One Housing Group Limited (202115970)

REPORT

COMPLAINT 202115970

One Housing Group Limited

25 October 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 landlords handling of:
1. Structural movement in the property and cracks.
2. The residents reports of repairs.

Background

The resident is an assured tenant of the landlord, a housing association. The property is a two bedroom flat. The tenancy commenced on 4 November 2019.

Summary of events

During August 2020, the resident had reported cracks appearing to the plasterwork and issues with the bathroom door not being about to shut. The landlord arrange for an operative to attend the property and address the cracks to determine if the issues could be covered under the defect liability period.
Soon after the resident expressed that she did not believe the cracks were caused by warm weather. She also informed the landlord of cracks in the bathroom near the skylight and tiles. The resident had stated the surveyor had said this was due to structural movement.
During October 2020, the resident chased the landlord for repairs to the property. She also informed them of a leak coming through the velux windows. Following this an operative attended the property on 9 October 2020 to inspect the reported water staining. He had stated the property had a new roof installed as part of refurbishments works approximately a year ago. He noted the water staining was under the rear slope of the main roof, adjacent to the velux roof light. Due to its isolations, this would not be due to a blocked roof outlet. The operative stated the old stock brickwork had become saturated by the heavy rain in the previous weekend and needed to dry out. This was explained to the resident, and she was asked to monitor the stain and report back if it did not dry out.
During April 2021 the resident contacted the landlord about several issues. These were the following:
1. Rainfall is coming through the roof in the hallway- stained paintwork.
2. Old telephone cable not removed.
3. Cracks in the bathroom skylight and also wall tiles- walls are no longer level.
4. Bathroom door does not close due to the movement of the property (structural issues).
5. Cupboard is a double door right next to the bathroom doesn’t close.
6. Hairline cracks along the side of the building which extends to the bathroom.
7. Cracks in the upper hallway where the plaster is coming away from the wall.
8. Wood wall panelling is cracked.
9. Physical movement/vibration within the property.
10. Cracks in the living room.
In response the landlord informed the resident it would forward her concerns to the appropriate team and they would be in touch.
The resident raised a complaint about lack of effective action to repair cracks in the property and lack of communication. Following this the landlord arranged a survey of the property which was conducted on 21 April 2021. This was to investigate cracks within the property and water ingress around the velux window.
The landlord issued its stage one response on 23 April 2021. It apologised to the resident for the level of service she received and stated it would feedback the importance of timely communication. In recognition of the time taken to resolve the issues raised the landlord offered the resident £250 as a goodwill gesture in line with its compensation policy.
During July 2021, the resident contacted the landlord to say she had not received its compensation form or any update on repairs to the property. She asked the landlord to update her when repairs would be made. The resident had noted repairs were needed to the bathroom door, cracks tiles, walls, shower repairs, cracks in property, repairs to the skylight and other defects.
The resident contacted the landlord on 8 July 2021, to express that following a lack of response and having to chase she was dissatisfied with the landlords complaint handling. She explained that she had still not received the compensation slip, and due to further delays she is unwilling to accept the £250 compensation offered. The resident expressed that no progress has been made to resolve the issues since its stage one response, and the issues had been ongoing for near to a year.
The resident requested a review of her complaint on 8 July 2021, and the landlord discussed this with her on 28 July 2021. Following this the landlord issued its stage two response on 30 July 2021. The landlord acknowledged the resident request for review was about the following issues:
1. Doors not closing.
2. Cracks to plaster in various rooms.
3. Velux window.
4. Movement to the building.
It also acknowledged the resident was seeking for all repairs to be completed and confirmation on movement to the building. The resident was also seeking copies of the survey reports and further compensation.
The landlord reviewed the surveyors report from 21 April 2021 relating to cracks and possible water ingress around the velux window. It apologised for delays in implementing the remedial works and that the works had not yet commenced. It explained it had been in touch with the contractors responsible for defects, however it was unwilling to undertake the required works. The landlord explained that it would be arranging for its own contractors to undertake the works. This was for the following:
1. Cracks to the bathroom ceiling.
2. Ease and adjust the bathroom door.
3. Replace the existing bolts to the cupboard door on the top landing.
4. Strip the defective plaster to the upper stairwell.
5. Engage with operative regarding the suitability of front door.
The landlord also said it will get its contractor to consider any other issues the resident may have and will contact her to agree a suitable appointment.
In recognition of its service failings, the landlord offered £400 compensation. This entailed:
1. £250 offered at stage one.
2. £50 under right to repair.
3. £50 further delays.
4. £50 in recognition of frustration.
As the resident remained unsatisfied with the landlord’s response, the complaint was sent to this service for adjudication.
On 12 November 2021 the landlord attempted to visit the resident’s property, however it was unable to gain access. Therefore it had arranged on 22 November 2022, for the bathroom door to be eased and adjusted, and for the cupboard lock to be replaced. It had been noted that the operative would arrange a further visit for tiling in bathroom cracks to be remedied and smaller cracks at skirting level to be address. Throughout November and December 2021 further repairs to the cracks were carried out.

