Catalyst Housing Limited (202208798)

REPORT

COMPLAINT 202208798

Catalyst Housing Limited

23 March 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

The complaint is about the landlord’s handling of the resident’s:
1. Request for the balcony at the property to be painted.
2. Reports of mould around the seal of the bath and hand basin.
3. Request for a bedroom window to be replaced by a door.

Background and summary of events

Background

The resident has an assured shorthold tenancy with the landlord. The property is a two-bedroom ground floor flat, in which the resident lives with her two children. The landlord’s records do not document any vulnerabilities for the resident or her children.
The resident’s tenancy agreement with the landlord states that the landlord is obliged to keep the exterior of the premises, and any common parts, in a reasonable state of decoration as required.
The tenancy agreement says the landlord will keep in repair and working order any installations it has provided including basins, sinks, baths and toilets.
The tenancy agreement states the resident is obliged to carry out minor repairs to the property, including (but not limited to) filling small plaster cracks and replacing plugs on wash basins and baths. The tenancy agreement does not specifically state whether the resident is responsible for renewing sealant in the bathroom.
The landlord’s responsive repairs policy states it aims to deliver routine repairs (repairs that are not an emergency) within an average of 10 working days. This policy says residents will be offered the next available appointment for their repair, and that the landlord will keep the resident informed about timescales throughout the repair process.
The landlord’s aids and adaptions policy outlines the landlord’s approach in providing aids and adaptions to properties to support residents (or members of their household) who have disability, long-term illness or mobility issues. The aids and adaptions are to support those individuals to live safely and independently in their own home.
The policy sets out that the landlord works in partnership with the local authority for larger grant-funded adaptions. The policy states the landlord may decline requests for funding of adaptions where it believes this is not an effective use of resources.

