Progress Housing Association Limited (202319616)

REPORT

COMPLAINT 202319616

Progress Housing Association Limited (including Reside Housing)

12 May 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

The complaint is about:
1. The landlord’s handling of the resident’s request for her roof to be replaced.
2. The landlord’s handling of the resident’s complaint.

Background

The resident had an assured shorthold tenancy agreement at the time the complaint was made but has since moved. The property is a 2-bedroom, first floor flat. There are no vulnerabilities recorded for the resident on the housing records.
The resident made a complaint on 11 November 2020. She said the landlord had replaced a number of tiles on her roof, but she had previously been told the roof needed to be replaced. The landlord confirmed on 18 November 2020 that the resident’s roof would be replaced during the next financial year. It also noted it would arrange an inspection and carry out minor repairs to ensure the roof was watertight in the interim. It said the resident was happy for her complaint to be closed.
The resident told the landlord on 24 February 2023 she had been waiting for her roof to be replaced since 2019. The landlord responded on 27 February 2023 and said no repairs had been raised for the roof and it would need to arrange for it to be checked. It raised a job on 1 March 2023.
The resident made a further complaint on 20 June 2023. She said she had reported issues with the roof on numerous occasions since 2020 and had previously been told by the landlord that it would be replaced. She also noted there were damp patches in the rooms and she was concerned about the level of heat that was being lost through the roof and the cost of her energy bills.
The landlord issued it stage 1 complaint response on 6 July 2023 and said:
1. An inspection of the roof had been completed and it had been confirmed it needed to be replaced. It would arrange for this to be done during the financial year.
2. The new roof would be insulated to help reduce heat loss and the resident’s energy cost.
3. It had identified valuable learning from the resident’s complaint in relation to record keeping.
The resident escalated her complaint on 11 July 2023. She said the landlord had ignored her request for a new roof, despite previously identifying a new one was required. She noted the landlord had not provided an explanation as to why the roof had not been replaced and said other properties in the area had been reroofed. The complaint was closed on 24 July 2023 following a discussion with the resident, during which she confirmed she was happy with the action being taken by the landlord.
The resident told the landlord on 14 September 2023 that she was still waiting for her roof to be replaced. She said she was told the roof would be replaced during the first week of September 2023, but no one had been in contact.
The landlord issued its final complaint response on 10 October 2023 and noted the roof had been replaced and the work was completed in a reasonable timescale.

Assessment and findings

Scope of the investigation.

This Service encourages residents to raise complaints with their landlord in a timely manner. This is because with the passage of time, evidence may be unavailable and personnel involved may have left an organisation, which makes it difficult for a thorough investigation to be carried out and for informed decisions to be made. In this case the resident made a complaint in November 2020, but did not exhaust the landlord’s complaints policy.
Taking account of the availability and reliability of evidence, it is considered fair and reasonable for this assessment to focus on the landlord’s handling of the events leading up to when the resident made a complaint in June 2023, up to October 2023, when the landlord issued its final complaint response. Any reference to historical issues provides contextual background to the current complaint.

The landlord’s obligations, policies and procedures.

The resident’s tenancy agreement says the landlord will keep the structure and exterior of the property in good repair. This includes the roof.
The landlord’s asset management strategy sets out its approach to investing in its homes and ensuring it meets regulatory and legislative requirements. It carries out an annual planned maintenance investment programme to ensure its properties are compliant with the decent homes standard (DHS). Properties that are identified as becoming non-decent are prioritised and programmed for completion within the year in which they would fail the DHS.
The landlord’s repairs policy says it will ensure its residents live in a safe, secure and warm environment. It adopts a ‘‘right first-time’’ approach and prioritises responsive repairs into the following categories:
1. Emergency repairs are completed within 24 hours.
2. Urgent repairs are completed within 7 days.
3. Non-emergency repairs are completed within 28 days and include non-urgent external repairs.
The landlord has an obligation to ensure it complies with the Housing, Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS). The HHSRS does not specify any minimum standards, but it is concerned with avoiding or minimising potential health hazards. Damp and mould are potential hazards that can fall within the scope of HHSRS. Landlords should be aware of their obligations under HHSRS and are expected to carry out additional monitoring of a property where potential hazards are identified.
Whilst reasonable timescales are not defined in law, the potential health risks from damp and mould are significant. It is this Service’s view that landlords should take urgent action following reports of damp and mould. The landlord says it will carry out an inspection on receiving reports of damp and mould from residents. No timescales are provided for doing this or completing any identified remedial works.
The landlord’s complaints policy comprises of 2 stages. Complaints are acknowledged within 5 working days and a reply at stage 1 issued within 10 working days. The landlord responds to escalations at stage 2 within 20 working days. If more time is needed, the landlord says it will contact the resident to advise them. It also says it will offer an apology and compensation when it gets things wrong. Awards up to £100 are made where an identified service failure has a minimal impact on a resident.

The landlord’s handling of the resident’s request for her roof to be replaced.

