The Guinness Partnership Limited (202513932)

Decision
Case ID	202513932
Decision type	Investigation
Landlord	The Guinness Partnership Limited
Landlord type	Housing Association
Occupancy	Secure Tenancy
Date	12 February 2026

Background

The resident reported several repairs to the landlord from November 2023 onwards. The resident complained in June 2024 about the outstanding repairs.

What the complaint is about

The complaint is about the landlord’s handling of:
1. Window repairs.
2. The resident’s complaint.

Our decision (determination)

We found:
1. Maladministration in the landlord’s handling of window repairs.
2. Service failure in the landlord’s handling of the resident’s complaint.

We have made orders for the landlord to put things right.

Summary of reasons

The landlord’s handling of window repairs

The landlord did not repair the windows within the timescales set out in its repairs policy. Although it offered compensation, the window repairs remain outstanding at the date of this report, so the issue has not been fully resolved.

The landlord’s handling of the resident’s complaint

The landlord did not respond to the complaint in line with our Complaint Handling Code.

Putting things right

Where we find service failure, maladministration or severe maladministration we can make orders for the landlord to put things right. We have the discretion to make recommendations in all other cases within our jurisdiction.

Orders

Landlords must comply with our orders in the manner and timescales we specify. The landlord must provide documentary evidence of compliance with our orders by the due date set.

Order	What the landlord must do	Due date
1	Apology order The landlord must apologise in writing to the resident for the failures identified in this report. The landlord must ensure the apology: is provided by a senior manager is specific to the failures identified in this decision, meaningful and empathetic has due regard to our apologies guidance.	No later than 12 March 2026
2	Compensation order The landlord must pay the resident £1,177.60 made up as follows: £677.60 for the delayed window repairs £400 for distress and inconvenience, time, and trouble it caused by its handling of the window repairs £100 for the landlord’s handling of the resident’s complaint This must be paid directly to the resident by the due date. The landlord must provide documentary evidence of payment by the due date. This payment is in addition to the compensation payments it has already made.	No later than 12 March 2026
3	Works The landlord must tell the resident how it will address the issues identified in its works order dated 15 January 2026. It must provide a schedule of the works, including the timescale for completion. This information must be sent to the resident and to us by the due date.	No later than 12 March 2026

Our investigation

The complaint procedure

Date	What happened
4 June 2024	The resident complained about the number of appointments the landlord made without completing the repairs she had reported. She explained the impact was greater on her as a temporary worker, as she had to take time off for repair appointments. She asked the landlord to carry out the outstanding repairs.
28 June 2024	The landlord sent its stage 1 response. It said after investigation, the window repairs were more complex than it thought, and it needed to refer the case to its complex repairs team. It apologised it had taken so long to decide what repairs were needed at the property. It said it would be monitoring the repairs until the works were completed and offered the resident £150 for the service failure and an additional £10 for the late stage 1 response.
26 October 2024	The resident asked the landlord to escalate her complaint to stage 2. She said when the landlord sent email confirmation of the works, the works listed did not accurately reflect the works the repairs manager told her would be carried out when he inspected. She said there was a security risk due to scaffolding being erected without an alarm, because her windows would not lock. She said some of the windows were now locked, so it was partially resolved, but if she unlocked them again, she would be unable to relock them. She asked the landlord for a revised compensation offer, copies of photos from the landlord’s recent inspection, a detailed list of all internal and external repairs to be completed and confirmation of the scheduled start date for the repairs.
28 November 2024	The landlord wrote to the resident to request an extension to 3 December 2024 for providing its stage 2 response.
6 December 2024	The landlord sent the resident its stage 2 response. It upheld her complaint and said it had not kept her up to date with progress and it had not carried out the repairs in a timely manner. The landlord apologised and said it would send her a full timeline of the work which its contractor complete It said it would visit the property during the works to ensure they were carried out on time and to the required standard. It offered £3,625 compensation for delayed repairs, lack of communication and service failure, plus the £160 it had offered at stage 1 and £10 for its delayed stage 2 response.
Referral to the Ombudsman	The resident asked us to investigate her complaint. She said the landlord had completed most of the outstanding repairs, but she was still unable to securely close or lock the windows. She wanted the landlord to provide a clear timeline for the works, an explanation for the delay, and compensation for the ongoing distress and financial loss.

What we found and why

The circumstances of this complaint are well known by the parties involved, so it is not necessary to detail everything that’s happened or comment on all the information we’ve reviewed. We’ve only included the key information that forms the basis of our decision of whether the landlord is responsible for maladministration.

Complaint	The landlord’s handling of window repairs
Finding	Maladministration

The landlord’s repairs policy says it will carry out routine repairs within 20 days, and complex repairs within 40 days.
The resident requested a repair to her windows on 29 November 2023 as the sills had not been painted and there was a leak from the windows. The landlord should have completed the repairs by 8 January 2024, in line with its repair policy.
The landlord carried out works to the windowsills in June 2024. However, in August 2024 the resident told the landlord she was unable to lock her windows.
In October 2024, the landlord told the resident it needed to overhaul all her windows. In her escalation request, the resident said she could not lock the bathroom window, and the front room windows had been forced shut, and if she opened them again, she would be unable to lock them.
In its stage 2 response the landlord said it would complete all the outstanding works, and it emailed the resident confirming it would overhaul the windows.
The resident told us the landlord has not repaired her windows. She said the landlord inspected the windows again in 2024, 2025, and 2026, but it only managed to force the windows shut. She is still unable to lock and unlock the windows.
The landlord has not provided evidence it completed further work to address the issue since its complaint response in December 2024.
The landlord raised a work order on 15 January 2026, which said all the windows were misaligned. It has not confirmed what works it has planned in response to these findings, or when it will complete the works.
The resident said the property is harder to heat due to the problems with the windows. This has an increased impact on the resident due to her disability. The resident spent additional time and effort contacting the landlord repeatedly, and raising a further complaint to ask it to repair the windows.
Overall, there was maladministration in the landlord’s handling of the window repairs. We have ordered the landlord to pay £677.60 additional compensation to recognise the 14 month delay from the date of the landlord’s stage 2 response to the date of this report. The landlord did not provide a breakdown of its compensation awards in its stage 1 or stage 2 complaint responses, so we have evenly split the total compensation it offered between the 6 repair issues which remained outstanding at stage 2, and was payable for the 13 month period between reporting of the repairs and the stage 2 response.
We have also ordered the landlord to pay an additional £400 compensation for the distress, inconvenience, time, and trouble it caused the resident. This is in line with our remedies guidance for awards where there was a failure which adversely affected the resident.
We have ordered the landlord to tell the resident how it will address the issues identified in its works order dated 15 January 2026. It must provide a schedule of the works, including the timescale for completion.

Complaint	The complaint handling
Finding	Service failure

The landlord has a 2-stage complaints policy. It says it will acknowledge a complaint at stage 1 within 5 working days and send its response within 10 working days of the acknowledgement. At stage 2 it says it will respond within 20 working days. This is in line with our Complaint Handling Code (the Code).
The landlord’s stage 1 and 2 responses were slightly delayed. At stage 1 the response was 7 working days late. At stage 2, the landlord requested a short extension in line with the Code, but it sent its response 3 days after the extended date. The landlord acknowledged its delays, and offered £10 compensation for each delay.
The Code says landlords must address all the resident’s complaint points and provide clear reasons for any decisions. The Code also says the landlord must set out any outstanding actions in its stage 2 response.
The landlord failed to comply with these requirements in its stage 2 response. It acknowledged an unacceptable delay to the repairs, but did not address each of the issues the resident raised in her escalation requests. It also failed to say what works it would do and when. It said it would contact the resident the following week to give her further information. This lack of detail and clarity in its stage 2 response was contrary to the Code, and frustrating for the resident.
Overall, there was service failure in the landlord’s handling of the resident’s complaint. Although it recognised the delays in its complaint responses, it did not acknowledge its failure to address each aspect of the resident’s complaint and escalation request, and clearly set out the outstanding actions with timescales for completion. The compensation of £10 at stage 1 and £10 at stage 2 did not adequately recognise its failings. We have ordered the landlord to pay the resident a further £100 compensation. This is in line with our remedies guidance for cases where the landlord has made an offer of compensation, but it is not proportionate to the failings we identified in our investigation.

Learning

Knowledge information management (record keeping)

The landlord’s record keeping was poor. It did not send us details of its inspection findings and the works it carried out. Better record keeping could reduce delays carrying out works and avoid repeat inspections.

Communication

The communication between the landlord and its contractors was poor. Better communication could have reduced delays and ensured repairs were seen through to completion.
The landlord’s communication with the resident about repairs was poor. Better communication with the resident could have reduced her frustration, and her time and effort chasing the landlord about the progress of her repairs.