Summary: Mr X complains the Council did not properly deal with his complaint about a defective Heat Pump in its market. We find the Council delayed providing its complaint response which caused Mr X uncertainty and frustration. The Council should apologise to Mr X, make a symbolic payment of £150 for his time and trouble resolving his complaint and undertake a period of monitoring and review if any further remedial works are necessary.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains the Council failed to fix a problem he reported with a Heat Pump system (‘Heat Pump’) in its market (‘the Market’) where he works.
2. Mr X says he therefore had to work in very cold conditions in winter and it was very hot inside during summer. Mr X says he often abandoned work due to the temperature issues which also affects members of the public visiting the building. Mr X says the Council also delayed addressing his complaint which caused him distress and frustration.
3. Mr X wants the Council to urgently fix the Heat Pump.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

4. 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 an injustice, we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
5. 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(i), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

6. I have considered information provided by Mr X and discussed the complaint with him. I also made enquiries with the Council and considered its response and evidence provided.
7. Mr X and the Council had an opportunity to comment on my draft decision. I considered their comments before reaching my final decision.

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What I found

8. The Approved Code of Practice on the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations provided by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) suggests the minimum temperature for working indoors should normally be at least 16 degrees Celsius (degrees) or 13 degrees if much of the work involves rigorous physical effort.
9. The Council has not provided a published policy for the temperatures it aims to maintains in its public buildings. However, the records indicate it was working to achieve an indoor temperature in the Market of 16 degrees as per the HSE guidance (above). I have referred to various recorded temperatures inside the Market provided by Mr X and the Council in this statement. I am mindful that these have not been independently agreed. However, I see no reason to doubt Mr X’s account as evidenced by his continued and diligent pursuit for a resolution to his complaint.
10. The Council said it is responsible for maintenance of all the parts of the main structure of the Market, including the replacement of key plant and equipment as deemed necessary (including heating installations). This is delivered through its Facilities Management Service and their maintenance contractor.

The Council’s complaints policy

11. Stage one- the Council acknowledges complaints within three working days and a full response within 10 working days. If the investigation will take longer, the Council notifies complainants of the new timescale.
12. Stage two- the Council independently reviews the complaint. The Council usually acknowledges the request within three working days and a response is provided within 20 working days. The Council will either support the original investigation findings, provide further clarification, or propose a different solution. Sometimes a complaint may take longer than the designated time, in which case the Council notifies the complainant of the new timescale.

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What happened

13. The records say the Council installed a new Heat Pump in the Market in October 2022. This is an electrically powered system that heats large spaces.
14. Mr X said the temperature inside the Market before the installation was fine. However, from October onwards he found the temperature regularly fell to 10-12 degrees. He said on some occasions, it was as low as six degrees which was very uncomfortable.
15. Mr X said he reported the issue to the Council, and engineers attended in late 2022, but could not fix the problem. He said the Market therefore remained very cold in early 2023.

Mr X’s complaint and the Council’s response

16. In mid- February 2023, Mr X complained to the Council and said:
• Since installation the Heat Pump had only blown out cold air and the temperature in the Market had never reached above 13 degrees.
• Multiple engineers had attended but failed to fix the problem.
• Many of the heat curtains, which prevent heat loss did not work in the Market.
17. The records show the Council promptly acknowledged Mr X’s complaint and advised he would receive a final response by 2 March. However, the records do not show the Council providing a stage one response by this date.
18. On 8 March, Mr X emailed the Council for an update. He again informed the Council the temperature in the Market remained very low.
19. In mid-March the Council responded to Mr X’s email and apologised for the delayed stage one response. It said it would continue to investigate the problem and update him in due course.
20. The records show the Council conducted a site visit on 17 March and noted:
• The indoor temperature was16 degrees on this occasion, compared to 11 degrees two days earlier.
• The HSE guidance was to achieve a working temperature of 16 degrees.
• Two of the three overhead heaters at the entrance to the Market were not operational. And there were no overhead heaters at the Market’s rear entrances.
• The Council would consider a remote system to monitor the temperature and installation of ceiling fans to circulate warm air to improve comfort.
21. The records show, in late March the Council issued a general market update, it:
• Acknowledged there had been issues with heating for several months and apologised for any inconvenience caused.
• Confirmed it was investigating the causes and how it could be resolved.
• Said Market managers would monitor the Heat Pump throughout the day and take corrective action if necessary.
• Advised heat curtains would be kept on in cold weather and thermometers installed to check temperatures. And if cold conditions continued temporary heating fans would be installed where possible.
22. The available evidence does not show if the Council completed the actions set out at paragraphs 20 and 21 (above). In June Mr X again wrote to the Council to say it was now very hot in the Market and escalated his complaint.
23. In its late June, final response the Council said:
• The Heat Pump was working fine, and it had confirmed this during the winter months.
• The Heat Pump was turned off during summer. The hot air was due to the summer weather conditions.
• It would install a remote management system to monitor the Heat Pump temperature before it was restarted later in the year.
24. Unhappy with the Council’s response, Mr X approached the Ombudsman in June 2023.

