The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: A homeowner complained about the Council’s failure to reimburse the costs he incurred for repairs work after a leak from a neighbouring Council property damaged his home. He also complained about its delay in resolving the leak problem. But we cannot investigate these matters because the law prevents us from considering complaints about how councils manage their social housing properties.
The complaint
The complainant, who I shall call Mr B, complained that the Council had unreasonably refused to compensate him for the cost of emergency repairs he paid for. This was after a water leak from one of its flats caused damage to the electrical system in his property and to some of his possessions. Mr B said the leak was due to the tenant’s misuse of the bathroom. Mr B also complained about the excessive time the Council has taken to resolve the leak issue in the flat, which has added to the stress and inconvenience he has suffered.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate. In particular we cannot investigate complaints about the provision or management of social housing by a council acting as a registered social housing provider. [Local Government Act 1974, Schedule 5.5 (as amended)]
How I considered this complaint
I considered the information Mr B provided with his complaint. I also took account of the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
We cannot pursue Mr B’s complaint as we no longer have power to investigate complaints about councils when they are carrying out their functions as landlords of their housing properties. This follows a change in the law in 2013 which transferred authority for dealing with most complaints about the management of council housing to the Housing Ombudsman Service.
Mr B’s complaints concern the actions of a Council tenant and defects in their accommodation, and the way the Council’s Tenancy Services department has responded to these matters. The conduct of tenancies and the carrying out of repairs to tenanted properties are both responsibilities of the Council in its housing management capacity. Therefore, as Mr B’s complaints relate to the Council actions as a landlord, the legal restriction on us investigating complaints about councils’ management of their social housing applies in his case.
Final decision
We cannot investigate Mr B's complaint about the Council’s failure to reimburse the costs he incurred after a leak from one of its housing properties damaged his home, and its unreasonable delay in fixing the leak problem. This is because we are prevented by law from pursuing complaints about councils when they are acting in their role as social housing landlords.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman