Notting Hill Genesis (201911322)

REPORT

COMPLAINT 201911322

Notting Hill Genesis

21 January 2022

Our approach

What we can and cannot consider is called the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction and is governed by the Housing Ombudsman Scheme. The Ombudsman must determine whether a complaint comes within their jurisdiction. The Ombudsman seeks to resolve disputes wherever possible but cannot investigate complaints that fall outside of this. 

In deciding whether a complaint falls within their jurisdiction, the Ombudsman will carefully consider all the evidence provided by the parties and the circumstances of the case.

The complaint

1. The complaint is about the landlord’s handling of the resident’s request for a property transfer.

Determination (jurisdictional decision)

2. When a complaint is brought to the Ombudsman, we must consider all the circumstances of the case as there are sometimes reasons why a complaint will not be investigated.
3. After carefully considering all the evidence, I have determined that the complaint, as set out above, is not within the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction to consider.

Summary of events

4. The resident is a tenant of the landlord. She has been assisted by a representative in her complaint. For ease of reference, both the resident and her representative will be referred to jointly as ‘the resident’ throughout this report.
5. Following contact from the resident, this Service emailed the landlord on 11 February 2020 and asked it to raise a complaint on her behalf. We said she wanted to move to a bigger property. The landlord issued its stage one complaint response on 24 February 2020. It said her allocation of band C for rehousing was appropriate, and that if her situation changed it would conduct a banding review. 
6. There was extensive contact between the resident and landlord in the following months. The resident explained that she was having issues with using the online lettings system for her area. It is unclear when exactly she escalated her complaint through the landlord’s internal complaints process.
7. The landlord issued its stage two complaint response on 27 October 2020. It summarised the resident’s main concern to be a review of her banding. It said after carrying out the review it had decided band B would be more suitable for her needs.
8. The resident brought her complaint to this Service on 17 June 2021. She explained that only two suitable properties had become available since her banding had changed. The resident later advised us that she was dissatisfied with the landlord’s review of her banding, and its failure to provide suitable properties.
9. The landlord advised this Service on 21 October 2021 that it had awarded the resident band A, meaning she would be eligible for a management transfer, and that she was happy to no longer continue with the complaint on this basis. The resident has not advised the Ombudsman directly that she des not wish to continue her complaint.

Reasons

10. In accordance with paragraph 39 (a) of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, the Ombudsman will not investigate complaints which “are made prior to having exhausted a member’s complaints procedure”.
11. In her complaint to the Ombudsman the resident raised issues which arose after the landlord completed its complaint investigations in October 2020. For example, her main concern was that the landlord had not found her a suitable property since her banding had changed. However, there is no evidence of the resident raising this matter as a formal complaint to the landlord. The landlord needs to be a given a reasonable opportunity to respond to this concern before the Ombudsman becomes involved. If the resident has ongoing concerns about the lack of availability of suitable properties, the resident should raise any issues with the landlord first, and then, once the landlord has fully investigated them, she can bring the matter to this Service if she remains dissatisfied. Because of that, and in line with paragraph 39 (a) this is not a complaint to the Ombudsman will investigate at this stage.