Peabody Trust (202400776)

Decision
Case ID	202400776
Decision type	Investigation
Landlord	Peabody Trust
Landlord type	Housing Association
Occupancy	Secure
Date	13 May 2026

Background

The resident raised concerns about a number of ongoing repair issues. He is vulnerable due to physical disabilities. The landlord acknowledged failings in how it handled certain repairs, particularly those relating to damp, mould, and the wet room. However, the resident remained dissatisfied with the amount of compensation offered and escalated his complaint to this Service.

What the complaint is about

The complaint is about the landlord’s response to various repairs of:
1. Damp and mould.
2. Wet room.
3. Plaster, guttering and rear door.
We have also considered the associated complaint handling.

Our decision (determination)

We have found reasonable redress with the landlord’s handling of damp and mould.
We have found reasonable redress with the landlord’s handling of wet room repairs.
We have found no maladministration with the landlord’s handling of plaster, gutter, and rear door repairs.
We have found reasonable redress with the landlord’s handling of the associated complaint.

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

Summary of reasons

The landlord acknowledged delays in addressing the damp and mould. Although there were mitigating circumstances, it failed to take sufficient action to progress the issues or to show that it had provided the resident with appropriate advice and support to help manage the property condition. The landlord recognised its failures and put things right for the resident through its apology and compensation offer.
The landlord recognised the full extent of its failures with the wet room. It apologised and put things right for the resident in its compensation offer.
The landlord met its repair policy timescales when responding to the reported repair issues. It explained to the resident that it was not responsible for repairs to minor cracks in the plaster, which was reasonable.
The landlord recognised its complaint handling failures, apologised and put things right through its compensation offer.

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 recommendations
If not already done so, the landlord should pay the resident £2327.76. offered during the internal complaint process. Our reasonable redress decisions rely on this figure being paid.

Our investigation

The complaint procedure

Date	What happened
June 2023	On 13 June 2023, the resident complained to the landlord about outstanding repairs over a period of 3 years. These included mould, a leak from the gutter, plaster cracks, shower tray, and rear door repairs. The resident said his health had been made worse by the delayed repairs and landlord’s lack of communication. The landlord responded at stage 1 on 22 June 2023. It told him there had been no failures and gave the following explanations: Damp and mould: Reported 11 October 2022 and inspected on 28 October 2022. The report concluded that most of the damp and mould was attributed to “lifestyle” factors and the general condition of the flat. It identified one area of “genuine” damp; however, the landlord stated it was unable to complete remedial works due to the condition of the property. The repair was subsequently closed. A further assessment was completed on 6 May 2023, following which the landlord arranged treatment works to damp and mould to the kitchen, bedroom, and hallway. Gutter: Repair reported 11 October 2022 – work completed the same day to clear all blockages. Plaster cracks reported 11 October 2022. Inspection completed on 19 October 2022. The landlord reported that the cracks did not have a negative impact on the property, and the repair was closed. Rear door: Reported on 28 October 2022. An appointment was scheduled for 10 November 2022; however, the landlord was unable to gain access. The repair was rescheduled for 11 November 2022, but access was not provided by the resident, and the job was closed. The resident raised the issue again in April 2023. The landlord attended on 29 May 2023, and its report dated 4 June 2023 stated that the door was left with no issues identified. Shower tray: The resident reported an issue on 7 December 2022. The landlord attended on 12 December 2022 and advised that a replacement shower tray was not required. The resident raised a further issue with the shower tray in May 2023. On this occasion, the landlord agreed that works were required and confirmed that the shower tray and tiling would be replaced. It advised that it would contact the resident to arrange the works. The landlord reminded the resident of the importance of keeping scheduled appointments or rearranging them in advance if required. It also reminded him of his obligations to maintain the condition of the property.
January 2024 to March 2024	On 26 January 2024, the resident escalated his complaint. He remained dissatisfied with the delays in completing the damp and mould works, which he said had been ongoing for over 12 months. He also stated that he had been left without bathing facilities for 7 months. The landlord had offered the resident compensation prior to issuing its stage 2 response of £2327.76. The resident expressed dissatisfaction with the level of compensation. He told the landlord that he had spent approximately £180 per month using local gym facilities to bathe. He requested reimbursement of these costs, as well as a refund of his rent for the period during which he had been without the use of a shower. The landlord issued its stage 2 response on 18 March 2024. It: Apologised for the prolonged inconvenience caused by the repairs issues. Confirmed all repairs apart from the door and shower tray were resolved between March 2023 and June 2023. Despite its wellbeing team contacting the resident on 28 October 2022 about the condition of the property it was concerned to hear that no further action was taken to address the damp until 6 May 2023. It acknowledged that it could have done more. There had been access issues and property condition issues regarding the shower tray which resulted in new repair orders. It had apologised for the lack of updates and delays. The work was completed around 26 January 2024. On 1 March 2024 compensation of £2327.76 was offered. This was broken down as: £977.76 loss of enjoyment of property. £1000-time, trouble, and inconvenience. £350 complaint handling. It told the resident it could not waive the full rent and believed the compensation amount to be a fair reflection of its failures. It said there were alternative means available at the property to maintain hygiene and therefore it believed the compensation of £977.76 fairly compensated him for the inability to use the shower.
Referral to the Ombudsman	The resident remained dissatisfied with the amount of compensation as he felt it did not cover the expenses he had occurred of using local gym facilities to bathe at £5 per day.

