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Metropolitan Housing Trust Limited (202113980)

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REPORT

COMPLAINT 202113980

Metropolitan Housing Trust Limited

25 May 2022


Our approach

Under our early resolution process, the Ombudsman works with the resident and landlord to explore the issues in dispute, identify the matters that remain outstanding and assist in reaching an agreed settlement.

The complaint

  1. The complaint is about the landlord’s handling of a mutual exchange application.

Determination (decision)

  1. In accordance with paragraph 55 (c) of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, the landlord has made an offer of redress to the complainant which, in the Ombudsman’s opinion, resolves the complaint satisfactorily.

How the complaint was resolved

  1. The landlord issued its final response to the complaint on 22 November 2021 in which it acknowledged service failings in its handling of the resident’s mutual exchange application and in its handling of their complaint about this. The landlord offered the resident compensation, broken down below:
  • £100.00 in recognition of its failure of service in not complying with the timescales set out in our policy.
  • £100.00 to address the time and trouble the resident had expended chasing the matter, including having to escalate the complaint to the Housing Ombudsman.
  • £150.00 to recognise its lack of communication during the resident’s Stage One complaint.
  1. On 7 February 2022, the resident advised this Service that they were not satisfied with the landlord’s response and stated that they would like the landlord to provide the regular updates, commit to a date by which a decision would be made about their mutual exchange application and that it should increase the amount of compensation it has offered for the service failure from £100.00 to £200.00.
  2. On 7 February 2022, the Ombudsman contacted the landlord about the possibility of reaching a mediated resolution to the resident’s complaint and explained the resolution they were seeking.
  3. On 10 February 2022, the landlord contacted the Ombudsman and agreed to the proposal that the complaint should be resolved by it increasing its offer of compensation for the service failure element from £100.00 to £200.00. The landlord also stated that it aimed to complete the mutual exchange on or before 23 February 2022.
  4. On 23 May 2022, the complainant advised this Service that they accept the landlords increased offer of compensation as a final resolution of their complaint and further stated that the landlord had approved their mutual exchange application.
  5. Paragraph 55 (c) of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme states that:
    1. “At any time, the Ombudsman may determine the investigation of a complaint immediately if satisfied that the member has made an offer of redress following the Ombudsman’s intervention which, in the Ombudsman’s opinion, resolves the complaint satisfactorily. This will result in a finding of ‘resolved with intervention’.”
  6. I am therefore satisfied, following the intervention of this Service, that the landlord has now taken actions to remedy the matters raised which resolve the complaint satisfactorily.

Recommendation

  1. The landlord should pay the £450.00.00 compensation it advised it would within four weeks of the date of this determination and provide confirmation that this has been sent to the resident.