Metropolitan Thames Valley Housing (MTV) (202346329)

Decision
Case ID	202346329
Decision type	Investigation
Landlord	Metropolitan Thames Valley Housing (MTV)
Landlord type	Housing Association
Occupancy	Assured Tenancy
Date	31 March 2026

Background

The resident complained to the landlord in March 2024. She said that it had taken too long to fix a fence and had not fixed a reported water leak.

What the complaint is about

The complaint is about the landlord’s handling of:
1. Fence repairs.
2. A leak.
3. The resident’s complaint.

Our decision (determination)

We found the landlord offered:
1. Reasonable redress in its handling of the fence repairs.
2. Service failure in its handling of the leak.
3. Reasonable redress in its handling of the complaint.

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

Summary of reasons

The landlord did not repair the fence in line with its policy timeframes. It acknowledged this failure and provided an appropriate remedy in line with its compensation policy to recognise the detriment caused to the resident.
The landlord did not repair the leak on time and the resident reports ongoing issues. While the landlord apologised and offered compensation at stage 2, it increased its offer of redress after the resident brought her complaint to us.
The landlord did not respond to the complaint within the expected timeframe. However, it followed its compensation policy by apologising and providing compensation to reflect the detriment 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 specific to the failures identified in this decision, meaningful and empathetic. It has due regard to our apologies guidance.	No later than 30 April 2026
2	Inspection order The landlord must contact the resident to arrange an inspection. It must take all reasonable steps to ensure it completes the inspection by the due date. The inspection must be completed by someone suitably qualified to complete an inspection of the type needed. 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 suitably qualified person: Inspects the resident’s reports of a recurring leak from water pipes. The landlord must produce a report of its inspection and its findings. The inspection report must set out: The most likely cause of the leak. 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 repair to the issue (if the landlord is responsible). The likely timescales to commence and complete the work. The landlord must provide us with a copy of the report by the due date.	30 April 2026
3	Compensation order The landlord must pay the resident £1,110 to recognise the distress and inconvenience caused by its failures handing the resident’s leak. This is made up of the £610 offered at stage 2 and the additional £500 offered later. 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 made.	30 April 2026

Recommendations

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

Our recommendations
If not already done, the landlord should pay the resident the sum of £475 offered at stage 2 for its handling of the resident’s fence repair and complaint handling.
The landlord should think about how it presents any compensation it offers and make clear which part of the complaint each amount relates to. This will help everyone understand how the landlord reached its decision.

Our investigation

The complaint procedure

Date	What happened
22 March 2024	The resident complained to the landlord it had taken it too long to fix the fence. She also said she had reported a water leak and although a contractor claimed they had fixed it, the issue remained ongoing. The resident said the landlord knew about the delays in resolving the issues but had not provided any compensation.
26 March 2024	The landlord acknowledged the resident’s complaint.
24 April 2024	The landlord issued its stage 1 response. It said it had no record of the delay in repairing the fence, so it would “honour the resident’s version of events.” It said the contractor had reported finding a leak in the loft but confirmed fixing the issue at the time. The landlord upheld the complaint and offered £250. This included £100 for service failure, £125 for time and trouble, and £25 for complaint handling.
25 April 2024	The resident rejected the stage 1 response. She said the water leak had not been fixed, and she expected at least £2,500 compensation to cover expenses such as damaged items.
30 April 2024	The landlord acknowledged the resident’s stage 2 escalation.
29 May 2024	The landlord issued its stage 2 response. It accepted that its stage 1 response was wrong and the leak was still an issue. It said arrangements were in place to fix it and confirmed it had fixed the fence. The landlord confirmed the stage 1 response exceeded the expected timeframe and apologised. It made a revised offer of £1,085 compensation. This included £300 for the service failure, £300 time and trouble, £150 poor complaint handling, £285 reimbursement of costs, and £50 for missed appointments.
Referral to the Ombudsman	The resident asked us to investigate her complaint. She said she was unhappy with the delays in fixing the fence and the ongoing issue with the water leak. She said the landlord’s compensation did not reflect the delays or the impact on her.
On or around October 2024	The landlord told us it increased its compensation offer by £500 to £1,585 when it reviewed the resident’s complaint. This included an extra £300 for general service failure and an extra £200 for the resident’s time and trouble.

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 fence repairs
Finding	Reasonable redress

The landlord’s tenancy terms and conditions confirmed it is responsible for structure and repairs of fences.
The landlord’s repairs policy says that it will aim to attend routine repairs within 20 working days.
The repairs order said the resident reported the broken fence on 8 January 2023. The order showed the date of the completed fence repair of 14 November 2023, 198 working days later that the landlord’s policy timeframe of 20 working days.
The resident said within her initial complaint letter that she was unhappy with the time it took the landlord to repair the fence. In its complaint responses, the landlord acknowledged the delay and the lack of communication between it, the resident, and contractors. The lack of communication led to the fence not being fixed within the policy’s expected timeframe.
The landlord offered compensation at each stage of the complaint response. The compensation was for the resident’s experience overall rather than each complaint raised. Whilst it did not provide a breakdown of how it calculated its compensation, we have considered half of its compensation offers for service failure, time and trouble, and missed appointments. This amounts to £325.
In this case, the landlord accepted that its communication was poor and that there were delays in completing the repair. It took steps to resolve the issue and offered compensation that was proportionate and consistent with our remedies guidance for situations where failures adversely affect a resident. Therefore, we find that the landlord offered reasonable redress in this matter.

