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Clarion Housing Association Limited (202124449)

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REPORT

COMPLAINT 202124449

Clarion Housing Association Limited

31 July 2023

 

Our approach

What we can and cannot consider is called the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction and is governed by the Housing Ombudsman Scheme (the 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 handling of the resident’s request to repay a HomeBuy Loan.

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.

 

  1. 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 resident does not have a lease or occupancy agreement with the landlord.

 

  1. In 2002, the resident bought the property with support of a HomeBuy loan from the landlord. The landlord’s loan was for £18,750, which was 25% of the value of the property in 2002.

 

  1. The resident attempted to contact the landlord in 2020 to arrange to pay off the loan. The resident said she could not contact the landlord because she did not know that the original landlord had merged with the current landlord. When she was able to contact the landlord in September 2021, it told the resident that she needed to pay 25% of the current market value.

 

  1. The resident contacted this service on 4 February 2022. She said the landlord declined her offer of £18,750 and had said she needed to pay 25% of the current market value if she wanted to sell the property. The resident said she did not know that paying 25% of current market value was in the contract she had signed in 2002.

 

  1. With support from this service, the resident made a complaint to the landlord about the repayment on 24 August 2022. In its response on 28 September 2022, the landlord said that under the terms of the agreement, signed by both parties in 2002, the resident was required to pay 25% of current market value.

 

  1. The resident escalated her complaint as she remained unhappy with the landlord’s response. In its final response on 25 November 2022, the landlord repeated the requirement to pay 25% of current market value. The landlord offered to waive the £250 administration fee for processing the repayment.

Reasons

  1. Paragraph 25 of the Scheme sets out who can make a complaint to this service. This must be a person who is or has been in a landlord/tenant relationship with a member of the Scheme. This includes people who have a lease, tenancy, licence to occupy, service agreement or other arrangement to occupy premises owned or managed by a member. As the resident did not have a landlord/tenant relationship with the landlord as described in the Scheme, this service cannot investigate the complaint.

 

  1. In taking out a HomeBuy Loan, the resident entered into a credit agreement with the landlord. The Financial Ombudsman Service may consider complaints about credit agreements. The Financial Ombudsman Service can be contacted by visiting www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk.

 

  1. We appreciate this determination may be disappointing to the resident, but as detailed in the report, the Ombudsman can only investigate complaints that fall within the Scheme.