Moat Homes Limited (202108392)

REPORT

COMPLAINT 202108392

Moat Homes Limited

26 February 2022

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:
1. Handling of a heating upgrade and loft insulation in the resident’s property.
2. Decision not to contribute towards the resident’s energy bills.

Background and summary of events

The resident is a tenant of the landlord. The property is a flat within a block of flats.
The resident contacted the landlord on 4 December 2020 and said that she was using a lot of electricity during the winter months and her electricity supplier believed the old storage heaters in her home were not working efficiently. She confirmed the landlord changed one of her heaters in her living room but said she needed new ones on her landing and in her hallway. The landlord replied on 8 December 2020 confirming that it would respond within five working days.
On 17 January 2021 the resident pursued an update from the landlord, advising that an operative attended her home on 17 December 2020 to inspect her heaters (no record of this visit has been provided for this Service’s investigation.)
The landlord responded on 22 January 2021 and advised that the operative’s notes confirmed the heaters were all working and did not require replacing. It said its technical officer would need to attend to determine why the heaters were costing a lot to run and the technical team would contact the resident within five working days.
On 22 January 2021 the resident replied that, when attending, the operative said the heater on the landing would be replaced but he was not sure about the one by the front door. The resident asked why the landlord delayed in informing her of whether the second heater would be replaced and said that the heaters were costing a lot to run because of their age.
According to the landlord’s internal correspondence of 25 January 2021, its contractor said they would be attending in April. The landlord internally confirmed that it had informed the resident that it would attend in early April 2021 to quote to install high heat retention storage heaters.
On 24 February 2021 the resident wrote to the landlord and confirmed she sent the landlord her electricity bills, which were high for the property size, usage, and compared to other resident’s bills. She said that her supplier had told her the properties storage heaters were very old and likely very inefficient but the landlord would not consider changing the storage heaters on her landing or by her front door until April 2021. The resident raised several concerns she had relating to her bills, such as whether: she was paying for electricity in communal areas of the building, there was an issue with the wiring, or her electricity supply had been tampered with.
The landlord replied on 25 February 2021 that the resident’s electricity meter was not connected to the consumer units in the communal cupboard and therefore would not be investigating this issue. It advised that if the resident had any queries regarding her electricity charges, she should contact her supplier in the first instance.
The resident responded on 1 March 2021 and reiterated that she believed that her high bills were due to inefficient storage heaters. She also said that her windows let in cold air. She raised her concerns that the landlord would not consider replacing the storage heaters until after April 2021 and therefore her bills would continue to be high. She asked the landlord to arrange for an electrician to complete an inspection at her property.
On 1 March 2021 the landlord arranged for a supervisor to inspect the resident’s meters and/or storage heaters. It confirmed an inspection was booked for 15 April 2021.
In the landlord’s stage one complaint response, dated 19 March 2021, it reiterated that the first stage of investigating high energy bills would be to contact the energy supplier. It noted that the resident confirmed her supplier would visit shortly to examine her meter and check that it was serving her property only. The landlord confirmed its energy and sustainability co-ordinator would visit in April 2021 to quote for energy efficient heaters and it requested a technical officer attend to inspect the condition of the property, including the windows. It concluded that it was satisfied that steps were being taken to address this issue and that the resident’s energy supplier was visiting to look at the meter. The landlord confirmed that, should the energy provider provide information that there may be a fault with the meter, it would look into this.
The landlord’s technical officer inspected the property on 26 March 2021. In their report they confirmed that they found no structural issues with the property or any issues with windows.
According to the landlord’s records, on 15 April 2021 the landlord attended the property. The operative who attended noted “tested off peak heating there is 2 off peak boards that does 4 storage heaters and the immersion the rest is fed off the normal supply which includes a panel heater and the 24hr supply for living room heater. Until this is pulled apart and wiring traced difficult to see what is linked to where”.
The landlord internally advised on 21 April 2021 that it contacted the resident and have arranged to attend the property on 26 April 2021 with its contractor to draft a quote to install high heat retention storage heaters.
