Places for People Group Limited (202348238)

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REPORT

COMPLAINT 202348238

Places for People Group Limited

29 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 response to the resident’s:
    1. Reports of damp and mould and the associated repairs.
    2. Associated complaint.
  2. We have also considered the landlord’s record keeping.

Background

  1. The resident is as an assured tenant. He has lived in the bedsit since 2019. The landlord is aware the resident has physical and mental health vulnerabilities.
  2. The resident reported damp and mould in his wet room on 19 June 2023. The landlord raised an inspection and a repair for the extractor fan as it was not working effectively and was contributing to the damp and mould.
  3. The resident complained to the landlord on 25 September 2023. He said he had not had a response from the landlord regarding the damp work and was not receiving call backs when requested.
  4. The landlord provided its stage 1 complaint response on 20 October 2023. In summary, the landlord:
    1. confirmed it had pushed the damp and mould report through to the contractors, listed the outstanding work to be completed, and advised it had asked for the work to be prioritised
    2. acknowledged its failure to keep the resident updated and committed to keeping in contact to ensure the work was completed within the correct time frame
  5. The resident escalated his complaint on 10 November 2023. He said:
    1. he raised the damp and mould in June 2023 and despite the work being agreed in October 2023, it was still outstanding
    2. operatives attended but did not do any work in relation to the damp and mould
    3. he had not received clear communication regarding what was happening and had to pursue the landlord for updates
  6. The landlord provided its final complaint response on 31 January 2024. In summary, the landlord confirmed:
    1. it arranged for the work to be completed on 22 January 2024, and although there were further issues, the wet room had been replaced, and the resident had confirmed he was pleased with the final outcome
    2. it had provided feedback to the Head of Service regarding communication and improving its processes, and to its contract team for when it used sub-contractors
    3. it offered a sincere apology, upheld the complaint, and offered £250 for the poor communication, distress and inconvenience caused
  7. The resident brought his complaint to us on 27 March 2024. He said he was unhappy with the time taken to resolve the damp in the wet room. As a resolution to his complaint, the resident asked for more compensation.

Assessment and findings

Scope of investigation

  1. The resident has referred to the impact the situation has had on his health. We can consider the impact the situation has had on the resident and whether the landlord acted reasonably, we cannot determine liability for damage to health. This is a matter better suited to an insurance claim or court. Any compensation offer will be assessed in line with our remedies guidance. If the resident wishes to pursue this matter further, he should seek legal advice.

Relevant policies, procedures, or agreements

  1. The landlord’s damp and mould policy states:
    1. inspections and responsive repairs to diagnose and alleviate damp and mould will be carried out in accordance with its responsive repair policy
    2. when a report of damp and mould is received, it will attend site to remove any immediate risk, it will then investigate to identify the root cause and create work orders to remedy the issue
    3. it will inform residents of its findings from assessments, including the possible causes of damp, and recommended solutions. It will provide information on the necessary remedial works and estimated timeframes for completion, ensuring residents are kept informed throughout the process
    4. it will visit the property 6 weeks after the work is completed to ensure the issue has been resolved
  2. The landlord’s responsive repair policy states it will attend appointable repairs within 28 days and planned repairs within 90 days.
  3. The landlord’s complaint policy states it will acknowledge stage 1 and stage 2 complaints within 5-working days of receipt. It will respond to stage 1 complaints within 10-working days and stage 2 complaints within 20-working days from the date of receipt. If more time is needed, the landlord will inform the resident. Any extension will not exceed a further 10-working days for stage 1 complaints, and 20-working days for stage 2 complaints.
  4. The landlord’s compensation policy states it will pay compensation in cases where there has been avoidable inconvenience, distress, detriment, or other negative impacts of the service failure. (Including stress, anxiety, uncertainty, and frustration). This is assessed as follows:
    1. £50 – £100 – impact was of short duration and may not have significantly affected the overall outcome for the resident
    2. £100 – £600 – impact was of medium duration
    3. £600+ – significant and serious long-term effect on the resident, including physical or emotional impact, or both

