Our orders
This key topic page explores the variety of orders that we can make to put things right such as compensation, ordering a repair to be undertaken or a survey to be completed, as well as apologies and reviews of policy.
What are our orders?
Where we have made a finding of service failure, maladministration, or severe maladministration, we can order a landlord to implement the remedies we have identified for that case.
We aim to provide fair and proportionate remedies to complaints appropriate to each case's circumstances. This includes ensuring that the order we propose is proportionate to the severity of the maladministration we found during our investigation.
We can make a variety of orders to put things right such as compensation, ordering a repair to be undertaken or a survey to be completed, as well as apologies and reviews of policy.
These orders are legally binding, meaning that if a landlord does not comply, we can force them to do so via court action. However, the compliance rate with our orders is 100%.
Podcast with the Centre for Learning
In conversation with dispute resolution on responding to orders
Season 4 Episode 3 - February 2024
During this podcast, we look at 2 cases involving noise complaints exploring the orders and recommendations made and what the landlord did to put things right.
Remedies
A remedy is how the Ombudsman ensures that matters are put right after we investigate a case.
This guidance should be read alongside our Investigations Guidance pdf, Guidance on Outcomes pdf, and Guidance on complaints involving insurance issues pdf.
Remedies guidance
This guidance is intended for use by Housing Ombudsman Service staff, our member landlords, residents and their representatives. It looks at what a remedy is, the key considerations for remedies nd what remedies we can and cannot make.
Remedies: Offsetting and the Ombudsman’s approach
View our guidance on offsetting and the Ombudsman’s approach including legal considerations and our approach to complaint handling.
Compensation
There are 2 types of compensation:
- payments that the landlord is obliged to make - usually due to legal requirements
- discretionary compensation - which is a payment the landlord chooses to make
Compensation payments ordered by the Ombudsman
Compensation will not be appropriate in every case. We will only order a landlord to pay compensation if we find evidence of service failure or maladministration that has not been put right. In addition, we must be satisfied that compensation is the most appropriate action that will put things right in the circumstances of the complaint.
All compensation calculations are based on what is considered fair in the circumstances of the case. We can order a landlord to pay compensation for:
- actual, proven financial loss sustained as a direct result of the maladministration or service failure
- avoidable inconvenience, distress, detriment or other unfair impact of the maladministration or service failure
Compensation required by law
Local authority or housing association residents may be entitled to compensation from your landlord if you’ve been affected by:
- home loss
- disturbance
- improvements
- Right to Repair
- payment for damage to your property/belongings
- discretionary compensation
Apologies
An apology is an opportunity to restore trust and begin to mend a resident and landlord relationship. A well-made apology is an important and powerful tool in resolving a complaint early.
Apologies guidance for landlords
This guide will help you decide what to include in your apology, whether it should be written or in person, and who should give it.
Responding to a complaint guidance
We have developed guidance for landlords when investigating and responding to complaints through their complaint's procedure. View our guide to see the issues we expect landlords to consider when responding to a complaint.
Wider orders
We have gained considerable new powers under the Social Housing Regulation Act. We are now able to order a landlord to evaluate a particular policy or practice to prevent service failure being repeated. Previously, these types of orders would have only been recommendations, which the landlord was not duty bound to act upon.
Revised Scheme to extend fairness to all residents beyond individual complaints
The expanded authority enables us to require landlords to go beyond the scope of individual complaints and seek to address any wider issues.
This will also help us to monitor compliance with the orders as it can be more prescriptive in what we want to see in certain policy reviews and who we might want involved.
Landlords Learning Hub
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Resident information
When to use the Housing Ombudsman Service
If you are unable to resolve the complaint with your landlord directly via its complaint procedure, this service may be able to provide you with further assistance.
View the residents' pages to find out how to raise and complaint to your landlord and when to escalate your complaint to the Housing Ombudsman Service.