On 7 April 2021 the landlord wrote to the resident to confirm that is technical team found no structural issues with the property and no further action was required in relation to the windows. It acknowledged that the resident informed it that her electricity supplier completed an examination of her meter and she accepted their recommendation to have a smart meter fitted. The landlord noted that the resident had not asked to escalate her complaint, but if she wished to do so she should detail the areas she was unhappy with so the landlord could consider her request.
The resident wrote to the landlord on 28 April 2021 and advised she was told that all her old storage heaters would be changed but she had been asking for this for a couple of years due to high monthly bills. She said that, during this time, she accrued a debt with her supplier due to the old inefficient heaters and confirmed she wished to make a claim for compensation in view of this.
On 4 May 2021 the landlord informed the resident that her request for compensation, along with her concerns about alleged incorrect wiring of the storage heaters, would need to be investigated. It confirmed that it was in the process of investigating the wiring and would update the resident once it received a report of the findings from this investigation. The landlord said that it would also need to investigate the difference that the storage heaters upgrade had on the resident’s electricity bills. It also asked the resident to provide copies of her electricity bills to support her request for compensation.
On 13 May 2021 the landlord raised a request for a quote to ‘top up’ the loft insulation and install loft ventilation in the resident’s property.
It is understood that 19 May 2021 the landlord wrote to the resident, declining the resident’s compensation request and confirming that it found no issues with the wiring of the resident’s electricity meter. This Service has not received a copy of this letter.
On 26 May 2021 the resident expressed her dissatisfaction with the landlord’s response, which she said stated that high bills were due to her underpaying. She said that the landlord refused her historical requests to change heaters and her monthly bills were unacceptable. She explained that she had not provided copies of her summer electricity bills because they were much lower due to her not using the heaters during this time. Whilst she accepted that her high electricity bills may be nothing to do with incorrect wiring, she believed they were due to inefficient heaters and this had been confirmed by an operative who attended. The resident asked to escalate the issue.
The landlord acknowledged the resident’s escalation on 7 June 2021 and internally corresponded regarding the energy bills provided by the resident between 25 and 28 June 2021.
In the landlord’s final complaint response, dated 28 June 2021, it confirmed that it investigated and found no issues with the wiring of the resident’s heating connected to the resident’s high energy bills. It said that, although the resident’s storage heaters were dated, they were working correctly. The landlord confirmed that its energy and sustainability coordinator had checked that the resident was on the correct tariff for storage heaters and, in its letter dated 19 May 2021, it was highlighted that the resident may have been underpaying for electricity which could have contributed towards her receiving a high bill. It also confirmed that no faults were found regarding the windows in the property.
Considering that the landlord found no fault in the current heating system or any service failure on its part, the landlord confirmed it could not offer compensation I relation to this. Moving forward, the landlord confirmed that it instructed quotes for the resident’s heating upgrade and installation of loft insulation and the heating system would be upgraded before the end of September 2021. Furthermore, once the new storage heaters were installed, it would advise the resident of the best energy tariff she should sign up to.
In early August 2021 the landlord was completing pest control in the resident’s loft space.
Following contact from the resident pursuing the replacement of her heaters and loft insulation installation on 31 August 2021, the landlord contacted the resident in early September 2021 to explain that its contractor needed to remove a ceiling to allow the electrical works and storage heater upgrades to proceed.
In early October 2021 the landlord internally confirmed that all pest control works and/or visits were completed in the resident’s loft and he landlord internally liaised regarding arranging the installation of loft insulation.
The landlord updated the resident on 12 October 2021 that its electrician would soon contact her regarding installing new storage heaters towards the end of the next week or at the resident’s earliest convenience.
According to the landlord’s records, the insulation works were complete on 18 October 2021. The resident confirmed to this Service on 25 November 2021 that the landlord completed the replacement of her heaters on 1 November 2021, outside of the timescales given in its final complaint response. She said that the landlords delay in replacing her heaters caused her to get into debt with her energy supplier.

