From 13 January 2026, we will no longer accept new case enquiries by email. Please use our online complaint form to bring a complaint to us. This helps us respond to you more quickly.

Need help? Other ways to contact us.

St Albans City and District Council (202439371)

Back to Top

 

REPORT

COMPLAINT 202439371

St Albans City and District Council

20 August 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 handling of the resident’s concerns about insulation in the communal areas and leaks, damp and mould in his property.

Background

  1. The resident is a leaseholder of the landlord, a local council. This is a 2- bed first (top ) floor flat in a conversion. He lives with his partner and young child.
  2. On 8 April 2021, further to a previous damp and mould complaint by the resident, the landlord undertook to complete insulation works to the communal loft space as part of its planned maintenance programme. It also said the building was not suitable for standard cavity wall insulation. And it would need to carry out a survey of the block to determine what other insulation to the fabric of the building (external walls) was feasible. It said it could not give the resident a timeline for any of the works but would do it “as soon as possible” and would keep the resident updated. It carried out some works to the loft insulation on 13 and 14 April 2021. It is unclear what these works were.
  3. The resident reported further instances of mould growth between December 2022 and 16 February 2023. He also asked for updates on the external wall insulation and loft works within this time. The landlord met with the resident on 16 February 2023.
  4. The loft insulation and ventilation work to both the front and rear were completed at the end of March 2023. The landlord’s contractor also repaired and cleared broken guttering at this time.
  5. On 17 October 2024 the resident made a stage 1 complaint. He said:
    1. He had ongoing damp and mould in his property which recurred every year and wanted immediate action to prevent further damp.
    2. He had been told that the building would be put forward for wall insulation and had been given no update as to when this would be completed.
  6. The landlord responded to the resident’s stage 1 complaint on 31 October 2024. It said:
    1. In March 2023, it had undertaken works to both the front and rear elevation eaves section of the roof, directly above the resident’s flat to better insulate the areas. It had also ensured air flow was maintained from the ventilated soffits up and over the roof space. It provided photographs of the completed works and said these should have made a “significant difference to cold bridging” that had occurred prior to the works being undertaken.
    2. Its planned maintenance manager had visited in April 2024, a year after the roof works were carried out. And the resident had pointed out slight mould growth in the corners of a couple of rooms. The landlord had offered to redecorate the ceilings. However, it agreed to review the mould situation and would visit with a damp and mould specialist to see if a solution could be found to the recurring mould growth.
    3. In respect of the cavity wall insulation, the landlord hoped the damp and mould specialist could offer some insight as to the timescale for this and any other insulation upgrade works planned for the block. This is because this staff member managed the energy efficiency works.
    4. It would contact the resident on week commencing 11 November 2024 to arrange the visit.
  7. The resident made a stage 2 complaint on 5 November 2024. He said:
    1. The mould had got worse because the landlord’s contractor had not correctly fitted the insulation to the eaves in 2021.
    2. He had chased the landlord and its contractors various times in the past and had to chase the landlord for a specialist visit.
    3. The damp and mould in his bedroom was significantly worse, and he attached photographs.
    4. He had been chasing the cavity wall insulation for a number of years and was told that the block would be added to planned works. A number of professionals had been engaged to see if the building could have this installed. He did not understand why a repeat survey would be needed.
  1. The landlord responded to the resident’s stage 2 complaint on 13 December 2024. It said:
    1. Its planned maintenance manager and energy surveyor had inspected on 12 December 2023, took thermal images and identified further areas for investigation. It also measured humidity and air quality. It explained how to deal with existing mould and gave the resident a pack of approved cleaning materials.
    2. The bathroom extractor fan would benefit from an upgrade (replacement) extractor fan with a humidistat. It would upgrade the extractor fan as a goodwill gesture and following any remedial works identified, it would carry out the previously arranged ceiling decorations.
    3. It was confident that it could carry out further actions to assist in reducing the likelihood of mould growth reoccurring. Its planned maintenance manager would arrange further investigations and liaise directly with the resident once it had spoken to its contractor.

After the internal complaints procedure

  1. The resident continued to request updates on insulation to the building walls. He also asked for clarification on what further works would be done. He also asked for a kitchen extractor fan, which he said the energy surveyor had stated was necessary as his current one did not work.
  2. The resident approached the Ombudsman on 4 January 2025. As an outcome to the complaint, he wanted the works to be completed and better insulation in the roof space, as outlined in the landlord’s stage 2 response. He also wanted a new extractor fan in the bathroom; moisture control devices and anti mould paint works completed.
  3. The landlord carried out further loft insulation works in mid February 2025 to remedy the ‘cold spot’ above the party wall. It also inspected the guttering and downpipes, which were found to be ‘free flowing.’ It installed a new bathroom extractor fan on 12 May 2025. It also offered to carry out decoration works inside the resident’s flat.

Assessment and findings

Scope of Investigation

  1. The resident has mentioned that his complaint relates to events from January 2020. As the landlord provided its stage 2 response to this on 8 April 2021 and this Service has already investigated the complaint leading up to that date, this investigation will focus on events from 8 April 2021 onwards.