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	Damp and mould
Finding	Reasonable redress

The landlord’s records indicate that the resident first reported issues of damp and mould on 11 October 2022. An inspection was carried out 13 working days later. The landlord did not have a damp and mould policy at this time. Given there were no indications of any urgent concerns at this stage, we consider the landlord’s response timeframe to be reasonable.
During the inspection on 28 October 2022, the landlord assessed the condition of the property as falling below its acceptable standards. It attributed the damp and mould primarily to “lifestyle” factors. Although it said it identified “one area of genuine damp,” it was unable to carry out remedial works due to the reported poor condition of the property. It subsequently closed the repair order.
The landlord is obliged to keep the property free from mould and damp and fit for human habitation as per the Homes (Fitness for Habitation) Act 2018 (‘the Homes Act 2018’). While the landlord carried out a welfare visit the records do not evidence the advice or support if any that was provided to the resident. The landlord’s approach was therefore unreasonable. It did not demonstrate it had done enough to fulfil its obligations or done enough to support the resident in resolving the damp and mould, concerns about the condition of the property or any contributory factors of the damp and mould.
We do not dispute the landlord’s technical findings. However, the use of terminology such as “genuine damp” and references to “lifestyle” factors is unhelpful and may be perceived as placing disproportionate blame on the resident. The tone of the landlord’s assessment was therefore unreasonable. While we acknowledge that the landlord has since introduced a damp and mould policy in 2023, it should also refer to our damp and mould learning resources to align its approach with best practice.
After the resident raised further concerns about damp and mould on 17 April 2023, the landlord carried out an assessment in early May 2023 and arranged treatment works to the kitchen, bedroom, and hallway. The landlord’s damp and mould policy (February 2023) focuses on resolving damp and mould issues. The landlord’s repairs policy for non-urgent repairs states it will carry out repairs within 28 days. In this case, the work was subsequently completed on 6 May 2023 which was in alignment with the landlord’s repairs policy.
Overall, there was around 7-month delay in addressing the damp and mould issues. While there were mitigating factors, including access difficulties and landlord concerns about the condition of the property, the landlord could have taken more proactive steps to progress the matter. This was particularly important given the resident’s vulnerabilities. The landlord’s lack of action was inappropriate and had a significant impact on the resident.
Prior to and during the landlord’s stage 2 response, it recognised its failures, apologised and offered the resident an overall compensation figure of £1000 for time, trouble and inconvenience caused to the resident for its failures relating to all of the repair issues.
For the purpose of our assessment of the damp and mould issues, we have apportioned £500 to this element of the complaint. In concluding whether the £500 was reasonable we have considered the mitigating factors that contributed to the landlord’s delay in resolving the issues. We are satisfied that this amount of compensation was reasonable in the circumstances. The level of compensation is aligned to our compensation guidance for failures that adversely impacted the resident. We are therefore satisfied that the landlord put things right for the resident and have found reasonable redress in the landlord’s handling of damp and mould at the property.

