The Housing Ombudsman has published the first quarterly report
setting out how the Ombudsman has used new powers to issue 10
Complaint Handling Failure Orders between January and March 2021 -
mostly due to unreasonable delays by landlords in accepting or
progressing residents' complaints through their complaints
process.
The report, which names 5 Local authority landlords and 5
housing associations/registered providers, shows that 8 out of the
10 orders were complied with, but in two cases the landlords did
not comply, and both those complaints were escalated to formal
investigation by the Ombudsman. The report sets out case studies
illustrating how the orders work and their impact, including some
resident feedback.
The 10 landlords named in the report are:
- Central & Cecil Housing Trust
- Hyde Southbank Homes Ltd
- London & Quadrant Housing Trust
- Inquilab Housing Association Ltd
- Orbit Group Ltd
- Newham Council
- South Kesteven District Council
- Ealing Council
- Lambeth Council
- Enfield Council
The purpose of Complaint Handling Failure Orders is to ensure
that a landlord's complaint handling process is accessible,
consistent and enables the timely progression of complaints for
residents. The new power formed part of the revisions to the Housing Ombudsman
Scheme that came into force last year which also
included the Ombudsman's Complaint Handling Code setting out clear
expectations for landlords on handling housing complaints.
Richard Blakeway, Housing Ombudsman, said:
"It is crucial residents are listened to when they make a
complaint and that landlords' procedures are focused on timely
resolution, not putting residents off complaining or a series of
stages in order to reach the Ombudsman.
"Our Code sets clear expectations for efficient, effective
and accessible complaint handling and we issue orders where
landlords fail to meet them. These orders can now be made
whilst the complaint is still within the landlord's
procedure. In most cases where we issued handling failure
orders, the landlord responded well and sought to resolve the
complaint, making clear the benefit of these orders to earlier
resolution.
"However, it is disappointing that in two cases landlords
did not comply, and we have taken these complaints into formal
investigation. We received some really positive feedback from
residents about the difference these orders have made to their
experience of the complaints process, and I hope this report will
promote transparency, accountability and learning across the social
housing sector."
John Bibby, ARCH Chief Executive comments:
"The fact that the Housing Ombudsman has issued 10 Complaint
Handling Failure Notices so early into the operation of the new
complaint handling code is of concern and underscores the need for
all landlords to ensure that tenants and residents' complaints are
dealt with promptly and that landlords put in place appropriate
systems to monitor the progress of complaints to ensure tenants and
residents receive timely responses from their landlord."
A copy of the full report is available to download from the
Housing Ombudsman website.