London & Quadrant Housing Trust (202234897)

Decision
Case ID	202234897
Decision type	Investigation
Landlord	London & Quadrant Housing Trust
Landlord type	Housing Association
Occupancy	Assured Tenancy
Date	24 October 2025

Background

The resident lives in a third-floor studio flat which is situated in the roof section. She lives by herself. The flat has 3 windows, 2 in the living room and 1 in the kitchen.

What the complaint is about

The complaint is about the landlord’s response to the resident’s concerns about the windows.
We have also considered the landlord’s handling of the complaint.

Our decision (determination)

We have found severe maladministration in the landlord’s response to the resident’s concerns about the windows.
We have found reasonable redress in the landlord’s handling of the complaint.

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

Summary of reasons

The landlord failed to take effective follow-up action over a prolonged period despite being alerted on multiple occasions to the issues with the windows. It did not assess or address potential risks or ensure that any necessary remedial works were completed. This resulted in an unreasonable delay in resolving an urgent repair.
The landlord offered compensation for its poor complaint handling which was proportionate to the failings identified and the detriment caused to the resident.

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 officer. 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 21 November 2025
2	Compensation order The landlord must pay the resident £1800 for the distress and inconvenience caused by its response to the resident’s concerns about the windows. This must be paid directly to the resident by the due date. The landlord must provide documentary evidence of payment by the due date. The landlord may deduct from the total figure any payments it has already paid in respect of the windows.	No later than 21 November 2025
3	Inspection order The landlord must contact the resident to arrange an inspection. It must take all reasonable steps to ensure the inspection is completed by the due date. 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 all of the windows at the property and produces a written report with photographs 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 issues with the windows. 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 resolution 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 19 December 2025

Recommendations

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

Our recommendations
The reasonable redress finding is dependent on the landlord paying the resident £240 as offered in its stage 2 response for its handling of the complaint if it has not done so already.

Our investigation

The complaint procedure

Date	What happened
9 November 2023	The resident raised a formal complaint. In summary she said: She had been reporting issues with her windows since 2022. The windows were rotten and falling apart and the frames contained large holes. The landlord had attended to inspect the windows on several occasions since 2022 but had not taken any action.
13 November 2023	The landlord sent its stage 1 complaint response. In summary it said: It could see that some of the jobs included were over a year old. In line with its policy, it would not address repairs that were over 1 year old. The resident raised an emergency repair for her living room windows on 13 December 2022. It attended on the same day. It concluded that a further inspection was required to all windows in the property as they needed to be replaced. It attended on 6 June 2023 to inspect the windows. It concluded that follow on works were required to the windows in the lounge and kitchen. Following its inspection, it referred the job to its specialist contractor who inspected and provided a quote for follow on works which was declined by the landlord. It had now referred the matter to its planned team for the component renewal. It would update the resident once it had a response. It had taken on board the resident’s concerns about its communication and transparency surrounding the repairs it had undertaken. It would feed this back to the relevant teams for them to review. It was sorry for the trouble it had caused the resident.
28 November 2023	On 28 November 2023 the resident asked that her complaint be escalated to stage 2. In summary she said: She could not open her kitchen window because it was rotten. She had sent the landlord emails and pictures of the window. She was concerned that the windowpane would drop out and fall on someone.
January 2024 to March 2024	The resident contacted the landlord twice in January 2024 to chase up the window issues. It is unknown whether the landlord responded. In February and March 2024, the internal records show that the landlord was chasing this up between its departments. It determined that a stock condition survey was required so that all flats in the block could be looked at.
5 March 2024	The landlord contacted the resident to advise that it was chasing up the issue.
7 March 2024	The landlord sent its stage 2 complaint response. In summary it said: It apologised that it had not responded to the resident’s initial stage 1 complaint. It explained that actions were being taken to address the repairs but were not formalised by way of a stage 1 response. It had initially looked at the windows, but it had now become clear that the whole building was in need of works. It has asked its major works team to assess the building and formulate a plan of works. The inspection was due by the end of March, and it would provide a plan of works after this. It apologised that works had not progressed from the resident’s perspective since 2022. It offered £800 compensation broken down as £240 poor complaint handling at stage 1. £280 distress and inconvenience caused by its failings. £280 time and effort for the resident having to chase the issue.
Referral to the Ombudsman	On 5 March 2025 the resident contacted us as she remained dissatisfied. The issue was still unresolved and had been going on for 6 years. It was impacting her mental health. She was concerned about the windows in particular the kitchen window was not secured to the building. She was unable to open the windows, so she had no air circulation in the property.