The Council’s response to our enquiries

25. The Council confirmed it undertook continuous monitoring of the Heat Pump for 12 months when it described the system as being defective. It has not provided any supporting evidence of its monitoring activity.
26. The Council explained there were instances when the Heat Pump failed, and the Market failed to reach 16 degrees. However, it says once the system was fixed it maintained the correct temperature. It has not provided any supporting evidence of how it confirmed this position.
27. The Council accepted its complaint response to Mr X was three months late. It said this was due to its internal procedures for chasing an update had failed on this occasion.
28. Since October 2023, Mr X has sent the Ombudsman further updates to say the temperature in the Market remains very low. More recently he reported the temperature falling to six degrees on some occasions and remaining at 12 degrees on most days. Mr X said the Council has sent engineers in recent months due to on-going problems with the Heat Pump.

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Analysis

29. Mr X reported the Market’s temperature issues to the Council in late 2022. The evidence indicates engineers then attended on several occasions over the winter period. This was in line with the Council’s repair and maintenance duties as set out at paragraph 10 (above). I do not find fault with the Council’s response at this stage.
30. However, Mr X did not accept the engineers had fixed the problem as he noted the Market remained very cold in early 2023. In mid-February, Mr X therefore complained to the Council. The Council promptly acknowledged Mr X’s complaint and agreed to provide a response by 2 March. However, the Council did not meet this deadline or provide a further update to Mr X about when it would complete its investigation. Mr X therefore had to escalate his complaint.
31. The Council provided its final response in June and accepts it was three months late. In my view, the Council’s complaint response also did not provide a clear explanation of what if any actions it had taken to resolve Mr X’s complaint. I note the Council’s reasons for the delay, but it not consistent with its complaints policy (paragraphs 11 and 12) and is fault. This caused Mr X avoidable uncertainty and frustration about how his complaint had been managed. This is injustice.
32. The records show the Council conducted a site visit in mid-March and noted the temperature had previously fallen below the HSE guidance (paragraph 8). It also discovered technical issues with its heating installations (paragraphs 20 and 21) and ways to improve the situation. It later accepted the Heat Pump had been defective and set out further remedial actions (paragraph 21). This included installing a remote temperature management system, period of monitoring and additional measures to alleviate the temperature irregularities. The evidence seen does not show the Council completed its intended corrective actions or how it monitored the Heat Pump to ensure the issue had been fully resolved. This is fault which meant Mr X continued to experience avoidable cold temperature conditions, distress, and frustration. This is injustice.

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Agreed action

33. Within one month of my final decision date, the Council should:
• Write to Mr X and apologise for its delay in providing its complaints response and any avoidable uncertainty and frustration caused to him.
• Make a symbolic payment of £150 to Mr X for his time and trouble in trying to resolve his complaint.
• Check the Heat Pump and confirm it is working correctly and undertake any necessary remedial works if it is found to be defective.
• Monitor the temperature in the Market for a period of six weeks to confirm it meets the HSE guidance.
• Review if any further immediate action is required to improve the Market’s temperature including the maintenance of the air curtains, installation of thermometers, temporary heating fans and its remote temperature management system.
34. The Council should provide us with evidence it has complied with the above actions.

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Final decision

35. I find fault which caused injustice to Mr X. I have made recommendations to address the injustice which the Council has agreed.
36. I have completed my investigation.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman