Summary: Miss X complained the Council failed to act on her reports about damp, mould, electrical issues and a rat infestation at the home she rented. Miss X said the matter was outstanding since January 2024, caused distress, and affected her son’s health. We found the Council was at fault for significant delay investigating Miss X’s concerns. This caused distress and uncertainty which the Council agreed to provide a symbolic financial payment for.

The complaint

1. Miss X complained the Council failed to act on her reports about damp, mould, electrical issues and a rat infestation at the home she rented.
2. Miss X said the matter was outstanding since January 2024 and affected her son’s health. It has caused Miss X distress, and she incurred expenses trying to mitigate the disrepair.
3. Miss X complained to the landlord (who is a registered social landlord) and then tried to escalate her complaint to the Council when her landlord did not correct matters.
4. Miss X said the Council’s failure to act quickly on her complaint meant her family endured the conditions longer.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

5. 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 significant injustice, or that could cause injustice to others in the future we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
6. 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(1), as amended)

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What I have and have not investigated

7. We cannot investigate issues about disrepair in a registered social landlord property, as those matters are for the Housing Ombudsman.
8. I investigated the Council’s response to Miss X’s reports of disrepair, and whether it properly considered the matter and the use of its available powers.

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How I considered this complaint

9. As part of the investigation, I considered the complaint and the information Miss X provided.
10. I made written enquiries of the Council and considered its response along with relevant law and guidance.
11. Miss X and the Council had an opportunity to comment on my draft decision. I considered any comments received before making a final decision.

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What I found

Disrepair

12. Housing associations must fix damp and mould where it is caused by a problem with the home, such as a leaking pipe, roof, or crack in the wall.
13. Tenants can complain if their landlord is not properly dealing with the problem. Tenants can then take their complaint further to the Housing Ombudsman.

Pests

14. Tenants can contact a council’s environmental health department about pests and infestations in their home. Councils may have a duty to act to control the pests.
15. The Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) is a framework used by councils to assess housing conditions. There is a list of 29 prescribed hazards, including pests.
16. Hazards are divided into category 1 and 2. Category 1 hazards are the most serious and councils must take action.

What happened

17. I have summarised below some key events leading to Miss X’s complaint. This is not intended to be a detailed account of what took place.
18. Miss X rented a home from a housing association which was a registered social landlord.
19. Miss X emailed her local MP in October 2023 about a rat infestation, mould, leaks, overflowing drains, and electricity shortage at her rental home. She also said she lost earnings staying at home for contractors that did not turn up.
20. The MP’s office sent Miss X’s email on to the Council. The Council said it would pass the email on to the relevant department.
21. Miss X contacted the Council in January 2024 to complain about her landlord’s failure to resolve the disrepair and rat infestation.
22. The Council’s Environmental Health team emailed Miss X on 11 January 2024. It said it dealt with privately rented disrepair cases. It asked for evidence of correspondence with Miss X’s landlord and images of the damp and mould.
23. Miss X sent the Council the requested information on 23 January 2024.
24. The Council acknowledged receipt. It said it had enough information and had logged the case. It said an officer from the housing disrepair team would investigate.
25. Miss X complained to the Council on 1 December 2024. She said it was a year since she raised the issues with the Council, but they remained unresolved. She said the damp and mould caused her child respiratory issues, and the family suffered stress and anxiety over the unsafe conditions and prolonged lack of action.
26. The Council said:
• Its environmental health and housing disrepair department received Miss X’s complaint in October 2023. The Council recorded it on its system in January 2024.
• It gave a response on the rat infestation in October 2023, confirming it was not the Council’s responsibility, as it was a privately owned property.
• Its housing disrepair department asked Miss X for more information in January 2024. She provided this information, but the officer handling the case made no further contact and did not investigate. The officer reviewed the case in June 2024 and reallocated it to a colleague. However, the Council did not action this any further.
27. The Council said this was unacceptable and apologised for the inconvenience.
28. Miss X asked to escalate her complaint to stage two. She said the Council’s apology was not enough to address the severe impact its inaction had on her family. She reported the issues to the Council over a year ago and they remain unresolved. She said the Council’s failure to investigate and intervene contributed to the significant harm her family suffered.
29. The Council’s final complaint response said it responded to the first complaint from January 2024 promptly, asking Miss X for more information. However, after this its actions fell short of expected performance. It recognised Miss X sent further information, and the assigned officer took no action. It said this was unacceptable and apologised.
30. The Council said it had upgraded the database it used to record and track service enquiries so it will quickly spot where cases have been inactive. It was therefore confident the issue would not reoccur in future. It also gave staff in the team refresher customer service training.
31. It offered Miss X £100 as a gesture of good will in recognition of the sub-standard service it provided.