The landlord’s handling of the residents reports of leaks, damp and mould

  1. The leasehold agreement states that the landlord is responsible for the structure and exterior of the building, in accordance with Section 11 of the landlord and tenant act 1985. This includes the roof space, (external and internal), drainage, gutters, pipes and electric cables and wires that supply lines in common parts. It is not responsible for internal decoration.
  2. The landlord’s damp and mould policy (from November 2023), states that it will investigate to determine the type of damp present in a property. And will carry out remedial repairs to rectify the issue. It will keep residents updated from inception to completion of works, and where required will engage with specialists to undertake detailed surveys of the property. It will ensure its contractors identify root causes and will target and improve the thermal efficiency of any poorly insulated homes.
  3. The landlord’s repairs handbook states that it is responsible for the following under its planned improvements; roofing and loft insulation, cavity wall insulation and external wall insulation.
  4. The landlord operates a tiered timeline for repairs as follows:
    1. Emergency repairs will be attended to and made safe within 2 hours and rectified within 24 hours. This includes severe leaks and electrical failure and structural collapse.
    2. All other reactive repairs will normally be completed within 28 days, unless there are exceptional circumstances.
    3. Surveyor inspections may be needed where roof problems, structural issues or bowing ceilings are identified, or when residents have made a complaint about the quality or scope of works to their home. After a surveyor’s inspection the landlord will raise repairs within the priorities listed above.
  5. It recommends residents take out household insurance and states that redecoration following a leak is the resident’s responsibility.
  6. The landlord’s contractors carried out some roof insulation works on 13 and 14 April 2021 and this was appropriate. Following these works, the landlord agreed to upgrade the insulation to the latest Building Regulation standard which was also a reasonable response. It also fitted a new bathroom extractor fan at the end of November 2021, to help with condensation and reduce damp and mould. Although this was appropriate, it had committed to address the damp and mould issues in April 2021, so the extractor fan installation was a protracted wait for the resident. This caused him frustration and inconvenience and impacted on the enjoyment of his home.
  7. Following the resident’s reports of a severe leak from the communal loft into his ceiling (out of office hours) on 5 December 2021, it was not appropriate that the landlord’s contractor did not attend to this as per the landlord’s published repair timescales. Although the resident is a leaseholder, the leak was coming from a communal area and was causing damage to the electrics. The landlord’s contractor did not follow its policy and this is a failing, which caused the resident distress and inconvenience and impacted on the enjoyment of his home.
  8. The landlord apologised for the miscommunication, offered to compensate the resident for the sum he paid to a plumber that he had to instruct to do the works, and carried out subsequent electrical works and decoration to the affected area. Although this was an appropriate response, and showed the landlord went beyond its obligations, had the landlord’s contractor attended within the 2 hour time frame published, the damage may have been limited.
  9. Between 31 December 2021 and 7 January 2022 the resident requested an update on any proposed wall insulation works which the landlord said he had chased with its contractor. It said it was looking at solutions for wall insulation as traditional cavity wall insulation was not a feasible option. Although this was a reasonable response, the landlord had told the resident that it would be exploring options in April 2021.This was again an unreasonable delay, which caused the resident time and trouble in pursuing the issue, whilst the damp and mould continued to impact on the enjoyment of his home.
  10. The landlord’s communication logs show that the resident chased the insulation works several more times from May 2022 to 15 December 2022. It told him that it would raise the issue of wall insulation in the block as “a matter of urgency” and look at capacity in terms of budget with the landlord advising it had received quotes and would need to discuss with colleagues. Although this response was reasonable, there was an unreasonable delay from when the landlord undertook to explore options in April 2021 to receiving quotes. Further, this service has not seen these quotes. This points to poor record keeping, which is a failing on the part of the landlord. The fact that the landlord did not update the resident without regular prompting is a failing that caused the resident time and trouble in pursuing the issue and continued to impact on the enjoyment of his home.
  11. The resident reported a damp patch coming from the loft through his child’s bedroom ceiling on 9 February 2022. He questioned whether this could be due to the newly installed extractor fan . The landlord’s surveyor inspected the loft space, the next day, which was a reasonable response, and in line with its policy. It inspected the roof space and pipework the next day and found no faults. It asked the resident to monitor the stains and let it know if there were any further issues. This was further appropriate and showed that the landlord was responsive to the resident’s concerns.
  12. On 8 November 2022, the resident reported that the extractor fan (installed in November 2021) was very loud, even when it was switched off. He said it sounded like “something had been dislodged in the loft” which the resident believed to be the connection to the fan. He asked the landlord to come and inspect this. He also said that mould growth was still present in his flat, despite wiping it down regularly, and that the anti-mould paint used by the landlord’s contractors had flaked off.
  13. The landlord’s surveyor inspected the next day, which was a prompt response and well within its published timescales. It also instructed contractors to carry out works. It is not clear what these works were as they are not mentioned in the landlord’s repairs log. Strong record keeping is a prerequisite to providing a good repairs service and without accurate repair records, this investigation has been somewhat limited.
