From 13 January 2026, we will no longer accept new case enquiries by email. Please use our online complaint form to bring a complaint to us. This helps us respond to you more quickly.

Need help? Other ways to contact us.

London & Quadrant Housing Trust (202430917)

Back to Top

 

A blue and grey text AI-generated content may be incorrect.

REPORT

COMPLAINT 202430917

London & Quadrant Housing Trust (L&Q)

17 September 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

  1. The complaint is about the landlord’s handling of balcony repairs.

Background

  1. The residents have lived at the property, a 1-bedroom flat within a new build block, since 2018. The residents are joint leaseholders of the property, and the landlord is the superior leaseholder. The local authority is the freeholder of the building, and it employs a managing agent. Both residents corresponded with the landlord during this complaint.
  2. On 11 November 2023 a panel of ‘slips’ fell from the balcony within the same new build estate as the residents’ property. The slips were thin pieces of wall panelling made of brick tiles. Following this, the residents were advised not to use their balcony, along with the other residents in his block, as it had the same balcony design.
  3. The residents complained to the landlord on 20 September 2024 about the delays in repairing the balcony. The landlord acknowledged the complaint on 23 September 2024.
  4. The landlord sent its stage 1 complaint response to the residents on 7 October 2024. It apologised they had not been able to use the balcony since November 2023. The landlord signposted the residents to the freeholder for further information.
  5. The residents escalated the complaint on 22 October 2024. The landlord acknowledged the complaint the same day.
  6. On 5 November 2024 the landlord sent its stage 2 complaint response to the residents. It apologised for the delay in repairs being carried out. The landlord said the contractor who built the property would contact the residents regarding compensation for the delays.
  7. The residents contacted us on 12 November 2024 as they remained dissatisfied with the landlord’s response to their complaint.

