The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: Mrs B complained that the Council did not take sufficient action to ensure her landlord carried out repairs to her property to resolve damp issues. We found no fault with the Council’s actions.
The complaint
Mrs B complained that Calderdale Metropolitan Borough Council (the Council) failed to take sufficient action to ensure her landlord undertook the necessary repairs to the property to resolve the damp issues. Mrs B was caused distress and time and trouble in trying to resolve the problem
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word fault to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. If there has been fault which has caused an injustice, we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended) If we are satisfied with an organisation’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
I have considered the complaint and the documents provided by the complainant, made enquiries of the Council and considered the comments and documents the Council provided. Mrs B and the Council had an opportunity to comment on my draft decision. I considered any comments received before making a final decision.
What I found
Private housing disrepair Councils have powers under the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (introduced by the Housing Act 2004, Part 1) to take enforcement action against private landlords where a council has identified a hazard which puts the health and safety of the tenant at risk. Category one hazards are serious and require councils to take appropriate action. Category two hazards are less serious.
Government guidance advises councils to try to deal with problems informally at first. If that approach is unsuccessful, they could issue a notice requiring the landlord to carry out improvements to the property. For less serious problems a council can issue a hazard awareness notice to draw attention to the issues.
What happened Mrs B complained to the Council in January 2022 about damp in her rented property.
The Council inspected the property on 22 February 2022 and identified some category two hazards: damp in various places and draughty windows.
In March 2022 the Council sent a report to the landlord and recommended the landlord should: Employ a company that specialises in damp problems of this nature to undertake a survey of the dwelling to determine the exact causes of any penetrating dampness and carry out all recommendations to ensure that the property has healthy living conditions.
On 23 March 2022 a damp specialist inspected the property. They said the building needed insulating and condensation was a problem. In early April 2022 a roofing specialist checked the property and concluded the problem was with the roof. Mrs B disagreed with this view and complained again to the Council.
The Council contacted the landlord who said one company had recommended £12,000 of work which was not viable. Another company checked the roof and identified a possible problem with roof and the flashings round the chimney stacks and guttering. But their main concern was tenant behaviour: a lack of heating and failure to open the windows. The landlord said they needed dry weather before work to roof could commence.
In April 2022 the landlord sent the roofing report to the Council. The company had done a desktop survey using photographs. The landlord said they would carry out further investigations when the weather was drier in May/June.
In May 2022 Mrs B complained to the Council that no one had visited the property in April 2022 to do the report. The Council responded saying it was not taking the matter any further, but it would chase up the reports from the landlord. Mrs B escalated her complaint through her MP and then complained to us.
On 19 May 2022 the Council told Mrs B that the landlord was appointing a contractor. Mrs B said she would deny access until she received a copy of the report from the company that actually visited the property. The landlord provided proof to the Council that they had paid a contractor to attend the property but Mrs B denied access.
Mrs B left the property in June 2022.
In July 2022 the contractor provided a further report after surveying the property. It did not recommend any further specialist work but identified some repairs to the roof, mould treatment and advice to future tenants to prevent condensation.
Analysis The Council responded promptly to Mrs B’s complaint and inspected the property. It did not identify any class one hazards and so it did not need to recommend immediate action. In respect of the category two hazards, it liaised with the landlord to ensure action was taken within a reasonable period of time.
The Council has taken action in accordance with the guidance and has resolved the situation by informal means. It was not unreasonable for the landlord to obtain more than one opinion and quotation for the repairs. The process was delayed by Mrs B’s refusal to provide access.
I have not identified any fault in the actions of the Council.
Final decision
I have completed my investigation into this complaint as I am unable to find fault causing injustice in the actions of the Council towards Mrs B.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman