Stonewater Limited (202334196)

REPORT

COMPLAINT 202334196

Stonewater Limited

30 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 handling of:
   1. the resident’s reports of cold temperatures inside, and excessive heat loss from the property
   2. the resident’s request for cavity wall insulation to be replaced
2. The Ombudsman has also considered the landlord’s handling of the associated complaint.

Background

3. The resident holds an assured tenancy. The tenancy started in December 2017. The property is a 1-bedroom end of terrace house. The downstairs is open plan, and the property has electric storage heaters. The landlord has vulnerabilities recorded.
4. On 6 July 2023, the resident made a stage 1 complaint. The complaint was about the storage heater, the cavity wall insulation, cold temperatures and heat loss in his home.
5. On 23 October 2023, the landlord issued its stage 1 complaint response. It acknowledged the delay in completing the repairs to the heater was not appropriate. It said the resident’s home was included in the retrofit programme and was due to be carried out in the current financial year. The landlord also offered an apology about poor communication with the resident. The landlord offered compensation.
6. On 1 November 2023, the resident stated he was not happy with the stage 1 response it hadn’t addressed his concerns. On 22 November 2023, the landlord escalated the complaint to stage 2.
7. On 22 December 2023, the landlord issued its stage 2 complaint response. It stated:
   1. the property had had cavity wall insulation
   2. it was going to schedule a thermal imaging survey to assess the heat loss
   3. it requested the repairs department to attend and carry out a full electrical test on each individual storage heater to confirm correct operation
8. On 3 January 2024, the resident confirmed he wanted this Service to look into the issues as they were still ongoing.

Assessment and findings

Scope

9. The resident previously came to this Service about similar matters. That matter (202221583) looked at the issues until May 2023 and this Service made a decision (determination) in September 2023. This investigation will only consider matters after May 2023. Any reference to the previous case is for context only.

The landlord’s handling of reports of cold temperatures inside, and excessive heat loss from the property

10. The Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) lists excess cold as a risk factor. Government guidance states “a healthy indoor temperature is around 21˚C. There is small risk of health effects below 19˚C. Below 16˚C, there are serious health risks for the elderly, including greatly increased risks of respiratory and cardiovascular conditions.” Landlords are obligated to remove or reduce the risks set out within the HHSRS.
11. Following the heater being repaired in August 2023, the landlord’s repairs history shows that the resident contacted it again on 24 December 2023 to say the downstairs storage heater was not working.
12. Between 24 December 2023 and 24 January 2024, the landlord’s repairs history and communication records show:
    1. The resident contacted the landlord at least 10 times about the downstairs heater not working
    2. The resident was referred to the manufacturer by the landlord’s contractor as the storage heater was under warranty
13. This Service has not seen evidence to show if the landlord considered providing, or did provide, temporary heaters to the resident. From 24 December 2023 to 24 January 2024 is 32 days. This is unreasonable in the circumstances because this is not in line with the landlord’s policy and is a prolonged length of time in winter months without heating.
14. The landlord’s records show the resident was recording the temperatures. The resident provided this Service with photographs of thermometers, both digital and analogue. The temperatures were taken in a variety of locations in the property and in the afternoon and evening. The temperatures range from 6.7oC to 16oC.
15. The landlord did take some steps to improve the issue with the heater. But this was over a long period of time. From the landlord’s repairs history there have been issues with storage heaters at the resident’s home since December 2020.
16. The resident told this Service that:
    1. on occasions he had turned the heater off as “what was the point” when it wasn’t giving off enough heat
    2. he had to wear multiple layers of clothing to stay warm in the property during the winter months
    3. he just wants to feel warm in his home
17. From the landlord’s repairs history and its complaint responses,the landlord placed emphasis on the retrofit programme to resolve the issues. This was unreasonable in the circumstances because the landlord’s responsive repairs policy sets out “delivering all emergency repairs, i.e. those which pose a threat to the safety of our customers, their homes or their communities, within a maximum of 24 hours from receiving the customer’s notification.
18. The landlord told the resident that the retrofit work would happen in that financial year (2023-2024). But, in December 2023 the landlord told the resident it was unable to give a start date. This is unreasonable in the circumstances because:
    1. the landlord did not provide any timescales to the resident which could have helped manage the resident’s expectations and maintained the landlord / resident relationship
    2. the landlord told this Service on 19 October 2023 “the property has been included in phase two of our retrofit works, which are due to commence in November 2023 and our Homes team will contact him directly to discuss what this will include, and organise a date for the Heat Loss survey to take place”
19. We found maladministration for the landlord’s handling of reports of cold temperatures inside, and excessive heat loss from the property. The landlord offered £150 in its stage 1 complaint response for the delays in repairing the heater and £100 for the distress and inconvenience. But this Service did not find that to be proportionate in the circumstances. We have ordered the landlord to pay £500 to the resident for the distress and inconvenience. This is because the landlord:
    1. did not carry out a heat loss survey as it had already been ordered to do so by the Ombudsman, despite telling this Service it was going to, and the landlord told the resident it would in its complaint responses
    2. was not proactive in resolving the issues with the storage heater. The resident was raising the issues with both the landlord and the manufacturer as the storage heater was under warranty