The resident told the landlord on 24 February 2023 that she had been waiting for her roof to be replaced since 2019. The landlord responded on 27 February 2023 and noted that no repairs had been logged and it would need to arrange for the roof to be inspected. Whilst this demonstrated the landlord wanted to put things right for the resident, it would have been reasonable for it to have checked its records to confirm if there had been any previous issues identified with the roof. This would have confirmed that it had previously agreed to replace the roof.
The landlord raised a repair on 1 March 2023. Whilst this was consistent with its repairs policy, it is unclear from the housing records whether the landlord attended or what work, if any was carried out. This demonstrated poor record keeping on the part of the landlord. The landlord noted on 16 June 2023 that it was unclear whether any work was completed in March 2023 after raising a repair.
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. As a member of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, the landlord also has an obligation to provide this Service with sufficient information to enable a thorough investigation to be undertaken. In this case, the records provided by the landlord were limited and its poor record keeping has made it difficult to determine whether its actions were fair and reasonable in the circumstances.
The resident asked the landlord for an update on 12 June 2023. The landlord responded on 16 June 2023 and said it would arrange for the roof to be inspected. Whilst the landlord’s actions were reasonable in the circumstances, it is unclear from the housing records whether the roof was inspected. The resident raised a complaint on 20 June 2023 and told the landlord the roof leaked when there was heavy rain. She also noted there were damp patches in the rooms
There is no evidence the landlord responded to the resident’s reports of damp. The lack of engagement around the potential damp issue was contrary to the approach required under the HHSRS and the Ombudsman’s spotlight review. This was a failure and meant the resident was not clear on what action was being taken by the landlord to address her concerns.
The landlord confirmed on 6 July 2023 in its stage 1 complaint response that it had inspected the roof and noted that it needed to be replaced. Whilst this provided clarity, no details of the inspection were shared with this Service. The landlord said the roof would be replaced during the financial year and someone would be in contact to confirm a start date. The landlord’s actions were reasonable in the circumstances and demonstrated it prioritised the work to be undertaken as soon as it could. Roof replacements are considered major works and not something a landlord can usually undertake immediately. The landlord did not, however, address the resident’s complaint about damp and mould. This was a further failure.
There is no evidence the landlord provided the resident with an update after issuing its stage 1 complaint response. This demonstrated poor communication on the part of the landlord and led to the resident having to chase the landlord up on 14 September 2023. She said she had previously been advised the roof would be replaced during the first week of September 2023, but no one had been in contact. The landlord confirmed with the resident on 19 September 2023 that the scaffolding had been erected, although it is unclear from the housing records what the reason for the delay was. It is also unclear when the roof was replaced.
The landlord told the resident on 10 October 2023 in its final complaint response that the roof had been replaced and the work was done in a reasonable timescale. It would have been reasonable for the landlord to have acknowledged its communication with the resident was poor at times.
In summary, whilst the landlord arranged for the roof to be replaced, its communication with the resident was poor at times and there is no evidence it undertook any temporary repairs to the roof, whilst waiting for it to be replaced. Neither did it address the resident’s concerns about damp and mould. This was despite the resident telling the landlord the roof still leaked and there was damp. The situation caused the resident distress, time and trouble in pursuing her complaint In this case, there was maladministration by the landlord in its handling of the resident’s request for her roof to be replaced, for which it is ordered to pay £250 compensation.

The landlord’s handling of the resident’s complaint.

The resident made a complaint on 20 June 2023. The landlord acknowledged the complaint on the same day and said it would provide a response by 4 July 2023. This was in accordance with the landlord’s complaints policy.
The landlord issued its stage 1 complaint response on 6 July 2023. This was 2 working days after the deadline date. There is no evidence the landlord advised the resident that there would be a delay in responding to her complaint. This was not consistent with the landlord’s complaints policy.
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. In this case, the landlord failed to address the resident’s complaint about damp and it is unclear from the complaint response what learning was identified and what changes had been made to prevent a re-occurrence.
The resident escalated her complaint on 11 July 2023. The complaint was closed on 24 July 2023 following a discussion with the resident, during which she confirmed she was happy with the action that was being taken by the landlord. Whilst the landlord’s actions were reasonable in the circumstances, it would have been appropriate for the landlord to have confirmed the outcome of the conversation in writing to the resident. This would have avoided the subsequent confusion that was caused and which led to the resident noting on 14 September 2023 that the landlord was ignoring her complaint.
The landlord escalated the resident’s complaint on 20 September 2023 and said it would provide a response by 18 October 2023. This was consistent with its complaints policy.
The landlord issued its final complaint response on 10 October 2023. This was in accordance with the timescales set out in the landlord’s complaints policy. It noted the resident’s complaint had been previously closed following a discussion with her but was reopened at her request. This provided clarity. Again, the landlord failed to address the resident’s complaint about damp and mould.
In summary, the landlord failed to address elements of the resident’s complaint and could have been clearer about the learning it identified. The landlord’s decision to close the complaint was reasonable in the circumstances given the conversation it had with the resident at the time. In this case, there was service failure by the landlord in its handling of the resident’s complaint, for which it is ordered to pay £100 compensation.

Determination

In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, there was maladministration by the landlord in its handling of the resident’s request for her roof to be replaced.
In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, there was service failure by the landlord in its handling of the resident’s complaint.

Orders

Within 4 weeks of the date of this report, the landlord is ordered to apologise to the resident for the failings set out in this report. A copy of the apology letter must be shared with this Service.
Within 4 weeks of the date of this report, the landlord is ordered to pay £350 compensation to the resident. This must be paid directly to the resident and is made up as follows:
1. £250 for the inconvenience, time and trouble caused to the resident in its handling of her request for her roof to be replaced.
2. £100 for the inconvenience caused to the resident by its handling of her complaint.
Within 8 weeks of the date of this report, the landlord is ordered to undertake a review of this case and identify learning opportunities. The review must include an assessment of its record keeping, approach to reports of damp and mould and its communications standards in respect of planned works. A copy of the review outcome must be shared with the resident and this Service.