Assessment and findings

The resident has said she has pursued a replacement of her storage heaters and raised concerns about her electricity bills to the landlord for several years. However, there is no evidence of a formal complaint being raised until around March 2021. The Ombudsman encourages residents to raise complaints with their landlords in a timely manner, so that the landlord has a reasonable opportunity to consider the issues whilst they are still ‘live’, and whilst the evidence is available to reach an informed conclusion on the events which occurred. As the substantive issues become historical, it is increasingly difficult for either the landlord, or an independent body such as the Ombudsman, to conduct an effective review of the actions taken to address those issues.
In view of the time periods involved in this case, taking into account the availability and reliability of evidence, this assessment does not consider any specific events prior to December 2020. Whilst the historical issues provide contextual background to the current complaint, this assessment is focused on the landlord’s actions in responding to the more recent events and, specifically, to the formal complaint made in March 2021.

The landlord’s obligations

In line with the tenancy agreement, the landlord is responsible for the repair and maintenance of the structure, outside, and communal areas of the property; and systems for supplying water, gas, and electricity.
In line with the landlord’s compensation policy, it will consider paying compensation to residents in the following cases: if a qualifying repair is not completed within a given time scale (Right to Repair); loss of amenities.; additional costs incurred for alternative heating, dehumidifiers and use of immersion heaters; missed appointments; damage to a customer’s property and/or decorations; and time and trouble payments in the case of service failure.
The compensation policy details the following types of repair the landlord must do and the priority that the landlord gives them:
1. Emergency repairs (where there is immediate danger to people or property) should be completed within four hours (out of hours) or 24 hours (during office hours) to ‘make safe’.
2. Urgent repairs (that are not considered an emergency, but which if not completed quickly would cause significant nuisance) should be complete within seven calendar days.
3. Routine repairs (that are not considered an emergency or urgent) should be complete within 30 calendar days.
4. These timescales do not apply to programmed repairs, which are those that are complex, subject to leaseholder consultation, or involve specialist parts.

The landlord’s handling of a heating upgrade and loft insulation in the property.

The resident reported on 4 December 2020 that she believed the old storage heaters in her home were not working efficiently. The landlord’s attendance within 13 calendar days of this report was in line with the repair timescales detailed in the landlord’s compensation policy for routine repairs. There was no evidence to support that the repair should be considered emergency or urgent, considering that the resident’s heating was working and therefore it was reasonable for the landlord to treat this as a request for a routine repair.
It took three months for the landlord to attend in April 2021 to obtain a quote to install more energy efficient heaters, and there were delays in the repairs being completed following the landlord’s final complaint response, due to the need to complete pest control works in the loft before the insulation could be fitted and the extent of the works required to replace the resident’s heaters. However, these delays were partly beyond the landlord’s control and the evidence demonstrates that the landlord was taking appropriate steps to complete the repairs.
The heating system works were considered an upgrade and not a repair, and the works relied on the completion of other repairs before they could be carried out. The landlord was actively investigating the resident’s concerns regarding the wiring of the heating system. In view of these points, the time taken for the landlord to complete repairs to the heating system and insulation was not unreasonable. Additionally, the evidence demonstrates that the landlord has managed the resident’s expectations in relation to the works by providing her updates at least once a month, in line with good practice.
Additionally, the landlord has also investigated concerns raised by the resident in relation to the condition of her windows by completing an inspection on 25 March 2021 and confirming that there were no repair issues affecting the windows, in line with its obligations.

The landlord’s decision not to contribute towards the resident’s energy bills.

The landlord did not find any fault with the resident’s heating system and the works undertaken by the landlord were considered an upgrade rather than a repair. There is no evidence of a service failure in the landlord’s handling of the matter and it was therefore reasonable for the landlord to not contribute to the resident’s energy bills as there is a lack of evidence to confirm that it was responsible for the increased cost of these bills. The landlord acted reasonably by reviewing the energy bills provided by the resident, considering her request for compensation, and providing an explanation for its decision, in line with good practice.

Determination (decision)

In accordance with paragraph 54 of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, there was no maladministration by the landlord in respect of the complaint about its:
1. Handling of a heating upgrade and loft insulation in the resident’s property.
2. Decision not to contribute toward the resident’s energy bills.

Reasons

The landlord has investigated the resident’s concerns and determined that there was no fault with the property’s heating system; however, it agreed to upgrade the heating system and ‘top up’ the loft insulation. Although there were some delays in the completion of the upgrade, given the circumstances and the fact that the landlord kept the resident updated, this did not have any significant impact on the overall outcome of the complaint. Furthermore, considering that the landlord found no fault with the heating system that would contribute to the resident’s energy bills, and that the works identified were an upgrade rather than repair, it was reasonable for the landlord to decline to contribute to the resident’s energy bills.