Peabody Trust (202339459)

Background

1. The resident told the landlord that her central heating system did not heat her home sufficiently during the winter months and it kept breaking down. She said she wanted a new boiler and noted the situation affected her family’s health.

What the complaint is about

2. The complaint is about:
   1. The landlord’s response to the resident’s reports of no heating and hot water.
   2. The landlord’s handling of the resident’s complaint.

Our decision (determination)

3. There was reasonable redress by the landlord in its handling of the resident’s reports of no heating and hot water.
4. There was reasonable redress by the landlord in its handling of the resident’s complaint.

We have not made orders for the landlord to put things right.

Summary of reasons

5. The landlord offered an apology and compensation in relation to its handling of the resident’s reports of no heating and hot water.
6. The landlord offered an apology and compensation for its poor complaints handling. It also identified learning from the resident’s complaint.

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.

Recommendations

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

Our investigation

The complaint procedure

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.

What we did not investigate

7. The resident referred to a possible impact upon her health. While these concerns have been referenced in this report, it should be noted that the Ombudsman is not in a position to make findings about the possible impact of the issues under investigation on a person’s health.
8. It would be fairer, more reasonable and more effective for the resident to make a personal injury claim for any injury caused for a court or insurer to consider. They are best placed to deal with this type of dispute as they will have the benefit of independent medical advice to decide on the cause of any injury and how long it will last. We have not investigated this further. In this respect, the resident is advised to seek legal advice if she wishes to take her concerns further. We can decide if a landlord should pay compensation for distress and inconvenience

What we did investigate

9. It is important to note that accurate record keeping is essential and helps ensure landlords meet their repair obligations. It also ensures accurate information is provided to residents. In this case, the records provided by the landlord lacked detail and has made it difficult to determine whether its actions were fair and reasonable in the circumstances.
10. The housing records confirm the resident told the landlord on 30 November 2022 that she had no heating or hot water. The landlord was placed on notice at this point and had an obligation to meet its repairing responsibilities as set out in the resident’s tenancy agreement. This confirms it is responsible for keeping heating installations in good repair and working order.
11. The landlord’s contractor attended on the same day. This was consistent with the timescales set out in the landlord’s repairs policy. Whilst the contractor noted the central heating system needed flushing, it is unclear from the housing records whether it completed the work or if the resident was left with heating and hot water.
12. The contractor returned on 12 December 2022 and bleed the bathroom radiator and cleaned the central heating system. It asked the landlord to book an appointment so it could flush the system. There is no evidence the appointment was arranged.
13. The resident told the landlord on 18 January 2023 that 5 radiators were not working and the property was like an ‘‘ice box.’’ The landlord ordered an emergency repair on the same day but was unable to gain access. The landlord cannot be held responsible for the delay in repairing the boiler at this point or the follow-up job that was cancelled on 23 January 2023 by the resident. The landlord was also unable to gain access for a prearranged appointment booked for 2 March 2023.
14. The resident continued to report problems with the central heating system between March 2023 and July 2023. The contractor attended on each occasion in accordance with the timescales set out in the landlord’s repairs policy. It noted on 3 July 2023 that limescale had built up in the main heat exchanger and a new boiler was required. The contractor removed the boiler fuse. This meant the resident was left without heating or hot water.
15. The landlord’s contractor did not repair the boiler until 10 July 2023. It confirmed the boiler was working and asked the landlord to raise a further job to repair the pipework. The work was completed on 21 July 2023. There is no evidence the landlord acted on the contractor’s recommendation to replace the boiler. This caused delays and led to the resident experiencing further problems with the central heating system.
16. The resident noted on 25 July 2023 in her complaint that she was left without sufficient heating during the winter. She said the boiler had been repaired on multiple occasions but continued to break down. She asked the landlord to replace the boiler.
17. The landlord issued its stage1 complaint response on 17 August 2023.
18. When considering how a landlord has responded to a complaint, this Service considers not just what has gone wrong, but also what the landlord has done to put things right in response to the complaint. This includes the steps the landlord has taken to address the shortcoming and prevent a reoccurrence, as well as any compensation offered.
19. In this case, the landlord’s response failed to acknowledge the resident had ongoing problems with her central heating system during the previous 9 months. It would have been reasonable for the landlord to have done this given she reported it was not working on at least 10 occasions during this period and it is evident the situation caused her inconvenience, time and trouble.
20. The landlord confirmed it could not compensate the resident for any loss of earnings. This was consistent with its compensation policy and ensured it managed the resident’s expectations. It did not, however, confirm whether it would replace the boiler. This was despite the resident’s request for it to do so.
21. The landlord offered the resident an apology and £100 compensation for the delays in carrying out the repairs to the central heating system. Whilst this was appropriate, it did not offer any specific compensation for the failure to ensure the resident had heating and hot water. Its compensation policy says it will do this.
22. The resident continued to experience problems with her central heating system after the landlord issued its stage 1 complaint response. Whilst the landlord’s contractor attended on each occasion (apart from 1 occasion on 18 August 2023) in accordance with the timescales set out in the landlord’s repairs policy, it is unclear from the housing records whether the central heating system was left in working order on each occasion. The landlord’s contractor noted on 22 December 2023 that the boiler was 17 years old and in poor condition. It recommended the boiler was replaced.
23. The landlord arranged for a new boiler to be installed on 17 January 2024. This was appropriate.
24. The resident told the landlord on 2 February 2024 she had no heating or hot water. The landlord’s contractor attended on the same day and noted there was a leak on the new boiler. The leak was repaired. This was appropriate. Whilst the resident reported a further problem with the central heating system on 11 February 2024, the landlord did not resolve the matter until 21 February 2024. This was a further failure.
25. The resident reported further problems with the boiler on a number of occasions during February 2024 and March 2024. This included reports of no heating or hot water. The landlord’s contractor attended on each occasion in accordance with the timescales set out in the landlord’s repairs policy and repaired the central heating system. The landlord’s actions were reasonable in the circumstances.
26. The landlord acknowledged on 26 March 2024 in its final complaint response that the resident had contacted it on a number of occasions about her central heating system. This was appropriate. It also said the resident was left without heating on 2 occasions in July 2023 and February 2024. In addition, the landlord noted the resident had an ongoing problem with the radiators not heating up and said it had arranged an appointment for 27 March 2024 to inspect them.
27. The landlord offered the resident an apology and £600 compensation for the time, trouble and inconvenience caused. The landlord’s actions were reasonable in the circumstances. It also offered the resident £42 compensation for the loss of heating and hot water. This was consistent with the landlord’s compensation policy.
28. Taking account of all the circumstances, a finding of reasonable redress has been made in relation to the landlord’s handling of this aspect of the resident’s complaint.