Reports of damp and mould and the associated repairs

  1. The resident reported damp and mould in his wet room on 19 June 2023. The evidence confirms the landlord raised an inspection the same day. This was appropriate as it was in line with policy. However, there is no evidence to confirm when the inspection took place, or of an inspection report or survey. This is a record keeping failure and makes it difficult for us to assess if the landlord fulfilled its repair obligations. Further there is no evidence the landlord communicated its findings to the resident. This was not reasonable and meant the resident was uncertain as to what would happen next.
  2. There is no evidence the landlord (or contractors) completed any repairs to the wet room. From 25 September 2023 to 9 October 2023, the resident had to spend time and effort contacting the landlord for an update on the work and to chase the call backs he had requested. He told the landlord he was vulnerable and “desperate” to get the issues resolved. There is no evidence the landlord contacted the resident. This was not reasonable. The lack of progress and communication led to the resident raising a complaint.
  3. On 17 October 2023 the landlord raised an order for the damp and mould repairs. The target date to complete the work was 21 November 2023. This was appropriate as it was in line with the Responsive Repairs Policy. In the landlord’s stage 1 complaint response on 20 October 2023, it advised the resident it had asked the contractor to prioritise the work. This was reasonable, however it would have been helpful to provide an indicative timeframe. This would have helped set the resident’s expectations.
  4. The landlord’s repair records state on 22 October 2023, it completed a mould wash, removed and replaced the flooring, and renewed the fans in the wet room and kitchen. Despite the landlord’s commitment to contact the resident to ensure the work was completed, there is no evidence it did, and on 6 December 2023, the remaining work had not been arranged. This was not reasonable as the landlord had not done what it said it would, and the resident spent more time and effort contacting the landlord for updates.
  5. The resident escalated the complaint because of the lack of progress. He said a sub-contractor had attended to do a mould wash but said it was pointless because of the other work needed and left without completing the mould wash. The landlord followed this up with its contractor to raise the seriousness of the matter and the contractor agreed to book the work back in as a priority. This was reasonable, however there is no evidence to confirm the mould wash was rearranged.
  6. With the stage 2 complaint investigation ongoing, the landlord asked for the wet room to be replaced as an urgent work order. The replacement was completed on 1 February 2024, and the associated damp and damp was resolved, 8 months after it was first reported. This was not appropriate as it was not in line with policy. Further, the resident should not have had to raise a complaint for the work to be completed. This led to avoidable distress and inconvenience.
  7. The landlord offered the resident £250 compensation in its final complaint response. It said the offer was in recognition of the poor communication in arranging the work in a timely manner and the distress and inconvenience caused. In line with its compensation policy this would reflect a service failure where the impact was over a medium duration. The landlord did not acknowledge the length of time taken, the conduct of the sub-contractors in completing work as requested, and while it did say it would prioritise the work, there is no evidence this happened. As such the compensation was not proportionate to the service failures highlighted and the missed opportunities to complete the work earlier because of the resident’s health vulnerabilities.
  8. Considering the above, we find maladministration. The landlord acknowledged the lack of communication which led to the resident’s distress and inconvenience and continued efforts to obtain updates. It referred to the time taken but did not explore the delays in detail so it could learn from the failures and prevent a recurrence, nor did it acknowledge that it had not followed its policies. It was aware of the resident’s physical and mental health vulnerabilities yet only suggested prioritising the work as part of a complaint and then there was no evidence to demonstrate this happened.
  9. An order has been made for the landlord to pay the resident £500 compensation. This is in line with our remedies guidance for a finding of maladministration where the landlord has acknowledged failings and made some attempt to put things right, but the offer was not proportionate to the failings identified in our investigation or the impact on the resident.

Associated complaint

  1. The resident raised a complaint to the landlord on 25 September 2023. The landlord acknowledged receipt on 10 October 2023 and provided its stage 1 complaint response on 20 October 2023. The landlord’s responses were delayed which was not appropriate as they were not in line with policy.
  2. The landlord did not acknowledge or apologise for the delayed responses. It initially said it upheld the complaint, however, in its summary it said it partially upheld the complaint. This demonstrated an inconsistency in its decision making. It did not explain the reasons for the delays and the steps it would take to prevent a recurrence. It listed the work that was to be completed, said it would be prioritised, and said it would contact the resident to ensure the work was completed. There is no evidence it did what it said it would therefore it failed to fulfil the commitment. This supported the resident’s complaint that it had failed to communicate effectively with him. The landlord’s response demonstrated a lack of in-depth investigation.
  3. The resident escalated his complaint on 10 November 2023, and the landlord acknowledged this on 13 November 2023. This was appropriate as it was in line with policy. The landlord said it would respond by 11 December 2023, however on 6 December 2023, it extended the deadline to 13 December 2023. This was reasonable, however on 13 December 2023, the landlord said it was still not able to provide an update because it had not received the information it needed relating to the repairs or the survey. It told the resident the matter had been escalated because of the lack of response.
  4. The landlord provided its final complaint response on 31 January 2024, 55 working days after it was received. This was not appropriate as it was not in line with policy. The landlord did not acknowledge or apologise for the delay. It did not recognise the inconvenience caused by the delays and did not offer any redress for the complaint handling. Furthermore, it did not identify any learning to prevent a recurrence. As such a finding of maladministration is appropriate.
  5. An order has been made for the landlord to pay the resident £100 compensation. This is in line with our remedies guidance for a finding of maladministration where the landlord has failed to acknowledge its failings and has made no attempt to put things right.

Record keeping

  1. As per our Spotlight report on knowledge and information management, published in May 2023, we expect landlords to keep a robust record of contacts and repairs. This is because clear, accurate, and easily accessible records provide an audit trail and enhance landlords’ ability to identify and respond to problems when they arise. Failure to do so can result in landlords not taking appropriate and timely action, missing opportunities to identify that actions were wrong or inadequate, and contributing to inadequate communication and redress.
  2. The evidence shows the landlord has failed to maintain adequate records, which has impacted our ability to conduct a thorough investigation. This includes limited or no information regarding the damp inspections, subsequent reports and recommendations for repairs, and confirmation by way of communication to the resident. This has contributed to the other failures identified in this report. As such we find service failure with the landlord’s record keeping.

Determination

  1. In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Scheme, the Ombudsman finds maladministration in relation to the landlord’s response to the resident’s reports of damp and mould and the associated repairs.
  2. In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Scheme, the Ombudsman finds maladministration in relation to the landlord’s response to the resident’s associated complaint.
  3. In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Scheme, the Ombudsman finds service failure in relation to the landlord’s record keeping.

Orders

  1. Within 4 weeks of the date of this report, the landlord must provide evidence that it has:
    1. written a letter of apology to the resident which addresses the failures highlighted in this report
    2. paid the resident a total of £600. This is made up of the following:
      1. £500 for the distress and inconvenience to the resident, caused by the landlord’s delays in completing the repairs to resolve the damp and mould
      2. £100 for the distress and inconvenience to the resident, caused by the landlord’s delays in responding to the complaint
      3. This is inclusive of the compensation previously offered by the landlord. Therefore, the landlord may deduct from this total any compensation it may already have paid in relation to this complaint
      4. The payment should be made directly to the resident and not offset against any debt that may be owed
    3. reviewed its record keeping of this case and provided learning as to how it can prevent a recurrence of the failures highlighted in this report