Summary of events

Records show that on 17 May 2022 the resident made contact with the landlord about a request she had made for a door to the garden to be added to the property, and to discuss damp in the bathroom. The resident made contact again on 21 June 2022 to report she was unhappy that the landlord’s surveyor had told her the landlord would not be sending someone to clean the damp and mould in her property.
On 4 July 2022 the landlord’s surveyor visited the resident’s property. At this time the resident reported issues with the property, including:
1. That the balcony was dirty and needed repainting.
2. Mould on the seal around the bath and hand basin.
3. That the resident wanted a window in the bedroom to be converted to a door to allow direct access to the garden.
Following this visit, later the same day, the resident sent an email to the landlord. She said that she was unhappy with the surveyor’s approach to the issues raised.
The resident sent photos to the landlord of the balcony outside her property. She said that environment control had recently cleaned the balcony, but she was still unhappy that the balcony was not going to be painted. The resident said she informed the surveyor that she had previously been told by her housing officer she could paint the balcony. The resident stated the surveyor told her that was not the case as the balcony had to look the same as the other balconies on the estate.
The resident also expressed her dissatisfaction with the surveyor’s decision that the seal in the bathroom would not be replaced. The resident said she had used chemical cleaning products on the mould but these had not worked. The resident said the surveyor told her the seal in the bathroom was for her to maintain, but something could be done if the mould became worse.
The resident said that not having direct access to the garden from the flat made it difficult for her family to use the garden.
On 5 July 2022 the surveyor sent an email to the resident summarising what had been discussed during the inspection. In this the surveyor said that:
1. The landlord would not be painting the balcony.
2. The resident was to clean mould on the seal herself.
3. It would not be permitted to replace the bedroom window with a door.
On 11 July 2022, in internal correspondence, the surveyor stated that she had not found the balcony at the property to be dirty, and that painting the balcony would not be allowed as all balconies on the estate must match.
On 18 July 2022 the landlord issued a stage one response to the resident’s complaint. The landlord copied details set out in email sent by the surveyor to the resident on 5 July 2022.
The landlord stated the surveyor had provided a decision to the resident in respect of requests for the replacement of seals in the bathroom, painting of the balcony above her property, and the request for the bedroom window to be replaced with a door. The landlord concluded that it was not upholding the resident’s complaint about this.
The landlord stated that as part of previous damp and mould investigations, work had been completed on two extractor fans to improve ventilation in the property. In later communication with this Service, the resident said work had been carried out to an extractor fan in the bathroom around July 2022. However, this work is not documented in the landlord’s repairs records.
After receiving the landlord’s initial response to her complaint, the same day the resident sent an email to the landlord requesting that her complaint be escalated. The resident expressed her view that the balcony and the seal in the bathroom were “filthy and unhygienic” for her young children to be around. The resident said that she also needed direct access from the flat to the garden so that her children could play outside.
The landlord issued a stage two response to the resident’s complaint on 25 July 2022. In this response the landlord said:
1. The surveyor had found the balcony to be clean at the time of the inspection and that, to ensure consistency across the estate, all balconies and doors must be consistent in appearance, and it would not endorse one property carrying out its own painting regime.
2. From photos the resident sent, and the surveyor’s inspection, it appeared the mould in the bathroom was due to condensation, rather than from a leak or penetrating damp. The landlord said that minor spots of mould were frequently found around baths and were best controlled by residents wiping them away as soon as they appeared and by ensuring the bathroom was well ventilated. The landlord suggested the use of a mould cleaning product or bleach diluted with water and washing up liquid. It said it would not be replacing the seals in the bathroom.
3. It understood how direct access to the garden would be more convenient for the resident and her children. However, it said it would not be reasonable to undertake this work to install a door in the bedroom to the garden. The landlord said that doing this work would involve costs, future maintenance commitments, building regulations and issues around the structural integrity of the building. It also said that it could be seen as setting a precedent for such work.
In communications with this Service, the resident said that the contractor who had changed her toilet in July 2022 had put silicone around the mould areas on the seal. She questioned why the landlord could not have done this when she first asked. She said wanted the landlord to compensate her for putting her children’s life at risk by having to bath near areas affected by mould.
The resident also told this Service that the landlord had sent a contractor to clean her balcony, but that watermarks remained on the balcony after cleaning was completed.
On 22 January 2023, in response to contact from the surveyor, the resident sent an email to the landlord attaching photos of mould in her bathroom. In this email the resident said the landlord’s surveyor had contacted her a few weeks before to enquire about any ongoing issue with mould in the bathroom. The resident said in her email to the surveyor that cleaning, and using cleaning products on the mould, had not worked. The landlord made contact with the resident about this report on 14 March 2023 after this Service queried what action was being taken by the landlord.

Assessment and findings

Request for the balcony at the property to be painted

The landlord explained to the resident, during the surveyor’s inspection in July 2022 and in subsequent complaint responses, that balconies across the estate must be of consistent appearance. The landlord has the right as the freeholder to decide on the appearance of the exterior of the block, and it is reasonable for it to want the balconies to remain matching for aesthetic reasons.
While the resident told this Service that she remained dissatisfied even after the balcony was cleaned, due to remaining watermarks, this did not mean that the landlord was obliged to paint the balcony or provide permission for her to do so. The landlord’s obligation, as set out in the tenancy agreement, was to keep the exterior of the property in a reasonable state of decoration.
The landlord said its surveyor had found the balcony to be clean during the inspection. The resident disagreed with the conclusions of the surveyor on this point, but the landlord took appropriate steps to ascertain the condition of the balcony by inspecting and ultimately it was entitled to rely upon the opinion of its suitably qualified member of staff who had authority to decide on this matter.