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	The landlord’s response to the resident’s concerns about the windows.
Finding	Severe maladministration

The landlord’s repair policy states the landlord is responsible for the structure and exterior of the property which includes the windows. It will aim to respond to routine repairs in an average of 25 calendar days and emergency works within 24 hours. Section 11 of the Landlord and tenant Act 1985 also requires landlords to keep the structure and exterior of the property in good repair. Under the Act landlords are required to complete repairs within a reasonable time of receiving notice of them.
The landlord visited the property in October and again in December 2022 to inspect the windows. It determined that the windows were damaged, weak, rotten, and contained gaps. It said the windows needed to be boarded up to make safe and they urgently needed to be replaced. The job notes also said that there was no ventilation inside the property and the gaps in the windowpanes were allowing rainwater to enter the property. The records fail to show that the landlord took any action in response to its findings.
6 months later in June 2023 the landlord inspected the windows again and found the same issues as it found in 2022. The records do not show that the landlord took any further action following this visit.
The landlord upheld the resident’s complaint at stage 1 but failed to explain why and consider whether compensation was appropriate. To put matters right it said it would refer the window replacement to its planned works team.
Where replacement windows are required, this can sometimes take time, especially in blocks. However, the landlord failed to consider the urgency of the repairs. It failed to consider whether temporary works were appropriate to mitigate any risks. The repair had already been highlighted as urgent a year ago.
The landlord’s stage 1 response lacked any empathy for the resident’s circumstances. This was a further failing and a missed opportunity to put matters right. The resident had experienced another inconvenience of raising concerns about the windows without receiving an adequate response.
The resident continued to chase the landlord for an update. The landlord set out its position in its stage 2 complaint response. The records do not show what internal processes were being actioned during the period between its stage 1 and 2 complaint response. There is also no evidence to show that the landlord had communicated with the resident during this period.
The landlord agreed that its service fell short, but it did not explain what had gone wrong. Its resolution was to refer the window replacement to its major works team. The landlord’s resolution in November 2023 was that it had referred the window replacement to its planned team. It is unclear whether these are 2 different teams.
The landlord explained that the reasons for referring the window replacement to its major works team was because it had now determined that the whole block required works. It failed again to consider whether temporary fixes were required to mitigate risks while the window replacement works were scheduled in. This could have included preparing a temporary move for the resident if appropriate.
The landlord sought to put matters right by offering £580 compensation in recognition of the distress, time, and effort caused. The original repair was raised as urgent in October 2022. 3 years later in October 2025 the resident advised us that the landlord had still not replaced the windows or completed any temporary fixes to eliminate any risks. We have made an order to ensure the landlord inspects the windows to determine what action it needs to take to mitigate any risks. It will also need to provide a timeframe for completion of the window replacement.
We consider the amount of compensation the landlord offered to be disproportionately low considering the failings identified above. We have made an order for the landlord to pay the resident £1800 total compensation for the distress and inconvenience caused. This is in line with our remedies guidance for circumstances where the landlord repeatedly failed to provide the same service which had a seriously detrimental impact on the resident. The landlord’s response to its failures also exacerbated the situation and further undermined the landlord/resident relationship.

Complaint	The handling of the complaint
Finding	Reasonable redress

The landlord responded to the stage 1 complaint within 3 working days which was within the timescales set out in the landlord’s complaints standard operating procedure. The landlord’s stage 1 complaint response said it upheld the complaint, but it failed to show that it had investigated its handling of the matter. It was also silent on what it would do to prevent similar happening again. By not considering what had gone wrong it failed to put matters right.
The landlord took 70 working days to respond to the resident’s request to escalate the matter to stage 2. This was outside of the timescales set out in the landlord’s complaints standard operating procedure and a failing. The landlord acknowledged this and offered compensation to put matters right which was reasonable in the circumstances.
The landlord’s stage 2 complaint response went slightly further. It provided some details of why the delays had occurred and what it was proposing to do now. It sought to put matters right by considering redress. It failed however to consider its communication with the resident and what it could learn from its handling of the matter to prevent similar failings.
The landlord offered £240 compensation for its poor complaint handling at stage 1. This is in line with our remedies guidance. The amount offered was proportionate as there was no permanent impact caused, but the failure adversely affected the resident.

Learning

The landlord should ensure that reports of urgent repairs are fully followed up, with appropriate remedial action taken and risks assessed rather than closing matters without confirming resolution.

Knowledge information management (record keeping)

The landlord must ensure that it has effective procedures in place to record and store repair information accurately. It should consider its staff training and system needs, regarding how it arranges repairs, maintains repair records which reflect actions taken and how it will monitor any follow up action.

Communication

The landlord must ensure it has timely and clear communication with its residents, so they are fully informed about the actions being taken.