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Magenta Living (202204877)

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REPORT

COMPLAINT 202204877

Magenta Living

26 Janaury 2023


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:
    1. The landlord’s response to the resident’s request to be reimbursed for food that was spoilt due to electrical faults in the property.
    2. The delays in the landlord onboarding the energy hub at the property, and providing the information needed to the energy company.

Background

  1. The resident is an assured tenant of the landlord. The property is a new-build and the tenancy began on 4 April 2022. The resident has informed this Service that she has a health vulnerability which impacts the food she is able to buy.  
  2. On 11 April 2022, the resident reported that the electricity in her property had gone off, and would not come back on. The landlord attended on the same day and established that the electricity meter in the property incorrectly related to the electricity supply for a neighbouring property. The landlord raised a job with the energy company for the meters to be corrected urgently. On this date, the resident was completely without electricity for 12 hours. The resident informed the landlord that due to the electrics failing, the food in her freezer had been ruined. In addition, she said that she had topped up her meter with £92 which had not been credited. The landlord credited the resident’s meter with £95 in view of this. On 12 April 2022, the resident contacted the energy company to see if the meters had been aligned with the correct property and was advised that the issue had not yet been resolved. The landlord informed the resident that the meters were swapped and linked to the correct properties on 13 April 2022.
  3. On 21 April 2022, the resident raised a complaint about the electrical issues at the beginning of her tenancy which had led to a loss of food. She later added that she was unhappy with the lack of communication from the landlord. She advised that she had spoken directly to the energy company and that the issues were resulting in a debt on her energy account. In addition, she informed the landlord that she had been unable to enjoy her new home due to the stress and inconvenience caused by the situation.
  4. Following this, on 27 April 2022 the resident reported that the energy hub for heating and hot water in the property did not appear to work. The landlord provided the resident with an alternative guide for the energy hub, however, the resident advised that the issue had not been resolved on 4 May 2022 as she had topped up a further £5 which had also not credited to her account. The landlord arranged for the energy hub to be inspected on 6 May 2022 and informed the energy company that it believed that the hub within the property did not relate to the resident’s energy account. On 13 May 2022, the energy company informed the landlord that the energy hubs had not been correctly onboarded and were in credit mode which is why the resident had access to heating and hot water without topping up.
  5. In response to the resident’s complaint, the landlord apologised for the upset and inconvenience experienced and also apologised for the resident being without electric for 12 hours on 11 April 2022. It explained that it could not reimburse her for the loss of food as she had not been able to provide evidence of the costs incurred in the form of receipts. Furthermore, it apologised for a breakdown in communication which had led to the energy hub still not being onboarded correctly. It informed the resident that it had organised a meeting with the energy company to resolve the matter. In view of the ongoing issues, the landlord offered to pay the resident’s energy usage fees until 30 June 2022.
  6. The resident escalated her complaint to this Service on 15 July 2022. She was unhappy that the landlord would not refund her for the loss of food, as whilst she did not have a receipt, the loss of food had been witnessed by an employee of the landlord. The resident was also dissatisfied that the energy hub in her property was still not registered correctly, which was causing a debt to build up on her energy account. The resident is seeking to be compensated for the loss of food due to the electrical issues in the property, and for the energy hub to be correctly onboarded and the landlord to pay the usage as it said it would.
  7. The landlord informed this Service on 16 November 2022 that the energy hubs were still not onboarded, and the energy company was continuing to look into the issue. It stated that it had provided an update to residents affected by the issue on 28 November 2022.
  8. The landlord then provided an update to this Service on 22 December 2022, in which it stated that it had sought advice about the ongoing issues and it may be able to make a claim to the energy company for further usage to be wiped. It stated that if this was successful then it would update residents about potential further reimbursements.

Assessment and findings

The landlord’s response to the resident’s request to be reimbursed for food that was spoilt due to electrical faults in the property.

  1. The landlord’s compensation policy states that compensation may be paid where a customer has incurred costs, but that proof of the costs incurred would be required. It also states that it may consider a discretionary compensation payment in view of any inconvenience which impacted the resident due to a failing.
  2. In this case, it is not disputed that the resident was without electricity for a total of 12 hours on 11 April 2022 due to a fault with the meters in the property. The landlord had acted appropriately by attending to the electrical issues in the property within 24 hours, however, the resident is dissatisfied as the landlord did not reimburse her for the loss of food. It was reasonable for the landlord to ask for receipts to demonstrate the loss in line with its compensation policy. However, the policy also states that it can consider making a discretionary payment. As it was plausible that the food may have been spoilt, it might have been appropriate for the landlord to have offered a goodwill gesture for the distress and inconvenience caused.
  3. The resident has informed this Service that having to replace the food she had lost was outside of her budget; and that due to medical conditions, the cost of her food shop is more than the average person. However, there is no evidence that the resident had informed the landlord of the impact the situation may have had in view of her vulnerabilities. Nevertheless, the landlord was aware that the situation had impacted the resident and it would have been appropriate for it to consider this as part of the resident’s compensation claim.
  4. Overall, whilst the landlord is not obligated to refund the loss of food without evidence of the initial costs, when considering that the reported food loss was due to electrical issues in the property, which it had acknowledged – and that the resident was without electric for a 12 hour period; both of which might lead to food spoiling, it would have been reasonable for the landlord to consider further steps it could have taken to remediate the situation for the resident. Although this is not so serious an oversight as to warrant a finding of maladministration, it is recommended that the landlord requests an inventory and estimated cost of any spoilt food caused by the electrical issues at the property, and considers whether it can reimburse the resident for some or all of the food loss.

