Stonewater Limited (202000534)

REPORT

COMPLAINT 202000534

Stonewater Limited

22 October 2021

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

This complaint is about the landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of anti-social behaviour (ASB).

Background and summary of events

Background

The resident is an assured tenant whose tenancy began on 27 January 2014. The property is a two-bedroom flat within a three-storey block.
The tenancy agreement requires the resident (and any members of the household) not to cause a nuisance to neighbours or use the property for illegal purposes. It mentions that this applies to racial harassment.
The landlord has an ASB policy that defines ASB as conduct likely to cause ‘harassment, alarm or distress to any person’ and sets out that hate crime includes ‘abusive or insulting words or behaviour’. Its website confirms that drug use in communal areas is regarded as ASB but that it cannot assist with drug use in the home.
The landlord’s ASB policy shows that it will respond to ASB reports by:
1. forming an action plan (within one working day for hate crime allegations)
2. maintaining an audit trail of actions
3. keeping residents informed of progress
4. conducting risk assessments to protects victims from harm and further incidents
5. using intervention methods such as interviewing alleged perpetrators, mediation and informal undertakings
6. utilising acceptable behaviour contracts, civil injunctions and possession proceedings in more severe cases
7. working closely with the Police, local authority and local racial equality councils in cases of hate-related incidents.
The landlord has a complaints policy that sets out a two-stage complaints process where it is required to respond to complaints within 10 working days at both stages.
The resident’s complaint concerns at least three sets of neighbours (living in other flats in the block) who are also tenants of the landlord. This Service has not been provided with copies of the neighbours’ tenancy agreements but it would be reasonable to conclude that the same, or similar, tenancy conditions apply as to the resident.
The Ombudsman is only able to consider matters which have exhausted the landlord’s complaints procedure. This is so that we can be sure the landlord has had a reasonable opportunity to resolve the issues internally before we intervene. This Service cannot therefore make a determination on the handling of new events that arose since the complaint exhausted the landlord’s complaints procedure in May 2020 – nevertheless, these events have been summarised below for context.

