Legal News

Housing Ombudsman Service reports severe maladministration for Sovereign

Published on: 05 April 2023
Published by LNB News

LNB News 05/04/2023

Document Information

Issue Date: 05 April 2023

Published Date: 05 April 2023

Jurisdiction(s): England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales

Article summary

The Housing Ombudsman Service has reported a severe maladministration finding for Sovereign, after the landlord failed to appropriately deal with a leak in a resident's roof for 21 months, which left the resident's home uninhabitable. The Ombudsman also found maladministration for the landlord’s complaint handling after it failed to properly engage with the complaint at stage one and did not escalate the matter to stage two until the Ombudsman intervened, and allowed the resident to contact them 37 times by phone during the 21 months before a proper repair was initiated. The Ombudsman has ordered Sovereign to pay the resident £5,000 in compensation for the failings and distress caused, as well as to review its treatment of repairs for vulnerable residents, its compensation where there is distress caused and its complaint handling. The Ombudsman has also confirmed that landlords whose corperate structure is that of a charity must still pay compensation, and that ‘goodwill...

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