Complaint	Wet room
Finding	Reasonable redress

The resident reported an issue with the shower tray on 7 December 2022. The landlord visited shortly after on 12 December 2022 and told him the shower tray did not require replacement.
The resident raised an issue again with the shower tray in May 2023. The landlord agreed work and confirmed the shower tray and tiling required replacement, however, the work was not completed until around the end of January 2024. The landlord did not dispute it had delayed in completing work however it said this was partly due to the poor condition of the property and the resident’s access issues that delayed work. The landlord attempted to support the resident to improve the property condition by arranging for its welfare team to visit the resident however it agreed it did not do enough. The landlord and resident agreed that there had been a period of 7 months (July 2023 to January 2024) where the resident had been inconvenienced as he had not been able to use the shower. The resident had to source alternative arrangements for bathing which he said cost him £5 per day.
In conclusion, the landlord delayed in completing repairs to the shower and wet room which resulted in loss of use of the shower, and this significantly impacted the resident by having to source alternative bathing facilities. While there were challenges relating to the condition of the property and access issues were identified, the landlord acknowledged these mitigating factors in its complaints response and appropriately recognised the extent of its failures.
Before and as part of its stage 2 complaint response, the landlord apologised for the service failures identified and offered the resident compensation. For the purpose of our assessment, we have apportioned £1,477.76 to this element of the complaint (£945.17 loss of use of a facility and £500 distress and inconvenience). In considering whether this offer was reasonable and put matters right for the resident, we have had regard to our Dispute Resolution Principles: Be fair, Put things right, and Learn from outcomes.
In line with our compensation policy, where there has been a full loss of a room, such as a bathroom, compensation is calculated at 30% of the rent. This is applied from the point at which the landlord should reasonably have completed the repair works until the date the repairs were finished.
In this case, our rent calculation is based on the loss of use of the shower over a 207-day period, (July 2023 to January 2024) and not the loss of the full use of the bathroom. We have therefore based compensation on 20% of the rent based on the Regulator of Social Housing average rent of £160.25. The landlord’s compensation guidance confirms that rent based calculations should be applied where there is a loss of use of a room or facility. For a bathroom this is up to 25% depending on whether there is full or partial loss of a room.
Given that the amount offered by the landlord (£977.76 was comparable with our calculation of £945.17) we are satisfied that the landlord put things right for the resident. The additional £500 compensation awarded for time, trouble, and inconvenience to reflect the significant impact on the resident was reasonable in the circumstances. The landlord demonstrated it had considered the resident’s additional bathing expenses in its compensation based on 25% of the rent and it explained to him that it believed its total compensation reflected the level of failures and impact on the resident. Taking all factors into account, we are therefore satisfied that the landlord has taken appropriate steps to put matters right for the resident through its apology and £1,477.76 compensation and we have therefore found reasonable redress with the landlord’s handling of wet room repairs.

Complaint	Gutter, plaster, and rear door
Finding	No maladministration

Gutter

The resident reported a leak on the gutter on 11 October 2022. The landlord attended the same day, unblocked the gutter, and left it in working order. The landlord’s response time was reasonable and in line with its repairs policy.

Plaster cracks

The resident reported plaster cracks at the property on 11 October 2022. The landlord inspected the issue 6 working days later which was reasonable in the circumstances. Given the landlord’s report of plaster cracks did not have a detriment on the fabric of the property the landlord did not have an obligation to carry out repairs. These type of ‘hairline” cracks can be resolved as part of the re-decoration process.

Rear door

The resident first reported an issue with the rear door on 28 October 2022. The landlord arranged an appointment to attend on 10 November 2022. Access was not available. The appointment was rescheduled for the following day, 11 November 2022, but the resident was unavailable and the repair was subsequently closed. It is unclear from the evidence whether it attempted to follow up with the resident.
The resident raised the issue again on 17 April 2023. The landlord attended a visit at the end of May 2023 and reported that there were no outstanding issues requiring repair. Although this response was slightly outside the landlord’s 28-day repair timescale, there was no indication that the door was insecure. In the circumstances, the landlord’s response was reasonable.

Complaint	The handling of the complaint
Finding	Reasonable redress

The resident raised a complaint on 13 June 2023. It is unclear if the landlord acknowledged the complaint however it sent its stage 1 response on 22 June 2023 within 7 working days and in compliance with the Complaint Handling Code (the Code) timeframe.
The resident escalated the complaint on 26 January 2024. It is unclear if the landlord acknowledged the complaint however it responded at stage 2 on 18 March 2024 – 36 working days later which was inappropriate and did not comply with the Code’s 20 working day timeframe.
The landlord recognised its complaint handling failures, apologised and offered him £350 compensation. This amount of compensation is at the higher end of our compensation guidance relating to complaint handling where there has been significant impact caused to the resident. For these reasons, we find reasonable redress with the landlord’s complaint handling.

Learning

The landlord should review its damp and mould policy against our learning resources in particular in relation to vulnerable residents to ensure it is meeting its obligations.

Knowledge information management (record keeping)

The landlord must ensure it has an audit of its actions in particular in relation to resident follow up actions and meetings. The landlord should refer to our learning resources for best practice.

Communication

The landlord’s overall communication was poor. It is important that it puts actions in place to ensure resident’s are kept informed throughout the repairs journey.