Handling of the reports of mould on the seal of the bath and hand basin

In accordance with the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, the landlord is responsible for the repair and maintenance of the structure of the property. In line with this obligation, the landlord should investigate reports of repairs, and take appropriate steps to resolve any issues identified.
The Ombudsman’s spotlight on damp and mould says landlords should adopt a zero-tolerance approach to damp and mould interventions. The landlord took the appropriate step of arranging for its surveyor to inspect the resident’s concern about mould on the seal of bath and hand basin, and considered photos sent in by the resident, so as to reach an informed view. The surveyor reported that she had found there to be minor mould growth on the seal due to condensation and did not identify any underlying repair issue.
The resident believes the landlord should have renewed the seal on the bath and hand basin, which she states was later done by a contractor who completed work to her toilet in July 2022. However, this Service considers the landlord provided proportionate and practical advice to the resident at this time about how to treat what the surveyor had found to be minor mould spots on the seals of the bath and hand basin. The landlord considered the mould spots it witnessed could be best controlled by the resident wiping these away as soon as they appeared, and by ensuring the bathroom was well ventilated. It was reasonable for the landlord to explore this way for mould to be managed in the first instance.
This Service notes that the landlord did not act on the resident’s reports in January 2023 of ongoing issues with mould on the bathroom seals until 14 March 2023, after prompting by this Service. While the landlord had previously provided appropriate advice to the resident about how to manage this issue, the landlord had a duty to respond to any new reports by the resident.
Although the previous advice may have been appropriate at the time, it is clear from the resident’s recent reports that she has been unable to control the mould by following this advice. This Service has therefore recommended that the landlord make contact with resident with a view to inspecting and taking reasonable steps to resolve the issue.
Both the resident and the landlord have confirmed that work had been completed on the extractor fans in the bathroom, but this Service notes that this work is not documented within the landlord’s repair records. The extent of work carried out to extractor fans in the bathroom is therefore unclear. These omissions indicate poor record keeping by the landlord. Clear record keeping and management is a core function of a repairs service, because this assists the landlord in fulfilling its repair obligations, including the management and monitoring of outstanding repairs. As the nature of the work to the fans has not been documented, this Service has recommended that the landlord inspects the extractor fans in the property, and the efficacy of any previous works undertaken, as part of its consideration of the resident’s further reports of mould growth.

Request for bedroom window to be replaced by a door

It is not the Ombudsman’s role to determine whether a property adaption should be allowed to occur. The Ombudsman’s role when considering such complaints is to assess whether the landlord appropriately and fairly considered the matters, and correctly applied its policy and procedures when reaching decision.
It is clear that direct access to the garden at the property would allow greater ease of use for the resident and her children. However, the landlord was not obliged under the terms of its tenancy agreement or its repairs policy to alter or improve the resident’s property.
Making an improvement is at the landlord’s discretion. Social landlords have limited budgets and have a responsibility to manage their resources effectively, prioritising requested works accordingly. The landlord set out, in its stage two response to the resident, its reasons for not undertaking work to install a door to the garden. These reasons included costs, possible future maintenance commitments and potential issues with the structural integrity of the building. Given the scale of work involved in converting a window to a door, this Service considers it was reasonable for the landlord to take into account these factors in its decision making. The landlord’s concern that this may give rise to an expectation for similar works to other properties was also a reasonable consideration in these particular circumstances. It is clear that the landlord considered the circumstances of the request against other relevant factors, and there was no maladministration in the way it reached its decision.
In certain situations, residents can support their request for health-based physical adaptations to their home by obtaining information from an occupational therapist, or a disabled facilities grant from the relevant local authority.
Nothing in the evidence indicates the resident did this, or that she had any particular health-based need for the adaption of which she had made the landlord aware. But it might have been useful for the landlord to explain to the resident the circumstances under which it may support a property adaption.

Determination (decision)

In accordance with paragraph 52 of the Scheme, there was no maladministration by the landlord in its handling of the resident’s:
1. Request for the balcony at the property to be painted.
2. Reports of mould around the seal of the bath and hand basin.
3. Request for a bedroom window to be replaced by a door.

Recommendations

The landlord should within 4 weeks of the date of this report:
1. Make contact with resident about her recent reports of mould in the bathroom with a view to inspecting and taking reasonable steps to resolve the issue.
2. Inspect the extractor fans in the property, and the efficacy of any works previously undertaken on these fans.
3. Remind staff to appropriately document work carried out to properties in repair records.