My investigation

32. Miss X told me leaks and damp in her rental home started in around 2020 and got worse.
33. Miss X reported damp, mould, and a rat infestation to her landlord. They sent out pest control and people to treat damp, but the issues kept coming back, and her landlord kept cancelling appointments. She spent some time in temporary accommodation arranged by her landlord in this time. She was prescribed anti-depressants over the issue in 2024, and her son was diagnosed with eczema.
34. Miss X raised a formal complaint with her landlord. They said they would do all repairs, but Miss X had to make another complaint when they did not resolve the issues.
35. Miss X said her landlord did not signpost her to the Housing Ombudsman. That was why she complained to the Council.
36. Miss X contacted the Council by email in 2024. She also telephoned the Council about the rat infestation. However, she never heard anything further. Miss X understood her landlord was a registered social landlord, but she wanted the Council to investigate as an environmental health issue.
37. Miss X confirmed her landlord moved her to a new home in February 2025.
38. The Council told me it should first have been aware of the issue in October 2023. However, it did not open the complaint until 10 January 2024. It then requested more information. Following this, its actions fell short of what would be expected.
39. The case was allocated to an officer on 23 January, and there was correspondence between the private sector housing team (PSH) and the landlord. On 30 May, the Council was made aware Miss X had moved to new accommodation. By the time the PSH team contacted Miss X she had already moved. It said a referral to the Housing Ombudsman for the previous property would have been too late. However, the Council said it treats registered social landlords as private landlords, and has never made a referral to the Housing Ombudsman, as it is often able to resolve issues between the tenant and landlord.
40. The Council said it did not investigate the complaint as fully as it would expect and so did not carry out a HHSRS inspection. It would have considered this if it had investigated fully.
41. The Council said it has made changes to its system to ensure this does not happen in future. It referred to an upgrade to its database used to record and track service enquiries. This will enable it to spot where cases have been inactive for more than a few weeks, and a team leader will act. It also said it gave staff in the team refresher customer service training.

Analysis

42. Miss X had complained to her landlord about the disrepair and rodents. When the landlord did not resolve matters satisfactorily, Miss X could have complained to the Housing Ombudsman. She told me she was unaware of this at the time. Instead, she raised the issue with the Council, hoping its environmental health service could act against her landlord. Unfortunately, despite logging the issue and gaining further information from Miss X, the Council did not contact the landlord, did not investigate, and did not progress matters. By the time Miss X complained to the Council, almost a year had passed without the Council progressing the case. That was clearly fault and the Council has recognised this.
43. The Council said it told Miss X the rodent infestation was not something it could investigate, and to raise it with her landlord. The Council did not appear to consider its available powers, such as inspecting the home for hazards under the HHSRS. That was also fault.
44. Despite upholding Miss X’s complaint in December 2024, I did not see evidence the Council contacted Miss X again until May 2025. By this time her landlord had moved her into a new home. The Council had therefore missed the opportunity to address any of the disrepair issues with the landlord or carry out an inspection.
45. However, there was not enough evidence for me to say the landlord would have resolved matters to Miss X’s satisfaction if the Council had investigated sooner. Nor was there evidence for me to say the Council would have found serious hazards under the HHSRS if it had inspected the property.
46. I found Miss X’s injustice resulting from the Council’s fault was distress, at the significant delays, lack of action and advice. And uncertainty about whether the situation could have been improved or resolved sooner.
47. Miss X’s landlord is a housing association and a registered social landlord. While issues with registered social landlords may come under the Council’s private rental sector team, it would be good practice for the Council to advise tenants of their right to complain to the Housing Ombudsman at the end of the landlord’s complaint process. If Miss X had known this from the outset she could have pursued the complaint with the Housing Ombudsman rather than waiting for the Council.
48. The Council made improvements to ensure delays are highlighted going forward. It will also remind relevant staff of the Council’s available powers to inspect rental properties in cases of disrepair and pests.

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Agreed Action

49. Within four weeks of my final decision, the Council will:
• Apologise to Miss X for the significant delay investigating her concerns, including after upholding her complaint, and for not properly considering its available powers.
• Pay Miss X £400 in recognition of the distress and uncertainty its delays caused over a prolonged period.
• Remind relevant staff of the Council’s available powers to inspect rental properties in cases of disrepair and pests.
50. The Council should provide us with evidence it has complied with the above actions.

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Final Decision

51. I found the Council was at fault for significant delay investigating Miss X’s concerns. This caused distress and uncertainty.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman