Royal Borough Of Greenwich (202329847)

REPORT

COMPLAINT 202329847

Royal Borough Of Greenwich

14 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 the landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of a leak and subsequent reports of damp.
The Ombudsman has also investigated the landlord’s associated complaint handling.

Background

The resident is an assured tenant under an agreement dated May 2018. The landlord is a local authority. She lives in a 4-bedroom house, with 2 other adults and 4 children. The landlord said it is not aware of any other vulnerabilities the resident or others in the household may have.
The landlord raised a repair in January 2023 following reports of a leak. The landlord undertook exploratory work and did not find evidence of a leak. In July 2023, the resident reported the issue again and the landlord’s representative noted that the pointing in between external bricks may need repair work.
On 4 September 2023 the resident raised a complaint to the landlord. She said she had first reported a leak coming into the living room about a year ago. The leak was worse during rainy days, but the plaster was constantly damp and crumbly. She said the landlord had confirmed the leak was coming from outside and had said the exterior walls needed repointing. She said she had regularly emailed the landlord’s repairs team about the issue and had received no response. The resident asked for the repointing to be completed.
The landlord responded at stage 1 on 15 September 2023. It said it upheld the complaint and said it would arrange for an inspection of the brickwork and provide an update to the resident within 5 working days. The landlord also apologised for staffing and capacity issues that had resulted in her emails not being responded to.
On 16 October 2023, the landlord completed work to the brickwork. On 21 October 2023, the resident reported she was unhappy with the quality of work and asked for her complaint to be escalated. She made a stage 2 complaint on 28 October 2023 and said:
1. she could not use the living room as the chance of the ceiling falling through was high due to constant rain.
2. she had reported the issue for over a year.
3. she believed the water was coming from an external wall.
4. she asked for the repair to be dealt with seriously, as she was worried someone may be hurt.
The landlord provided its final response on 24 November 2023. It said there had been some cancelled repairs appointments due to access issues and that it had completed the expected repairs. It did not expect further repairs needed to be undertaken on the external areas. It asked the resident to contact it if she was still experiencing water ingress into the property.
The resident contacted this Service on 24 November 2023. She said the issue was impacting her mental health and that she wanted the landlord to find and fix the leak. She said she was dissatisfied with the quality of repairs already undertaken.
The resident continued to report the issue throughout 2023 and 2024. On 4 March 2025, the resident told this Service the leak issue was ongoing.

Assessment and findings

Scope of this investigation

The Ombudsman encourages residents to raise complaints with their landlords at the time the events happened. 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.
The resident reports that she had been reporting the leak for over a year, prior to submitting her stage 1 complaint. However, based on the evidence available, including the initial reports of the issue, this assessment has focussed on the period from January 2023until the complaint exhausted the landlord’s internal complaint procedure on 24 November 2023. Reference to events outside of this period are made in this report to provide context.

The landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports a leak and subsequent reports of damp

