The Housing Ombudsman has published a severe maladministration finding for London Borough of Ealing, following a resident experiencing what the Ombudsman described as lengthy and frustrating delays in getting a response to her complaint. The resident, the leaseholder of a flat, had been waiting for more than six years for a leaking roof to be repaired, causing her health to be impacted.
The Ombudsman found severe maladministration for the landlord’s handling of the complaint and maladministration for its response to the resident’s reports about water coming into her flat and the repairs carried out. The council was ordered to pay £3,600 in compensation to the resident for unreasonable delay in completing major works to the building, for the standard of temporary works to resolve the issues and for its complaint handling.