Summary of Events

Evidence seen by this Service indicates that the resident made reports of drug-related ASB prior to 2019 as follows:
1. August 2016 – smoking of drugs in communal areas
2. November 2017 – smoking of drugs in communal areas and fights between visitors to a neighbour’s property
3. April 2018 – smoking of drugs in communal areas
4. May 2018 – vandalism in the block and block car park
5. October 2018 – smells of drug use in the block from a neighbouring address.
The landlord’s records show that it received reports about loud music being played by a neighbour on 21 January 2019 and 28 March 2019. It noted that it had asked the resident to supply incident logs by 19 April 2019 but that it closed the ASB case on 3 June 2019 due to lack of contact.
The landlord completed a witness statement (in June 2021) that recorded that there had been reports of drug use, aggression, vandalism and possible drug dealing by a neighbouring household during June 2019. It made a note that it spoke to the resident on 6 June 2019 and 20 June 2019 and checked that he had support.
The landlord recorded that it issued a letter to the block on 28 June 2019, reminding all residents that drug use was illegal and not permitted with the block. It also issued a warning letter to a neighbouring property on 28 June 2019 and spoke to the neighbour on 16 July 2019.
The resident made reports on 2 July 2019 and 15 July 2019 of drug use in the block (from two properties) and that the smell had entered his flat on the latter occasion. The landlord issued a reminder letter to the block about drug use on 16 July 2019.
The resident made a report on 16 July 2019 that a neighbour had been locked out of their flat by visitors and that this had caused an aggressive argument and fight that his child had witnessed. He added on 17 July 2019 that the cannabis smell entering his property remained a problem. The landlord noted on 19 July 2019 that it told the resident it had spoken to the alleged perpetrator.
The landlord recorded a report from the resident on 27 July 2019 about drug use in communal areas that day and the day before.
The resident made a report of drug use on the balcony of a neighbouring flat on 4 November 2019. The landlord noted that the resident chased this issue again on 15 November 2019, 22 November 2019 and 29 November 2019. The resident added on 24 November 2019 that the landlord needed to do something as four out of the nine flats in the block had issues with drug use so drug dealers were present and smells had entered his property.
The resident submitted a complaint dated 3 December 2019. He said he had reported drug use and related nuisance behaviour in his block since August 2016 – he mentioned violence, intimidation and vandalism. He complained that:
1. the landlord had failed to protect his household and mostly ignored his reports
2. there was drug use and violence from three properties within the block that had led the Police to frequently visit and he asked if the landlord would act against one of these properties in particular
3. the landlord had incorrectly advised him that drug use within flats was not something they could deal with.
The landlord issued a warning letter to a neighbouring property on 4 December 2019, after witnessing an occupier of that address using cannabis the day before. It reminded the neighbour of the terms of their tenancy.
The resident made a report on 7 December 2019 that there had been a fight between a neighbour and another person who he suspected had been buying drugs. He reported a further incident on 14 December 2019 when a different neighbour had threatened him because he had raised drug use with them.
The landlord issued a stage one complaint response on 20 December 2019. It concluded that:
1. there had been occasions since 2016 when it had not acted pro-actively but it had agreed steps to do so in future, including collaborative work with the Police
2. acceptable behaviour contracts would be used for two of the properties reported due to use of cannabis
3. court action, including tenancy enforcement, could be considered in future if necessary.
The resident made reports of drug use and drug dealing from a neighbouring property on 28 December 2019 and 6 January 2020. He added on 11 January 2020 that cannabis smells had again affected his son’s bedroom and reported on 13 January 2020 that somebody had knocked on his door looking to buy drugs.
The landlord noted that it spoke to the resident on 15 January 2020. It recorded that it told the resident it would be difficult to take enforcement action against a neighbour without a conviction for drug use, or dealing, and that it had not updated him because it was adding his reports to an ASB case file.
The resident made reports on 17 January 2020 and 3 February 2020 of drug dealing from the communal block entrance by a member of a neighbour’s household. He added that he had witnessed another neighbour dealing drugs on 24 January 2020. The landlord acknowledged the reports on 3 February 2020 – it advised that they would be passed on.
The resident made further reports of a combination of drug dealing activity such as visitors coming and going in the early hours of the morning and drug use by neighbours on 7 February 2020, 19 February 2020 and 20 February 2020. The landlord acknowledged the reports on 21 February 2020 – it advised that they would be passed on.
The landlord sent a letter to the resident on 25 February 2020. It advised that:
1. it takes criminal acts seriously but must take a lead from the Police on these
2. it uses acceptable behaviour contracts so residents have a chance to modify their behaviour and can take further enforcement where incidents continue.
The resident reported an incident of shouting and swearing on 9 March 2020 that had led to a neighbour breaking down another neighbour’s door and the Police attending.
The landlord wrote to the resident’s MP on 31 March 2020. It advised that it had secured an acceptable behaviour contract with two of the resident’s neighbours on 12 March 2020. The contract was for them not to have visitors late at night and not to use drugs at the property – the landlord said it had since received no reports that these conditions had been breached. It added that a housing officer would liaise with the resident over the following week.
The resident made reports on 11-12 April 2020 that they were unable to use their balcony (during lockdown) because of the cannabis smell in the block. He added that his son was shielding so use of the balcony for fresh air was important. The resident made an additional report of a party and drug use at a neighbouring property on 14 April 2020. Similar incidents of drug use and drug dealing were reported by the resident during the following two weeks, including a report on 19 April 2020 of four incidents of drug use the resident said he had witnessed over the previous four days.
Following contact from the resident, this Service wrote to the landlord on 30 April 2020 – it recommended that the landlord contact the resident to escalate his complaint (the landlord subsequently wrote to the resident on 11 May 2020 to confirm the complaint had ben escalated).
The landlord noted on 1 May 2020 that the resident had given permission for victim support assistance.
The resident made a report on 2 May 2020 of eight incidents of drug use – primarily in communal areas of the block – over the previous two weeks.
The landlord recorded that it acknowledged the resident’s ASB reports and wrote to a neighbouring property on 5 May 2020 – it advised that it had received reports of drug misuse at her flat and warned her under the terms of her tenancy.
The landlord noted that it spoke to a third party on 6 May 2020 who confirmed she had also witnessed drug use at the block.
The resident made a report on 11 May 2020 of drug use by two different neighbours in communal areas of the block over the previous 10 days. The landlord acknowledged the report on 13 May 2020 and noted that it had liaised with victim support on 14 May 2020.
The landlord noted that it offered an update to the resident on 20 May 2020 – it recorded that it had told him that it had liaised with the Police who would patrol for drug use and recommended that he report nuisance associated with the drug use. It also wrote to all residents in the block that day, recommending use of the Noise App and incident logs to record and report ASB.
The resident made a report on 20 May 2020 of various incidents of drug use and dealing by two households at the block over the previous week. He added on 26 May 2020 that there had been an incident where a group of people had tried to get into the block in the early hours of the morning and his wife had been subjected to verbal abuse.
The landlord issued a final complaint response on 26 May 2020. It concluded that:
1. it had previously acknowledged that its initial approach had not been good enough and an apology was offered given it could see that the resident had consistently reported concerns since 2016
2. staff were now keeping the resident informed on progress to address ASB and working with the Police to ensure a dual approach and site patrols
3. recent logs submitted by the resident were being used to build a case with evidence
4. it offered compensation of £500 in recognition of the length of time the matter had gone on for.
The resident continued to make ASB reports to the landlord on at least a monthly basis between June 2020 and September 2021. These usually related to several incidents of drug use (and related events) in communal areas each month, including vandalism, drug dealing, verbal threats (including at least one occasion when the resident’s ethnicity was referred to) and fighting.
In response, the landlord regularly acknowledged the resident’s reports during August 2020 to December 2020, issued further warnings to neighbours, undertook case reviews and liaised with the Police. There is also evidence that it contacted the local authority to discuss the potential for CCTV, created an action plan in May 2021 and took legal advice in July 2021.
The resident advised the landlord in June 2021 that the quickest resolution would be for him to be moved. The landlord agreed a management move for the resident on 29 July 2021 and completed a management move application on 6 August 2021 – it noted that the move was on the grounds of drug misuse and racial abuse.

