant. It would reinspect the water tank due to the time elapsed and the issues it was causing the resident.
6. The resident requested to escalate the complaint on 2 July 2024 as the issue was unresolved. In its stage 2 response on 7 August 2024, the landlord said it removed the water tank on 10 July 2024. It recognised it took too long to remove the water tank due to poor internal communication. It offered £150 compensation to acknowledge the delay, distress, and inconvenience.
7. In her referral to the Service, the resident said she remained dissatisfied as she did not think the compensation offered was sufficient for the time taken to remove the water tank or that the landlord had learned from the outcome of the complaint. She also did not think the landlord handled the matter regarding the reported health impact on her daughter with suitable compassion.
8. The Ombudsman contacted both parties in June 2025 to outline the Ombudsman’s provisional comments as to what the landlord could do to resolve the resident’s complaint. We proposed that the landlord should pay an additional £250 compensation and review its handling of the case to establish any gaps in staff training requirements and identify any improvements. The landlord agreed to uphold the resident’s desired outcome.
9. Paragraph 53.c. of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme states “The Ombudsman may determine the investigation of a complaint immediately if satisfied that: the member has made an offer of redress following the Ombudsman’s intervention which, in the Ombudsman’s opinion, resolves the complaint satisfactorily. This will result in a finding of ‘resolved with intervention’.”
10. I am therefore satisfied that, following the intervention of the Ombudsman, the landlord has now taken actions to remedy the matters raised which resolve the complaint satisfactorily.

Recommendation

11. It is recommended that in addition to the £150 already offered, within 4 weeks the landlord should pay the resident a further £250 compensation. It should also review its handling of the case to establish any gaps in staff training requirements and identify any improvements.