The delays in the landlord onboarding the energy hub at the property, and providing the information needed to the energy company.

  1. The tenancy agreement states that the resident is responsible for paying the charges of any utility services. The tenancy agreement also states that the landlord is responsible for maintaining any installations it provides for space heating, water heating, and supplying water, gas and electricity. The Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) states that all equipment to supply utilities must be fully, safely and correctly installed. The landlord’s responsive repairs policy states that an ‘Emergency’ repair should be completed within 24 hours.
  2. In this case, the resident is dissatisfied as the onboarding for the energy hub in her property is still outstanding. The landlord informed this Service on 22 December 2022 that the issue has been referred back to the energy company directly who are considering the options available in order to resolve the issue. However, it confirmed that this only affects the billing of any energy usage and did not affect the supply of energy to the property at any point.
  3. Therefore, the landlord had ensured the resident had access to the necessary utilities in her property throughout this period, in line with its policies and the HHSRS guidelines. As the onboarding issue had been referred to the energy company, any delay was somewhat outside of the landlord’s control as the correction was the responsibility of the energy company. However, the landlord would be expected to communicate effectively in order to appropriately manage the resident’s expectations.
  4. Following the resident’s reports on 6 May 2022, the landlord acted appropriately by inspecting the energy hub within 24 hours which was in line with its repairs policy. On 13 May 2022, after discovering that the energy hubs in the property had not been onboarded correctly, the landlord acted appropriately by communicating this with any residents who had been impacted by the issue. The Ombudsman highlights the importance of regularly communicating with residents, and this is evidence that the landlord met these expectations. In addition, the evidence shows that the landlord had communicated with the energy company throughout this period in order to try and actively find a solution.
  5. The landlord acknowledged that there had been a breakdown in communication at one stage between itself and the energy company in relation to a contract that was required for the energy service. It had clearly understood that this had impacted the residents who had been affected by the issue, and in view of this impact, it offered to pay the usage fees up until 30 June 2022. This is evidence that the landlord had tried to put things right in line with the Ombudsman’s Dispute Resolution Principles; be fair, put things right and learn from outcomes. Furthermore, it also put things right by ensuring it drafted the required contracts.
  6. It should be noted that the landlord has confirmed to this Service in December 2022 that it is still committed to paying the resident’s energy usage costs until at least 30 June 2022 once a bill has been produced. However, due to the discovery of further issues with the onboarding of the energy hubs, it had to refer the issue back to the energy company to investigate.
  7. Additionally, the landlord explained to this Service on 16 December 2022 that the energy company is exploring the possibility of creating a new account to resolve the problem, and that it continues to wait for a further update about whether this is possible. Despite the issue now being outside of the landlord’s control, it has continued to attempt to minimise the impact for any residents affected by the issue, whilst actively working with the energy company to find a solution.
  8. This Service acknowledges that the resident has raised concerns about the energy debt being incurred throughout this period, as the energy company informed her that once the issue is resolved, 20% of anything she tops up by will go towards the usage debt. Nevertheless, it would be the resident’s responsibility to pay for the energy they were using in line with the tenancy agreement. The debt is not inclusive of any additional charges, but unfortunately, through no fault of her own, the resident is not being charged for energy usage. However, as the resident is aware that this is happening, she is able to take some steps to budget for these costs, and the landlord wouldn’t be expected to continue to subsidise energy costs indefinitely, particularly as the issue is the responsibility of the energy company to resolve. If the resident is struggling financially, she may wish to approach the energy company to arrange a repayment plan.
  9. Furthermore, the landlord has advised this Service on 22 December 2022 that it has also sought advice from a third party about the ongoing issues it has faced with onboarding the energy hubs, and has been advised that it may be able to claim for any usage to be written off until the onboarding issues are resolved. In addition, it stated that if the claim was successful then it would update any residents that had been impacted. This is further evidence that the landlord had understood that the ongoing issues were inconvenient for the resident, and was attempting to minimise any impact by seeking a beneficial solution for all parties. In considering this, it may also be appropriate for the resident to take independent advice about whether she is able to make a separate claim to the energy company in view of the ongoing issues.
  10. Overall, whilst this Service acknowledges that this situation caused inconvenience for the resident, the landlord acted reasonably by stating it would cover any energy usage fees from the start of her tenancy in April 2022 until 30 June 2022. This Service also recognises that the situation is ongoing, but as the energy company is investigating the issue and looking to find a resolution, this is outside of the landlord’s control. Nevertheless, it has continued to act appropriately by providing updates to the residents, and by seeking advice on further action it can take to provide a beneficial resolution for the residents impacted by the issue. It is recommended that the landlord continues to maintain communication with residents, and to provide any updates when it is able to.

Determination

  1. In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, there was no maladministration by the landlord in respect of the landlord’s response to the resident’s request to be reimbursed for food that was spoilt due to electrical faults in the property.
  2. In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, there was no maladministration by the landlord in respect of the delays in the landlord onboarding the energy hub at the property, and providing the information needed to the energy company.

Recommendations

  1. The landlord is recommended to request an inventory and estimated cost of any spoilt food caused by the electrical issues at the property, and reconsider whether reimbursing the resident for some or all of the food loss.
  2. The landlord is recommended to maintain an appropriate level of communication with the resident regarding the onboarding of the energy hub at the property, to ensure her expectations are appropriately managed.