Mr B complained about the way the housing association Trivallis (“the Association”) dealt with reports of repairs at his home. The Ombudsman investigated whether the Association responded appropriately to reports of damp and mould and a broken boiler.
The investigation found that the Association did not respond appropriately to reports of damp and mould in Mr B’s home. When Mr B reported issues to the Association, they were not dealt with in line with relevant policies and guidance. As a result Mr B lived in a home with outstanding repairs for nearly 7 years.
The Association did not respond appropriately to reports of a broken boiler in Mr B’s home and did not follow its repairs policy. During the period boiler repairs were awaited, Mr B was not able to heat his home to a comfortable level. A repair was eventually carried out after Mr B’s wife made a complaint to the Association.
Whilst not an issue specifically identified for investigation, the Ombudsman also had concerns about the way the Association responded to Mr B’s complaint. The Association failed to maintain accurate records which led to fundamental errors in the way Mr B’s complaint was addressed.
The Ombudsman was concerned that the failings identified in this case may be systemic. The Association did not provide an explanation as to why, despite Mr B making many repair requests, problems were not resolved sooner. The failings identified during this investigation are also significant. Association employees did not attend Mr B’s home to carry out an inspection of his roof; photographs from a previous visit were used to support the incorrect assertion that they did. The Association also failed to provide records requested as part of this investigation.
The Ombudsman made a number of recommendations which the Association accepted:
Within 1 month
a) Provide evidence that the Association has acknowledged and apologised to Mr B for the failings identified in this report.
b) Provide evidence that the Association has offered Mr B a financial redress payment of £625 for the distress caused to him by the failings identified in this report. This is in addition to the £375 already provided, making total financial redress of £1,000. I have not considered redress for costs incurred by Mr B as this has previously been addressed by the Association.
Within 3 months
c) Ensure that all relevant staff receive training to identify and respond appropriately to vulnerable customers.
d) Provide evidence that the Association has developed and implemented a damp and mould procedure.
e) Ensure that a scenario based training programme is delivered to all relevant staff to ensure that lessons are learned from this case and staff take account of individual circumstances where prioritising repairs.
f) Provide evidence that the Association has developed and implemented a process to ensure that repeated repair requests are identified, recorded and escalated for further investigation.
g) Review its records management process and make necessary changes to ensure it complies with the principles of “Good Records Management Matters”.
h) Share a copy of this report with the Association’s Assurance Committee which should oversee and monitor the Association’s compliance with these recommendations