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Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council (202307606)

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REPORT

COMPLAINT 202307606

Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council

12 December 2024

 

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 handling of:
    1. Damp and mould at the resident’s property.
    2. The associated complaint.

Background

  1. The resident is a secure tenant of the landlord.
  2. On 16 February 2023, the resident submitted her complaint to the landlord. She explained there had been mould in her property since August 2019. The resident stated that the mould was in the 2 children’s bedrooms and the bathroom.
  3. The landlord provided its stage 1 complaint response to the resident on 17 March 2023. It stated that it carried out a visit in response to her complaint and explained during its home visit on the 22 February 2023, the resident highlighted to the landlord that she had experienced a musky smell throughout the property and previously had a survey carried out. The landlord confirmed it had raised a work order for repairs to the drains and brickwork and cleaning of the guttering.
  4. On 18 May 2023, the resident contacted the landlord and requested her complaint to be escalated to the next stage of the landlord’s complaints process. This was due to the damp and mould repairs remaining outstanding at her property.
  5. On 21 July 2023, the landlord provided an interim complaint response to the resident. It confirmed that it had repaired the broken pipework under her property. The landlord explained it had recently visited her property and discussed with her the damp and mould issues she was experiencing in the three bedrooms. It recommended works to resolve the damp and mould at the property, which included the removal of skirting boards and plasterwork, completing tanking works, re-plastering the walls and reinstating skirting boards along with decoration works. The landlord stated it would end her stage 2 complaint once the repairs had been completed, as agreed with the resident.
  6. In October and November 2023, the Ombudsman contacted the landlord chasing it for its stage 2 complaint response.
  7. The landlord provided its stage 2 complaint response to the resident on 1 December 2023. It explained that it had completed some works at the resident’s property. However, it stated it had identified additional repair issues which needed further investigation, and it would complete all the required works to resolve the issues. The landlord apologised for the length of time taken to complete the works and any inconvenience caused.
  8. The resident remained dissatisfied with the landlord’s response and submitted her complaint to the Ombudsman. She stated that her desired outcome was for the damp and mould issue to be resolved at her property, so she can live in a home without her health being impacted.
  9. The resident has submitted a legal disrepair claim to the landlord about the damp and mould issues, since submitting her complaint to the Ombudsman. The landlord created a schedule of works on 27 July 2024 as part of the disrepair claim. In addition, the landlord’s legal team offered the resident and her solicitor £3000 to settle the claim. The landlord has confirmed that the settlement offer has not been accepted or rejected, therefore the disrepair claim is still ongoing.

Assessment and findings

Scope of Investigation

  1. The resident has mentioned as part of the complaint that the damp and mould have impacted her and her family’s health. She stated her son was now asthmatic due to living in the property with damp and mould. However, it is outside the Ombudsman’s role to determine whether there is a direct link between the landlord’s actions or inaction and any specific impact on the resident and her son’s health. It would be more appropriately suited for a court or liability insurer to investigate this as a personal injury claim. Courts can award damages in a different way to the Ombudsman and review medical evidence. However, it is generally accepted that damp and mould can pose a significant health risk, particularly for those with respiratory conditions such as asthma. This service can consider the general risk, and distress and inconvenience caused by any errors by the landlord as well as the landlord’s response to the resident’s concerns about her and her son’s health.
  2. The resident raised concerns that there have been issues with damp and mould at her property for around 5 years. The Ombudsman does not doubt the resident’s comments about the length of time the issue has been ongoing for. We acknowledge it is a longstanding issue which has caused difficulties for her and her family. However, there is no evidence of her raising a formal complaint to the landlord until February 2023. In view of the time periods involved in this case and considering the availability and reliability of evidence, this report will not consider any specific events approximately more than 12 months prior to when the resident submitted her complaint to the landlord in February 2023. This is because paragraph 42(c) of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme (available on our website), explains that this service may not investigate complaints that were not brought to the attention of the landlord as a formal complaint within a reasonable period, normally within 12 months of the matters arising.

Policies and procedures

  1. The landlord’s repairs policy on its website explains the landlord is responsible for major plastering work, wall tiles, skirting boards and pipe work. In addition, it explains that it is responsible for damp and mould issues caused by a structural problem or by a leak.
  2. In addition, the landlord’s repairs policy includes the following response timescales for the following repair categories:
    1. Emergency repairs – the landlord will respond and make the repair issue safe within 24 hours.
    2. Urgent repairs – the landlord will respond within 3 working days.
    3. Non-urgent repairs – the landlord will respond within 25 working days.
  3. The landlord has recently created a damp and mould policy. However, the landlord has confirmed it is currently awaiting sign off.

Damp and mould at the resident’s property

  1. On 16 February 2023, the resident contacted the landlord and submitted a complaint about damp and mould within her property. She explained that there has been damp and mould in her property since August 2019. The Ombudsman has noted for contextual reasons that the landlord’s surveyor inspected the resident’s property on 6 March 2021 following a report of damp and mould. The landlord stated that at the time of the survey, mould growth was identified within the front bedroom. The landlord responded appropriately by carrying out an inspection at the time. However, the landlord has not provided any evidence that any works were carried out after the inspection.
  2. The landlord visited the resident’s property on 22 February 2023 to discuss and investigate the damp and mould concerns which the resident raised as part of her complaint. It explained that the resident had stated that there was a musky smell throughout the property and her partner stated he could hear water under the flooring. The landlord acted appropriately by visiting the resident’s property following the submission of her complaint.
  3. After the visit, the landlord’s contractor carried out works on the guttering on 23 February 2023. In addition, the landlord’s specialist drain contractor carried out a full camera survey of the drains at the front and rear of the resident’s property on 27 February 2023. The survey identified multiple defects, including a broken pipe, cracks, and a defective manhole cover. Therefore, the drain contractor recommended several repairs to resolve these issues.
  4. The landlord provided its stage 1 complaint response to the resident on 17 March 2023. It confirmed that it had raised orders for a damp roofing course injection to the brickwork to the front and rear of the property and guttering works. However, the landlord stated it had not yet booked a date for these works. The landlord also explained in its stage 1 complaint response that it had raised a work order for a camera survey of the drains at the resident’s property. But this was incorrect, as a camera survey of the drains had already been carried out in February 2023. The landlord responded reasonably by raising work orders for a damp proof course and guttering works. However, the Ombudsman would have expected the landlord to book appointment dates for these works, particularly as the damp and mould had been an ongoing issue.
  5. The landlord’s drainage contractor carried out the required repairs to the drains on 18 April 2023. Shortly after this, in May 2023, the landlord’s surveyor visited the resident’s property and carried out a damp survey. The survey identified that there was damp and mould on the walls and on the ceiling in the bathroom and 3 bedrooms. The surveyor recommended for the surfaces to be washed and painted. Due to the damp and mould issue still being present at the resident’s property, she requested her complaint to be escalated to stage 2 of the landlord’s complaint process on 18 May 2023. Following this, the landlord’s contractor carried out a damp and mould wash at the resident’s property on 19 May 2023. The landlord took reasonable steps by carrying out the damp and mould wash. However, there was a delay in the landlord completing the recommended painting and decoration works after this.
  6. Following the completion of the mould wash, the landlord visited the resident’s property on 10 July 2023 to discuss the damp and mould issues within the 3 bedrooms and the previous repairs it had completed. Shortly after this, the landlord provided the resident with an interim complaint response on 21 July 2023. The landlord explained following its recent visit to the resident’s property that further works were suggested to resolve the damp and mould at the property. The landlord suggested the removal of skirting boards and plaster work at a low level within all the bedrooms. In addition, it suggested tanking works, re-plastering the walls, reinstating the skirting boards and decoration works. The landlord took reasonable steps by reinspecting the resident’s property to identify whether further works were required to resolve the damp and mould issue.
  7. Although the landlord responded appropriately by reinspecting the resident’s property and recommending further works, there was a considerable delay in the landlord completing the works.
  8. The landlord provided its stage 2 complaint response to the resident on 1 December 2023. It acknowledged that it had completed some works at the resident’s property but explained that there were still some works outstanding as it had identified extra issues which required further investigation. The landlord apologised for the inconvenience caused and the length of time it had taken to complete the necessary works. It was a positive step that the landlord apologised for the delay in carrying out the works. However, it would have been appropriate for the landlord to prioritise outstanding works to resolve the damp and mould and provide estimated timescales to the resident, but the landlord failed to do this.
  9. The landlord eventually carried out the recommended works during the year 2024. It confirmed that the damp proof course and tanking works were completed on 28 February 2024 and 8 May 2024. The landlord also confirmed that it completed additional work, such as installing new skirting boards and a boxing window board. In May 2024, when the landlord provided the Ombudsman with its file submission, it explained that the only work remaining outstanding was a mould wash and sealing the walls in preparation for redecoration. The landlord responded reasonably by carrying out some of the recommended works. However, the delay in the landlord completing the works was unreasonable.
  10. The resident pursued a legal disrepair claim against the landlord via her solicitor due to works remaining outstanding and damp and mould still being present within her property. On 26 July 2024, the landlord’s surveyor created a schedule of works as part of the disrepair claim. The schedule of works included installing an ACO drain to the front wall of the property, changing the vent in the first bedroom, plumbing works to the bathroom, overhauling the extractor fan in the bathroom room and renewing the floor tiles within the bathroom. In addition, the schedule recommended mould washes and sealing the walls and the ceilings as necessary.
  11. In addition to the landlord drawing up a schedule of works, the landlord’s legal team offered a monetary settlement of £3000 to the resident via her solicitor to settle the disrepair claim in August 2024. The landlord has confirmed that the resident’s solicitor has not yet accepted or rejected the settlement offer. In the Ombudsman’s opinion, the monetary settlement of £3000 offered by the landlord’s legal team is reasonable. The amount of compensation offered by the landlord is compliant with the Ombudsman’s Remedies Guidance (published on our website), which sets out the Ombudsman’s approach to compensation. The remedies guidance suggests awards of £1000 or more where there has been a serious failure by the landlord. As the landlord has offered a reasonable monetary settlement as part of the disrepair claim, the Ombudsman will not be awarding any further compensation in this instance. However, the Ombudsman expects the landlord to re-offer the £3000 settlement amount to the resident’s solicitor, so they can decide whether they would like to accept the settlement offer.
  12. The landlord informed the Ombudsman that it has completed all the works include on the schedule, and it carried out a post inspection at the property on 20 September 2024. However, the resident informed the Ombudsman on 29 November 2024 that all the works had not been completed. She explained that there is still damp in the property, and she cannot use one bedroom due to works still remaining outstanding.
  13. There has been maladministration by the landlord in its handling of damp and mould at the resident’s property. As there is damp and mould still present at the resident’s property, and all the necessary works have not been completed to resolve the issue. If there are still works remaining outstanding which were previously recommended by the landlord’s surveyor, the landlord should complete these works. However, if the landlord still believes that all the agreed works have been completed, it should arrange for an independent specialist damp surveyor to inspect the whole of the resident’s property, due to reports of there being damp and mould still present within the property. Then, following the surveyor’s inspection, the landlord should draw up a schedule of works with timescales to resolve the damp and mould at the resident’s property. The landlord should then carry out the necessary works to resolve the damp and mould.

The associated complaint

  1. The Ombudsman’s Complaint Handling Code (the Code) sets out the Ombudsman’s expectations for landlords’ complaint handling practices. The Code states that a stage 1 response should be provided within 10 working days of the complaint. It also explains that a stage 2 response should be provided within 20 working days from the request to escalate the complaint. The landlord’s complaints policy includes the same timescales referenced in the Code.
  2. The resident submitted her complaint to the landlord on 16 February 2023. Following this, the landlord provided its stage 1 complaint response to the resident on 17 March 2023. The response was approximately 11 working days late and not compliant with the timescales referenced within the Code and the landlord’s complaints policy.
  3. It took the landlord over 6 months to provide its stage 2 complaint response. On 18 May 2023, the resident contacted the landlord and requested her complaint to be escalated to the next stage of its complaints process. The landlord provided its stage 2 complaint response to the resident on 1 December 2023. The Ombudsman recognises the landlord provided the resident with an interim complaint response on 21 July 2023 and explained it would issue a stage 2 complaint response once it had completed all the repairs. However, this was unreasonable and not in line with the landlord’s complaints policy or the Code.
  4. The landlord’s stage 2 complaint response was considerably late. The Ombudsman had to chase the landlord in October and November 2023 for it to respond to the resident. The delay would have caused inconvenience, and the resident was delayed in progressing her complaint to the Ombudsman because she needed to wait for the landlord’s final response before contacting our service. She also needed to contact the Ombudsman to ask us to chase the landlord, which would have added to her inconvenience.
  5. It would be appropriate for the landlord to pay the resident £150 compensation for the distress and inconvenience caused. The amount of compensation is appropriate to recognise the significant delay the resident experienced. The amount of compensation awarded is in line with the Ombudsman’s remedies guidance referenced above. In this case, although the delay would have been inconvenient, there may be no permanent impact to the resident, as she eventually received a final response letter from the landlord and could submit her complaint to the Ombudsman.

Determination (decision)

  1. In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, there was maladministration in the landlord’s handling of damp and mould at the resident’s property.
  2. In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, there was maladministration in the landlord’s handling of the associated complaint.

Orders

  1. The landlord is ordered to:
    1. Complete any outstanding works which were previously agreed by its surveyor or
    2. If the landlord believes all agreed works have been completed, it should arrange for an independent damp specialist surveyor to inspect the resident’s property and draw up a schedule of the required works to resolve the damp and mould issues. The schedule must include timescales of when the work will be completed. A copy of the schedule should be sent to the resident and the Ombudsman.
    3. Pay the resident £150 compensation for its complaint handling errors.
  2. The landlord must comply with the above orders within 6 weeks of the date of this determination.

Recommendations

  1. It is recommended that the landlord re-offers the £3000 monetary settlement it previously offered as part of the disrepair claim to the resident via her solicitor.