  14. The resident reported further mould in both bedrooms on 16 November 2022, 8 and 14 December 2022. Further to these reports, it was appropriate that the landlord advised him that it would be adding his property to its new ‘damp database,’ was reviewing its damp and mould policy and offered to reimburse him for a dehumidifier that he had purchased.
  15. However, on 6 January 2023, the landlord emailed the resident to say that it had reviewed the photographs of the loft installation installed the previous year and because the loft insulation “stops short of where it needs to be”  there was an issue. It also said this was a “significant factor in causing cold bridging issues” where the ceiling meets the wall. It is unreasonable that the landlord did not review the photographs and works sooner. This is particularly pertinent as the resident had repeatedly chased the landlord and told it that works to the roof had made no difference to the damp and mould in his flat. This delay was unreasonable, not resident focused and caused the resident time and trouble in pursuing the issue. It also significantly impacted on the enjoyment of his home.
  16. The insulation works were completed at the end of March 2023. Although this is not an unreasonable time frame for major works (January 2023 to March 2023), had the landlord reviewed the previous works sooner, then we would have expected the insulation works to have been completed in a more timely manner. The resident reported continued issues from April 2021 and waited almost 2 years for the works to be completed to a satisfactory standard. This is unreasonable and a failing on the part of the landlord, which caused the resident distress and frustration.
  17. It was reasonable that the landlord inspected the roof space and the resident’s property in April 2024, a year after the works were completed. It was also reasonable that it offered to redecorate the rooms affected by damp and mould after it had reviewed the mould situation with a mould specialist to ascertain the cause of the continued mould. The offer to paint the internal surfaces shows that the landlord went beyond its obligations as, in line with its repairs policy, residents are responsible for their own internal decorations.
  18. However, since it visited the resident in April 2024 to inspect his property, and noticed recurring mould growth, it is unclear why it waited until 31 October 2024 to agree to inspect the property with its damp and mould specialist. This is 6 months after the inspection and an inappropriate delay, which continued to impact on the enjoyment of the resident’s home. The Housing, Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) defines damp and mould growth as a hazard that can affect the health and wellbeing of residents. As such, we would have expected the landlord to carry out an inspection much sooner. The fact that it did not, is a failing which continued to impact on the resident’s enjoyment of his home and caused him frustration and time and trouble in pursuing the issue.
  19. Also, the landlord’s damp and mould policy states that it will investigate to determine damp present in a property and will carry out repairs to rectify the issue and keep residents updated. There is no evidence that it attempted to investigate between April 2024 and October 2024, which is contrary to its policy, a further failing and not resident focussed. It did not carry out a damp and mould inspection of the property until December 2024. It should have carried this out much sooner, particularly considering the risks associated with damp and mould and the frequent reports of mould by the resident.
  20. Also, the landlord did not provide the resident with any update regarding its consideration of cavity wall insulation or similar. Regardless of whether or not it would agree to instal it, the landlord should have updated the resident and given reasons for its decision. The resident had been waiting since April 2021 to hear if/when the landlord would instal this, and at its stage 2 complaint response of 13 December 2024, the resident received no definitive response. This is 20 months and an unreasonable delay and a further failing which caused the resident frustration and time and trouble in pursuing the issue.
  21. Although the landlord did carry out works to attempt to identify the source of mould and to rectify the issues, it took too long to do these. It did not carry out a thorough assessment at the time of the reports of mould. Had it done so, the works may have been completed in a more timely manner. The delays to the works caused the resident distress and frustration, time and trouble and had a significant impact on the enjoyment of his home. They also impacted on the resident/landlord relationship. As the landlord has carried out some works, albeit with an inappropriate delay, we have made a finding of maladministration, rather than the more serious severe maladministration. We have made an order for £900 compensation. This is £600 for the distress, frustration and inconvenience and the impact on the enjoyment of his home, and £300 for the time and trouble in pursuing the damp and mould and insulation issues. This is in line with our remedies guidance where there has been a failure which had a significant impact on the resident. We have also made orders for the landlord to carry out works and provide a timeline of repairs and for it to update the resident on its decision regarding any type of cavity wall/external wall insulation.

Determination

  1. In accordance with Paragraph 52 of the Scheme, there was maladministration in the landlord’s handling of the resident’s concerns about insulation in the communal areas and leaks, damp and mould in his property.

Orders

  1. Within 4 weeks of this report, the landlord is ordered to:
    1. Apologise to the resident in writing for the failings identified in this report.
    2. Arrange training for all relevant staff to ensure they comply with their damp and mould policy.
    3. Clarify what further works are needed to reduce the likelihood of mould growth reoccurring (as per its stage 2 complaint response) and provide a timeline of repairs.
    4. Pay the resident £900. This should be paid directly into his bank account and not offset against any arrears (if applicable). This is made up as follows:
      1. £600 for the distress, frustration and inconvenience and the impact on the enjoyment of his home.
      2. £300 for the time and trouble in pursuing the damp and mould and insulation issues.
  2. The landlord should provide this Service with evidence of compliance with the above orders.