Complaint	The water leak
Finding	Service failure

The landlord’s tenancy terms and conditions confirmed it is responsible to keep in good repair and working order of installations which supply water. This shows the landlord is responsible for water pipes within the property.
The evidence showed the resident raised a repair on 26 January 2024 for the landlord to investigate a leak in the airing cupboard, causing a wet ceiling. The landlord scheduled an appointment for 23 February 2024, 20 working days after she raised the report. This shows the landlord scheduled an appointment in line with its repairs timeframe.
The resident said in her complaint letter to the landlord that water was still leaking into the airing cupboard. This indicates the landlord did not provide a lasting repair. There is no evidence to show the landlord resolve this within its 20 working day response time.
The evidence confirmed a surveyor visited the property on 17 April 2024. The landlord confirmed the leak was an ongoing issue and recommended work to resolve it. This included repairing the pipe, installing a dehumidifier for 7 days, redoing the ceiling in the airing cupboard, and other cosmetic redecorating. This showed the landlord was aware of the leak and it recommended work to put things right.
In correspondence between the resident and landlord in April and May 2024, she said the water leak was ongoing and she was incurring costs. The landlord said it would reimburse her for damaged items if she provided it with evidence, including additional electricity costs. This was a reasonable offer and showed the landlord’s willingness to consider reimbursing the resident for costs incurred.
The resident provided information including the cost of electricity for the dehumidifier and damaged items. The landlord acknowledged the extra disruption and costs to the resident and compensated for the damaged items and use of electric, totally £285. This aligns with the landlord’s compensation policy which reimbursed the resident of the damaged items.
A surveyor’s report from November 2024 confirmed the completion of work on 8 May 2024. The surveyor sent the report to the landlord on 18 November 2024 and said they had visited the property and the resident was happy with the completed work. There was no evidence of further leaks at this time.
That said, the evidence shows the resident informed the landlord a leak reoccurred in the months after the surveyor’s final inspection. It is unclear if the cause of the leak was due to the same issue, however the resident has provided photographs stating her position that the issue was the same. It is unclear what steps the landlord took at this stage to provide a lasting repair.
The evidence shows the landlord accepted that it failed to address the original leak report on time. The evidence also shows the landlord only increased its compensation for this issue from £610 to £1,110 after the resident brought her complaint to us. This amount is consistent with our remedies guidance, and we may have found reasonable redress but for the fact that the improved offer was made only after the resident came to us. Our guidance is clear that reasonable redress cannot be found in these circumstances.
We therefore find service failure. As the resident reports the leak is ongoing, we order the landlord to pay its increased compensation offer and to complete an inspection and repair to resolve the issue.

Complaint	The handling of the complaint
Finding	Reasonable redress

The landlord’s complaint policy at the time of the complaint complies with the definition of a complaint in the Code (April 2022). The timescales in the landlord’s complaint procedure complied with the Code. The landlord compensation policy said they would offer an apology as a minimum for failings in their complaint handling.
The landlord sent its stage 1 response 10 working days late. The landlord acknowledged the delay and offer £25 compensation for its complaint handling. This was reasonable and consistent with our remedies guidance for a failure over a short duration.
The resident escalated her complaint to stage 2, in which the landlord provided a response within 19 working days. This is within the policy timeframe of responding to stage 2 complaints within 20 working days. It increased its offer of compensation to £150 to reflect the previous offer was not proportionate to the failings it identified.
The compensation offered by the landlord of £150 was in line with our remedies guidance where there was no permanent impact on the resident. The landlord also acknowledged its failings in its complaint handling and the impact the delay may have caused the resident. Therefore, we find the landlord has offered reasonable redress for its handling of the resident’s complaint.

Learning

The evidence shows the landlord did not follow its complaints policy when handling the resident’s complaint. It may wish to review our centre for learning and the complaints handling guidance to avoid delays in responding to resident complaints in the future.

Knowledge information management (record keeping)

There were gaps in the landlord record keeping which affected its monitoring of the resident’s repairs. To ensure it keeps and collates accurate and accessible records, it may wish to refer to the recommendations in the Ombudsman’s spotlight report on knowledge and information management.

Communication

There were communication gaps between the landlord and its contractors. This resulted in it giving incorrect to the resident, including at stage 1 when the landlord said the leak had been fixed. It is important for landlord’s to review how they share information with contractors to ensure residents receive accurate and consistent updates.