Assessment and findings

In reaching a decision we consider whether the landlord has kept to the law, followed proper procedure and good practice, and acted in a reasonable way. Our duty is to determine complaints by reference to what is, in this Service’s opinion, fair in all the circumstances of the case.
The Ombudsman’s Dispute Resolution Principles are:

Be fair
Put things right
Learn from outcomes

This Service will apply these principles when considering whether any redress is appropriate and proportionate for any maladministration or service failure identified.

The Ombudsman considers complaints about how a landlord has responded to reports of a problem. It is not the Ombudsman’s role to decide if the actions of the alleged perpetrators amounted to ASB, but rather, whether the landlord dealt with the resident’s reports about this appropriately and reasonably.
Nevertheless, it is not disputed that the type of behaviour reported by the resident will have been a source of distress for him and his family and that there have been genuine concerns – corroborated by other residents and the landlord (during a site visit) – about drug use at the block and the behaviour of neighbours and their visitors.
The resident initially made several reports of drug-related ASB at the block between 2016-2018. Although these were sporadic, it is of concern that the landlord’s record-keeping is such that it has been unable to explain what actions it took in response to each of these reports. Given its ASB policy required it to maintain an audit trail of actions, this was inappropriate.
The resident’s consistent reports of drug use and drug dealing at the block commenced from June 2019 – this included a report of a fight at the block. The landlord’s initial actions within the following month were to check that the resident had support, write to all residents in the block on two occasions about drug use and interview and issue a written warning to one neighbour in particular. These actions were in accordance with the landlord’s ASB policy to assess risk and use informal undertakings – these actions were therefore appropriate.
The resident made further regular reports of ASB between November 2019 and May 2020 (when the resident’s complaint exhausted the landlord’s complaints process). In response, the landlord recorded that it took the following actions up to May 2020:
1. liaised with victim support about the case
2. undertook a site visit in December 2019
3. issued tenancy warning letters to neighbours in December 2019 and May 2020
4. checked that the Police were aware of the circumstances and were on patrols in the area.

These actions were in accordance with the landlord’s ASB policy obligations to liaise with the Police and use intervention methods and were therefore appropriate.

However, based on evidence seen by this Service, there were occasions when the landlord did not act in accordance with its ASB policy as it:
1. failed to formulate an action plan
2. failed to keep the resident regularly informed of progress albeit there were occasions when it wrote to acknowledge his reports and attempted to manage his expectations on the likelihood of successful enforcement action
3. failed to undertake a risk assessment when the resident reported in December 2019 that he had been threatened, reported in January 2020 that drug users had knocked on his door looking to buy drugs and reported in May 2020 that his wife had been subjected to verbal abuse
4. has not evidenced that it implemented the acceptable behaviour contracts that it discussed in December 2019 (when it subsequently reviewed the case in June 2021 and prepared a draft witness statement, it was unable to show that these contracts had been signed off or followed up on).

These aspects of the landlord’s handling of the resident’s ASB reports were therefore inappropriate.

When the landlord considered the matter through its complaints process, it apologised for not acting ‘fully’ on the reports provided to it, acknowledged that it had not always worked as it should have with the Police and awarded £500 compensation.
The landlord’s compensation award was in accordance with the Ombudsman’s Remedies Guidance as an appropriate level of compensation for maladministration ‘over a considerable period of time to act in accordance with policy’. However, it failed to identify and address specific shortcomings in its handling of the ASB such as its unreasonable delay in forming an action plan and failure to conduct risk assessments. This meant that it did not put things right or learn from outcomes. Its actions were therefore not in accordance with the Ombudsman’s Dispute Resolution Principles and it did not offer sufficient redress to the resident.
In summary, it is not disputed that there was service failure in the landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of ASB and the landlord made a proportionate compensation award. However, it failed to identify specific failings and did not demonstrate that it had learned lessons from the case.

Determination

In accordance with paragraph 54 of the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, there was service failure by the landlord in its handling of the resident’s reports of anti-social behaviour (ASB).

Reasons

The landlord did not handle the resident’s ASB reports in line with its policy – it did not keep a record of its actions during 2016-2018 and, since November 2019, it failed to assess the potential risk to the resident and his family and delayed in forming an action plan to address ASB in the block. The remedy it provided through its complaints process was not sufficient given the circumstances of the case.

Orders

The landlord to write to the resident within four weeks of the date of this report to:
1. apologise for the service failures identified in this report
2. offer to conduct a risk assessment to assess potential harm to the household and, depending on the outcome, update him on steps it can take to reduce any risk
3. update him on its current action plan to address any ongoing ASB at the block.
The landlord to ensure it has procedures in place so that it is able to:
1. conduct risk assessments when residents report that they have been subject to verbal abuse or threats related to ASB
2. identify hate crime reports and deal with these in accordance with its ASB policy on hate-related incidents.

The landlord should confirm compliance with this order to this Service within six weeks of the date of this report.

Recommendations

The landlord to consider what steps it can take to expedite a property move for the resident.

The landlord should confirm its intentions in regard to this recommendation to this Service within four weeks of the date of this report.