It is important to note that accurate record keeping is essential and helps ensure landlords meet their repair obligations. It ensures residents receive accurate information. As a member of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, it also has an obligation to provide this Service with sufficient information to enable a thorough investigation. 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 landlord’s repairs policy states it will respond to:
1. leaking water pipes where the water cannot be shut off within 1 working day. In some cases, the landlord will make the situation safe and return later to complete work.
2. rotten timber flooring within 3 working days.
3. a leaking roof within 5 working days.
4. all other non-urgent minor repairs will be completed within 20 working days. If the landlord needs to inspect the home before ordering the repair, it will tell the resident at inspection when the repair should be completed.
The Ombudsman’s spotlight report on Knowledge and Information Management (KIM) is available on our website. This further highlights the need for effective record keeping with recommendations which include:
1. a minimum standard for key data recording, to ensure quality records are available to support the wider business processes.
2. ensuring that the landlord can easily interrogate databases, and that data can be extracted when needed.
The landlord raised a repair order on 16 January 2023 following a report from the resident that a leak was going into the living room. However, it is unclear when the resident first reported the issue. We are therefore unable to assess whether the landlord raised the repair order in a reasonable time and in line with its repairs policy. This was a record keeping failure.
The landlord attended the property on 17 January 2023 and reported that the leak and associated damp had dried. It lifted the floor in the bedroom above and found no evidence of a leak. The landlord attended within 1 day of raising the repair order. However, due to the above record keeping failure, it is not possible to assess if this was in line with its repairs policy as it is not clear when the resident first reported the issue.
When providing evidence to this Service, the landlord provided a chronology of events. This referred to several missed appointments in 2023 due to no access being given. However, the landlord has not provided contemporary evidence of these and did not provide a customer contact log. This means we are unable to clarify whether the resident reported further leaks and what steps or actions the landlord took. This was a record keeping failure.
The Ombudsman’s Spotlight Report on Damp and Mould (published October 2021) provides recommendations for landlords, including that they should:
1. adopt a zero-tolerance approach to damp and mould interventions. Landlords should review their current strategy and consider whether their approach will achieve this.
2. ensure that they clearly and regularly communicate with their residents regarding actions taken or otherwise to resolve reports of damp and mould.
3. identify where an independent, mutually agreed and suitably qualified surveyor should be used, and share the outcomes of all surveys and inspections with residents to help them understand the findings and be clear on the next steps. Landlords should then act on accepted survey recommendations promptly.
The landlord attended the property on 27 July 2023 regarding an unrelated complaint and observed a damp patch on the living room ceiling. It stated that the pointing between the external brickwork may need repairs.
In her stage 1 complaint, the resident reported sending twice weekly emails about the leak and subsequent damp. The landlord apologised for not responding to the resident’s emails about the issue. Whilst an apology is an important step in putting things right, the landlord did not follow its own policies and attend to inspect the resident’s further reports of a leak and subsequent damp. The lack of communication with the resident about her concerns was not in line with the Spotlight Report on Damp and Mould recommendations. This was a failure.
On 15 September 2023, the landlord upheld the resident’s stage 1 complaint and stated there was evidence of damp in the property. The landlord said it would inspect the brick work and update the resident within 5 working days. The landlord arranged a damp inspection for 20 September 2023. This was 39 working days after the landlord identified damp on the ceiling on 27 July 2023 and was outside of the repairs policy timeline. It did not demonstrate a zero-tolerance approach to damp.
The resident continued to report her concerns about the leak, damp and impact on the living room ceiling in September 2023. The landlord inspected the property on 20 September 2023 and stated that the damp was due to rainwater ingress through defective brickwork pointing. It completed work to the brickwork on 16 October 2023. This was 57 working days after the landlord identified these repairs were likely needed on 27 July 2023. This was outside of the landlord’s repairs timeframe and was a failure.
On 21 October 2023, the resident reported that the repair work had been ineffective, and the problem was worse than previous. She said she was worried the damp was weakening the ceiling and that she did not use the room as she was scared the ceiling would fall. The landlord did not respond to this email or the resident’s concerns about the safety of the ceiling. This was not in line with the Spotlight Report on Damp and Mould and was not reasonable. The landlord did not investigate the report of the continuing leak and damp made on 21 October 2023. This was not in line with its repairs policy and was a failure.
The landlord was not clear on which repairs had been completed. This was a record keeping failure and impacted the service it provided the resident.
In her stage 2 escalation, the resident reported that there was still a leak and damp affecting the property. The landlord acknowledged this in its stage 2 response on 24 November 2023, but stated the resident needed to contact it via email or telephone to arrange for a tradesperson to attend. The landlord did not follow its repairs procedure and accept the resident’s report of a leak and subsequent damp or take actions to put things right. This was inappropriate.
The resident told this Service that the issue was still ongoing as of 4 March 2025. The landlord has not provided evidence to confirm:
1. what works are still outstanding.
2. whether the repairs have resolved all the issues the resident complained about.
We are therefore unable to assess whether the landlord has completed all the repairs to a good standard, and whether the repairs have resolved the issues the resident reported during the internal complaint procedure.
In summary, there were:
1. sustained record keeping failures in the landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of a leak.
2. a delay of 57 working days between the landlord identifying work was needed to the external brickwork and completing it.
3. failures to address the resident’s concerns that the leak was ongoing. The landlord took limited steps to reassure the resident that it had assessed the risk appropriately and was committed to putting things right.
4. failures in the landlord responding to the resident’s communication in August 2023.
5. The landlord has also failed to evidence that it has resolved the leak.
The resident has reported that she constantly worries about the damp and the leak. She said she does not let her children use the living room as she is concerned the ceiling may collapse. While the landlord acknowledged its communication failures, it failed to address the detriment to the resident. It did not offer proportionate actions to put things right.
The landlord did not learn from the outcomes of its complaint responses and failed to action her reports or raise a repair for the ongoing leak in its stage 2 response. It did not show that it took further steps to put things right. The Ombudsman considers that this did amount to maladministration.
As we are unable to assess if there are still outstanding repairs, we have made an order to inspect the resident’s property and if necessary, identify and schedule the repairs needed. Considering the Ombudsman’s remedies guidance, we have ordered the landlord to pay the resident £400 for the impact and distress caused by its handling of the resident’s concerns about a leak and subsequent damp.

