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10 social landlords hit with Complaint Failure Orders 13/05/2021 Labelled as Regulation

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.

 

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