Leeds City Council (202109840)

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REPORT

COMPLAINT 202109840

Leeds City Council

30 December 2021


Our approach

What we can and cannot consider is called the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction and is governed by the Housing Ombudsman Scheme. The Ombudsman must determine whether a complaint comes within their jurisdiction. The Ombudsman seeks to resolve disputes wherever possible but cannot investigate complaints that fall outside of this. 

In deciding whether a complaint falls within their jurisdiction, the Ombudsman will carefully consider all the evidence provided by the parties and the circumstances of the case.

The complaint

  1. The complaint is about the landlord’s response to the residents’ request to carry out work to resolve a flooding issue on their driveway.

Determination (jurisdictional decision)

  1. When a complaint is brought to the Ombudsman, we must consider all the circumstances of the case as there are sometimes reasons why a complaint will not be investigated.
  2. After carefully considering all the evidence, I have determined that the complaint, as set out above, is not within the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction.

Summary of events

  1. The residents are tenants of the landlord, which is also a local council.
  2. The landlord’s records show a surveyor attended on 25 March 2021. They noted that the residents had explained that water was “running off road on to next door drive then into [their] drive”. They said they wanted their neighbour’s kerb to be raised to prevent water running down their drive. The surveyor advised the residents to contact their water supplier or the local authority’s highways department.
  3. The residents raised a formal complaint to the landlord on 26 May 2021. They said their neighbour’s drive was below street level and that when it rained, water would flood across their parking space and around their house. They said they were concerned water damage would make their driveway unstable and collapse. They said they wanted the landlord to install a kerb stone and the top of their neighbour’s driveway to stop the flooding.
  4. The landlord issued its stage one complaint response on 20 June 2021. It said it would not put repairs in place on a resident’s driveway to divert rainwater. It said its surveyor had recommended they contact its highways department if they wanted to request alterations to the kerb. It concluded by explaining how the residents could escalate their complaint if they remained dissatisfied.
  5. The residents escalated their complaint on 24 June 2021. They said they had asked for a referral to its highways department (it is unclear when). They asked whether it was “unfeasible to contact [their neighbour] and ask them to rectify the problem by installing a proper kerb”.
  6. The landlord issued its stage two complaint response on 28 June 2021. It explained that, as a responsive repairs department for housing, it did not have the option to carry out improvement works to their neighbour’s drive by adding drainage. It said it did not have the authority to make alterations to kerbs or install drainage to roads serviced by highways. It stated that it was not the appropriate department to deal with their issue. It said it had referred their concerns to its highway department that day. It concluded by explaining how the residents could refer their complaint to this Service if they remained dissatisfied.
  7. In the residents’ complaint to this Service, they reiterated that their issue stemmed from their neighbour’s driveway not being above street level, and that they wanted the landlord to implement a kerbstone to prevent the flooding.

Reasons

  1. Paragraph 39 (m) of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme states that we will not investigate complains which “fall properly within the jurisdiction of another Ombudsman, regulator or complaint-handling body”.
  2. The residents’ complaint is based upon their dissatisfaction with the landlord not carrying out work to their neighbour’s driveway, and the kerb outside their neighbour’s property. The residents’ tenancy agreement sets out that the landlord is responsible for repairing and maintaining the structure and exterior of the property (including drains, gutters, and external pipes). Alterations to kerbs, and any sort of drainage work would not be handled by the landlord in its capacity as a social landlord. It has other departments which handle general highway problems (such as issues with pavements or roads).
  3. As such, the residents’ concerns would be more appropriately dealt with by the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO) as they can investigate complaints in which the landlord is acting in its capacity as the local authority. Therefore, this is not a complaint we will investigate.