Assessment and findings

This service recognises the resident states the poor condition of the property impacted her health. However it is beyond the remit of this service to decide on whether there was a direct link between the issues being complained about and the residents’ health. Should the resident wish to pursue this, it would be a matter for the courts. Whilst we cannot consider the effect on health, consideration was given to any distress and inconvenience which the resident experienced.

The landlords handling of the resident’s reports of structural movement in the property and cracks.

The Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, Section 11 implies repair obligations for landlord. It states, ‘In a lease to which this section applies (as to which, see sections 13 and 14) there is implied a covenant by the lessor to keep in repair the structure and exterior of the dwelling-house. Therefore when the resident reported concerns regarding structural movement and cracks within the property, the landlord was responsible for addressing these concerns.
This service does not consider this type of repair to be an emergency repair as we have not seen any evidence to show at the reported time it posed an immediate risk to the resident. Under the landlords repairs and maintenance policy it states that for non-emergency repairs residents are able to report this online and select their preferred times and days. In instances where an appointment is not available the landlord will contact residents to discuss and arrange a booking.
The evidence shows when the resident reported concerns regarding cracks to the hallway and bathroom internal walls on 17 August 2020, the landlord had arranged for contractors to inspect the issue on 20 August 2020 to determine if it would be covered under the defect liability. Within two weeks the landlord had informed the resident that the maintenance team would be in touch to remedy the issue. The resident was then contacted on 6 October 2020 by the maintenance team, however no appointments or further communication was made to remedy the issue.
Whilst it is not within this services scope to diagnose structural issues, when reviewing the images provided and the intensity of repairs required to several walls within the property, It is more reasonable than not that the landlord was required to remedy the issue.
In the Ombudsman’s opinion, initially when the issue was reported the landlord’s response was proactive in attempting to resolve it. However this service has seen service failings by the landlord in terms of delays to repairs, and lack of communication.
The evidence shows there was a period of delay in the landlord attempting to repair the issue despite the resident reporting these concerns in August 2020. Despite the resident complaining about this, and the landlord stating in its stage one response it would arrange a remedy, the issue was still unresolved on 30 July 2021.
The resident has confirmed that the repairs have since been completed, this commenced in November 2021. However it is the Ombudsman’s opinion that the length of time taken to conduct a repairs since it was first reported is considered unreasonable.
The resident has expressed that she is unhappy with the level of compensation. She explained that she was initially told it would take approximately one week to complete the works, however it took three weeks. She also had expressed that she felt that she should have been rehoused for the three weeks as there was a lot of dirt, she is allergic to dust and felt as though she had to be confined to her bedroom.
This service recognises the residents frustration, and can see that after the repairs had commended she has reported her dust allergies to the landlord. Whilst this service recognises the impact, the landlords tenancy agreement does not state that it is obliged to decant residents where this type of work is in progress. Therefore we are unable to say there was a service failing by the landlord not rehousing the resident whilst the work commenced.
This service understands the resident has expressed upset about the landlord not explaining the extent of work needed and how dirty and inconvenient it would be. As verbal conversations took place between the housing officer and resident, this service has not seen any evidence to show what conversations took place. However it is good practice that in such circumstances where a repair is going to take longer than usual or may impact the resident, the landlord or its contractors inform the resident of this.
The resident also expressed she was unhappy that the repair work was being carried out as separate jobs to different contractors to do certain tasks, as opposed to one doing the full job which caused issues. Whilst this service notes these concerns, it is within the landlords discretion to decide how it hires out job orders.
In the landlord stage two response, it states that it would instruct its surveyor to investigate any movement to the building by installing monitoring equipment. This service has not seen any evidence to suggest this has been done and can see the resident has chased for this. Considering the length of time that has passed since the landlord said it would have this done, it is not considered reasonable.
Overall whilst this service recognises the repairs to the cracks have been completed, this took a significant length of time. With this, the landlord has not put measures in place to monitor structural movement, as it said it would. The resident having to chase for this would have likely caused further stress and inconvenience. Taking into consideration the history of repeat delays the resident has had to endure and the fact the landlord has not shown improvement, this service is ordering the landlord to award further compensation to reflect the time, delay and inconvenience caused.

The landlords handling of the resident’s reports of repairs

The evidence shows the resident had reported issues with the bathroom door being unable to shut on 17 August 2020. She later reported issues with the velux window on 6 October 2020. The resident was of the belief this was related to structural movement within the property.
In accordance with the landlord and tenant act 1985, the landlord is responsible for the structure of the property. This includes windows and doors. Therefore when the resident reported issues with the Velux windows and the doors, the landlord is responsible to resolve these matter.
When the resident had reported issues regarding water ingress with the velux windows on 6 October 2020, the landlord arranged for an operative to attend on 8 October 2020. At the time it was recommended to allow the roof to dry out and monitor it.
In the Ombudsman’s opinion, the landlord was positive in attending to the issue in a reasonable time frame. On the instruction of the survey, the resident had been asked to monitor and report back if there were any further leaks. This service has not seen any evidence to suggest the resident had raised further concerns until April 2021.
Following the resident’s concerns, the landlord was proactive in instructing a survey of the property on 21 April 2021. However following the comments from the surveyor there were delays in having the remedial works carried out. This resulted in the resident having to chase for repairs and escalating her complaint to stage two. This service has not seen a copy of the survey, however in the landlord stage two response it acknowledges that work was required and it was delayed in implementing it. The evidence also shows that remedial works did not take place until November and December 2021.
On reviewing the landlords policies, this service has not seen a set timeframe for non-emergency repairs. Generally we would consider approximately 28 days to be a reasonable time for routine repairs, as this is in line with sector standards. Therefore it is unreasonable that despite the residents repeat communication about the issues, the landlord did not have this remedied within a reasonable period of time.
In relation to the resident’s concerns about her bathroom and front door, this service has seen significant delays in having these remedied. The resident had initially reported both issues in August 2020, however the bathroom door was not repaired until November 2021. This service understands that the new front door was also replaced, however the resident has stated she is experiencing issues with the door.
In the Ombudsman’s opinion the length of time it has taken the landlord to resolve the issue is not reasonable. The landlord is responsible for the structure of the property so when the resident reported issues with the front door and concerns of fire safety the landlord ought to have investigated it and if necessary sought a repair sooner.
This service understands in the landlord’s stage 2 response it offered the resident a total of £400 compensation. The landlord had stated that £50 of this was to reflect delays, however taking everything into consideration and the delays which occurred after the stage two response was issued, this service will be ordering further compensation.

Determination (decision)

In accordance with paragraph 54 of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, there was service failings in the landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of structural movement in the property and cracks.
In accordance with paragraph 54 of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, there was service failings in the landlord’s handling of the residents reports of repairs.

Reasons

Whilst the landlord did acknowledge its service failings and awarded the resident compensation. There was continuous delays to remedy the cracks to walls and put a structural monitoring equipment in place as it states it would do. This caused further stress and delays to the resident.
The length of time taken to conduct the repairs were considered unreasonable. This resulted in the resident having to chase on multiple occasions.

Orders and recommendations

Orders

The landlord to compensate the resident £200 for further delays within four weeks (21 November 2022) and to notify us when has been completed.
If not already done so, the landlord to pay the resident its £400 offer of compensation in addition to the order above. This should be completed within four weeks (21 November 2022) and the landlord should notify this service when it has been completed.
The landlord to investigate any movement to the building by installing monitoring equipment. This should be completed within four weeks (21 November 2022) and the landlord should notify this service when it has been completed.
The landlord to address the issues concerning the front door, and repair if needed. This should be completed within four weeks (21 November 2022) and the landlord should notify this service when it has been completed.
The landlord to address the resident’s fire safety concerns and conduct a fire assessment if necessary. This should be completed within four weeks (21 November 2022) and the landlord should notify this service when it has been completed.