The landlord’s handling of a request for cavity wall insulation

20. In June 2023 the landlord’s condition report about the resident’s property confirms cavity wall insulation, the living room conditions are adequate and the conditions of the windows is fair. It also records that the resident said “had put clingfilm on windows and said in the winter the house is bitterly cold.”
21. On 12 February 2024, the landlord’s records show that it called the resident and explained a specialist cavity wall borescope survey would take place. The resident informed the landlord he wanted thermal imaging to take place. The landlord explained its independent survey team recommended the borescope as it was more efficient.
22. From the date of the stage 1 complaint on 6 July 2023 to the borescope survey being undertaken on 14 March 2024 was 178 working days and this was unreasonable in the circumstances. This is because the landlord:
    1. was aware cavity wall insulation was a key issue for the resident
    2. already had a report which confirmed there was cavity wall insulation and only made reference to this in the stage 2 complaint response in December 2023
23. We found maladministration in relation to the landlord’s handling of a request for cavity wall insulation. This is because the landlord knew in June 2023 there was cavity wall insulation in the resident’s home. It missed the opportunity to engage meaningfully with the resident at an early stage and could have had an impact on the landlord / resident relationship. We have ordered the landlord to pay £150 for the distress and inconvenience.

The associated complaint

24. On 6 July 2023, the resident raised his stage 1 complaint.
25. On 18 July 2023, the landlord formally acknowledged the stage 1 complaint. This was 9 working days and was not in line with the landlord’s policy.
26. On 4 August 2023, the landlord’s records state a letter was send to the resident about an extension to the complaint deadline. This Service has not been provided with a copy of this letter.
27. On 23 October 2023, the landlord issued its stage 1 complaint response. This was 70 working days from the date of acknowledgement and was unreasonable in the circumstances. The landlord’s investigation found:
28. The landlord offered compensation made up of:
    1. £75 for the delay in replying to complaint
    2. £50 for poor communication
29. On 1 November 2023, the resident told the landlord he was unhappy with the stage 1 response. The landlord’s records show:
    1. the complaint was escalated to stage 2 after 16 working days
    2. the landlord acknowledged the stage 2 complaint after 19 working days
    3. the landlord issued its stage 2 complaint response after 20 working days from the acknowledgement
30. This was unreasonable in the circumstances because the landlord did not follow its own policies and procedures.
31. The stage 2 response confirmed the contractor had completed the retrofit survey and were compiling designs which would determine the measures for the resident’s home and “this process can take time.” The response was unreasonable in the circumstances because it did not contain an apology and there was no learning from the stage 1 complaint.
32. We found maladministration relation to the landlord’s handling of the associated complaint. We have ordered the landlord to pay £150 to the resident for the distress and inconvenience. This is because:
    1. it did not meet the timescales in its complaints, compliments, and comments policy
    2. the stage 2 response did not show that the Ombudsman’s Dispute Resolution Principles were adhered to. These are:
       1. be fair – treat people fairly and follow fair process
       2. put things right
       3. learn from outcomes

Determination

33. In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme we found maladministration in relation to the landlord’s handling of reports of cold temperatures inside, and excessive heat loss from the property.
34. In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme we found maladministration in relation to the landlord’s handling of a request for cavity wall insulation to be replaced.
35. In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme we found maladministration in relation to the landlord’s handling of the associated complaint.

Orders and recommendations

Orders

36. Within 4 weeks the landlord should:
    1. Apologise to the resident for the failings identified in this report including how the landlord is going to prevent the failings happening again. The apology should be in line with the Ombudsman’s guidance on the website.
    2. Pay directly to the resident £1175 made up of:
       1. £375 as offered in its stage 1 complaint response. This amount can be deducted if already paid.
       2. £500 in relation to the landlord’s handling of reports of cold temperatures inside, and excessive heat loss from the property
       3. £150 in relation to the landlord’s handling of a request for cavity wall insulation
       4. £150 in relation to the landlord’s handling of the associated complaint
    3. Obtain a heat loss survey of the property and provide the survey findings to the resident and this Service
    4. Obtain an assessment as to the suitability of the existing night storage heater for the space it is intended to heat and provide the findings to the resident and this Service
    5. Following the survey and assessment, set out, with timescales an action plan of any required recommended works to take place. A commitment should be given to provide regular updates to the resident
37. Within 4 weeks of the date of this report the landlord should provide evidence to this Service of compliance with these orders.