Assessment and findings

The landlord’s handling of balcony repairs

  1. On 11 November 2023 a panel of slips fell from a balcony in the residents’ estate. The materials fell to the ground below. Due to safety concerns the freeholder’s managing agent advised all residents with a similar property design not to use their balcony. This included the property of the residents.
  2. The residents’ lease states:
    1. The landlord will use “reasonable endeavours” to ensure the freeholder “observes and performs” its obligations as per the lease.
    2. The leaseholder and landlord are not responsible for any structural parts of the balcony.
  3. The lease between the landlord and the freeholder states the managing agent will repair and maintain the surface of any balcony within the premises.
  4. The managing agent told the residents on 1 and 8 December 2023 it was erecting safety scaffolding around the building. It said the contractor responsible for building the properties would investigate and repair the balconies.
  5. Between January and August 2024, the managing agent provided the residents with several updates of the ongoing repair works to remove the remaining slips from the balconies. The residents were told not to use their balcony during this time. The landlord has not recorded when the works to remove the slips were completed or when the scaffolding was removed.
  6. On 9 September 2024 the managing agent told the residents its contractor would begin erecting further scaffolding on 11 September 2024 to carry out repair works to the balconies within the building.
  7. The residents complained to the landlord on 20 September 2024. They said they had not been able to use their balcony since November 2023, and they wanted between £5,000 and £6,000 compensation because of this. The residents said the matter was causing their family anxiety due to the concerns about the safety of the balcony.
  8. The landlord called the residents on 27 September and 7 October 2024. It said scaffolding had been erected and repair work had begun to the balconies within the building. The residents said they were not happy with how long the repairs were taking.
  9. The landlord sent its response at stage 1 of its complaint’s procedure to the residents on 7 October 2024. It upheld the complaint and apologised they had not been able to use the balcony since November 2023. The landlord said it could not offer compensation at the amount they asked for. It provided the residents with contact details for the freeholder if they wished to raise any queries with it.
  10. The landlord’s compensation policy states it will not award compensation when the service failure is “the responsibility of a managing agent or freeholder”.
  11. The Ombudsman’s spotlight report on managing agents states the following:
    1. Landlords should be proactive in pursuing managing agents and freeholders to discharge their responsibilities. This would be for their own benefit as a leaseholder and for the benefit of their residents.
    2. It also states landlords should:
      1. Be clear about complaint handling between itself and managing agents.
      2. Take overall responsibility for ensuring the complaints procedure is effective. This should be clearly communicated to residents to prevent confusion and delay.
  12. A review of the stage 1 response shows the landlord provided the contact details for the freeholder, whose managing agent was responsible for arranging the repairs. Whilst the landlord said it could not offer compensation at the amount the residents asked for, it did not explain compensation would be the responsibility of the managing agent or freeholder, nor is there any evidence it referred the request to either of those parties.
  13. Although the landlord was not responsible for the balcony repairs or compensation for this, it is reasonable to expect it would have clarified the relationship between itself, the freeholder and the managing agent and the different responsibilities, in its complaint response. This would have helped avoid confusion regarding the different roles in completing the balcony repairs.
  14. The residents emailed the landlord on 22 October 2024. They said they remained dissatisfied and wanted to escalate the complaint.
  15. The landlord spoke to the residents about the escalated complaint on 23 October 2024. The residents said they could not open windows due to the scaffolding being against them, and this meant they could not get fresh air into the property or ventilation, so they were unable to cook. The landlord said it would check how long the repairs would take. The residents reiterated they wanted compensation for the not being able to use the balcony.
  16. On 5 November 2024 the landlord sent its stage 2 complaint response to the residents. The landlord upheld the complaint due to there being an issue with the property’s balcony. The landlord said the contractor was working to repair the balconies, so the scaffolding could not be removed at that time. It added that the contractor had told it the windows at the residents’ property were able to be opened a little as the scaffolding tubes and boards were not pressing against them.
  17. The landlord apologised to the residents for the delayed repairs and the distress and inconvenience this had caused. The landlord said the contractor had confirmed the repairs should be completed in weeks rather than months.
  18. The landlord said it was not able to offer compensation to the residents as this was the contractor’s responsibility. It said the contractor would contact the residents regarding compensation and they should discuss the matter with the contractor if they remained dissatisfied.
  19. A review of the landlord’s stage 2 response shows it addressed the residents’ complaint about the scaffolding being used during the repairs to the balcony. The landlord also confirmed the contractor would handle compensation for not being able to use the balcony. However, there is no evidence to show the landlord discharged its contractual duty to escalate the compensation request to the freeholder or the managing agent, who managed the contractor. This was unreasonable of the landlord.
  20. On 23 December 2024 the managing agent informed the residents the remedial works to the balconies in the block had been completed. The managing agent confirmed on 9 April 2025 the scaffolding at the residents’ property had been removed.
  21. The managing agent contacted the residents on 30 May 2025. It said it was working with the landlord and the contractor regarding compensation for the disruption caused by the repairs to the balconies. The residents have told us they have not been contacted by any party about compensation since then.
  22. In summary, the residents raised concerns about the time taken to repair the balcony and requested compensation from the landlord for this. These repairs were the responsibility of the freeholder and its managing agent, not the landlord. The managing agent provided regular progress updates to the resident.
  23. The landlord apologised for the issues regarding the balcony and signposted the resident to the freeholder for further information during its stage 1 complaint response. However, it failed to explain who was responsible for awarding compensation until after the complaint had been escalated. There is also no evidence the landlord raised the compensation request with the freeholder or the managing agent, and this matter is yet to be resolved. The lack of action to refer the compensation request to the managing agent, and the landlord’s failure to recognise this during its internal complaints process was inappropriate.
  24. The landlord failed to communicate effectively between the resident and the managing agent in this case regarding the request for compensation. The residents were unable to use their balcony for around a year and a half. The ambiguity around how they would be effectively compensated for the issue has caused distress and inconvenience. The failure identified leads to a determination of maladministration. The landlord is ordered to pay £250 compensation. This amount is calculated in accordance with our remedies guidance for situations where the landlord has failed to acknowledge its failings and has not made an attempt to put things right.

Determination

  1. In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, there was maladministration in the landlord’s handling of balcony repairs

Orders

  1. Within 4 weeks of the date of this report the landlord must:
    1. Apologise to the residents for its handling of the failure identified in this report. The apology must be made by a head of service or director of the landlord.
    2. Pay the residents £250 compensation for the distress and inconvenience caused by the landlord’s failures in handling the balcony repairs. It should pay this amount directly to the residents and not offset it against any service charge account.
    3. Arrange for the managing agent to provide a written update to the residents regarding their compensation request.
    4. Carry out an inspection of the residents’ balcony to check for any outstanding repairs or issues and report these to the freeholder and/or managing agent. If issues are found, the landlord will arrange for those responsible for addressing them to confirm when they will be completed and update the residents.
  2. The landlord must provide us with evidence of compliance with the above orders within 4 weeks.