29. The resident made a complaint on 25 July 2023. The complaint was acknowledged by the landlord on the same day in accordance with the timescales set out in its complaints policy. The landlord said it would respond to the resident’s complaint within 10 working days.
30. The landlord did not issue its stage 1 complaint response by the deadline date and there is no evidence it told the resident there would be a delay in responding. This meant she was not clear when she would receive a response. This was not appropriate or in accordance with the Housing Ombudsman’s complaints handling code (the Code).
31. The landlord issued its stage 1 complaint response on 17 August 2023. This was 7 days after the deadline date. The landlord did not offer an apology or compensation for the delay in responding. This was not consistent with the Code.
32. The resident escalated her complaint on 12 November 2023. There is no evidence the landlord acknowledged the resident’s complaint escalation request. This was a failure. The situation caused the resident time and trouble having to chase the landlord up.
33. The resident asked the landlord again on 24 January 2024 to escalate her complaint but received no response. The landlord did not acknowledge the resident’s complaint escalation request until 20 March 2024 and only after contact from this Service. This was a further failure. The landlord said it would respond to the complaint within 5 working days.
34. The landlord issued its final complaint response on 26 March 2024. It offered the resident an apology and £250 compensation for its poor complaints handling. The landlord’s actions were reasonable in the circumstances. It also said it would share feedback from the resident’s complaint with its contractor and noted it was undertaking a review of its complaints team and recruiting additional staff. This demonstrated the landlord took learning from the resident’s complaint.
35. Taking account of all the circumstances, a finding of reasonable redress has been made in relation to the landlord’s handling of the resident’s complaint.

Learning

General learning

36. The landlord ensures effective monitoring arrangements are put in place to track complaints through to a satisfactory conclusion.

Knowledge information management (record keeping)

37. The housing records provided by the landlord lacked detail and made it difficult to determine whether its actions were fair and reasonable in the circumstances. The landlord should ensure it keeps accurate and clear records so it is able to meet its obligations.

Communication

38. We did not identify any issues with the landlord’s communication with the resident.