The landlord’s associated complaint handling.

A landlord’s complaint handling should aim to resolve issues quickly, effectively, and fairly. The Ombudsman’s Complaint Handling Code (the Code) sets out what good complaint handling looks like. The Code and further guidance are available on our website.
The Ombudsman is clear that effective dispute resolution requires a process designed to resolve complaints. Where something has gone wrong a landlord should acknowledge this and set out the actions it has already taken, or intends to take, to put things right. It should also name any learning to ensure failings are not repeated.
The landlord’s complaints policy at the time defined a complaint as an expression of dissatisfaction, however made, about the standard of service, actions or lack of action.
It aimed to acknowledge stage 1 complaints within 5 working days of receipt and provide response within 10 working days. The resident made a stage 1 complaint on 4 September 2023. The landlord acknowledged this on 5 September 2023. It responded on 15 September 2023 and apologised for the 1-day delay in response. This was outside of its policy timeframes, and it was appropriate to apologise for this.
The landlord stated it would acknowledge stage 2 complaints within 5 working days and provide a response within 20 working days. The resident first expressed dissatisfaction with the landlord’s stage 1 response on 21 October 2023. That the landlord did not provide a stage 2 response at that time was unreasonable, and a failing in its complaint handling.
The failure to escalate caused the resident time and trouble because she then had to make another complaint escalation on 28 October 2023.The landlord acknowledged this on the 29 October 2023 and responded on 24 November 2023. This was 25 working days after the resident initially asked for the complaint to be escalated. This was a complaint handling failure.
In summary, there were several complaint handling failures. The landlord did not accept the resident’s initial stage 2 escalation, nor acknowledge the delay. The landlord failed to use the complaints process as an opportunity to resolve the substantive issue, which delayed the resident’s reports of the issue. It did not investigate why its proposed solutions to the leak and damp were unsatisfactory. It took limited steps to put things right. It did not offer compensation in line with the Ombudsman’s remedies guidance. This caused the resident time and trouble, as well as distress and inconvenience.
The Ombudsman considers this did amount to maladministration. Considering this Service’s remedies guidance, we have ordered the landlord to pay £150 compensation for the distress and inconvenience caused by its complaint handling failures.

Determination

In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Scheme, there was maladministration in landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports a leak and subsequent reports of damp.
In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Scheme, there was maladministration in the landlords handling of the associated complaint.

Orders

Within 28 days of this report, the landlord must:
1. write to the resident to apologise for the failures identified in the report.
2. pay compensation to the resident of £550. This is made up of:
  1. £400 for the distress and impact caused by its handling of the resident’s reports of a leak and subsequent damp.
  2. £150 for the distress and inconvenience caused by its complaint handling failures.
3. inspect the resident’s property to address her concerns about the leak and subsequent damp. The landlord should provide a copy of the inspection report to the resident and this Service which should set out any outstanding repairs. If there are outstanding repairs, the landlord should include a schedule with a timeline of when the repairs will be completed, which should then be adhered to.
4. provide documentary evidence of compliance with the above orders to this Service.