County Durham Landlord told 'it must improve', after annual evaluation by the Housing Ombudsman....

County Durham Landlord 'Believe Housing Ltd' performed poorly against other housing providers across Teesside & County Durham, with the 15,000 home landlord told to improve.

5th November 2024

A County Durham housing providers been told it must improve following the publication of an annual performance report issued by the Housing Ombudsman Service.

County Durham Based Landlord 'Believe Housing', with its head offices based in Seaham was given a poor performance review by the Housing Ombudsman Service (HOS), after the report found the ombudsman had made eight maladministration findings in investigations into the housing provider, with a further eight recommendations being made to the landlord in order to improve, mainly into its complaints handling & its attitudes towards vulnerable tenants.

In addition to the eight maladministration findings from complaints about the County Durham Landlord put before the Ombudsman, its claimed in the space of just a year, Believe Housing had been ordered to pay out nearly three thousand pounds in compensation to tenants where the landlords service had fallen way below the standards expected, with complaints relating to mold, anti-social behaviour & general poor complaints handling all listed as the landlords weak points.

 

Looking at the picture nationally Richard Blakeway, Representing the Housing Ombudsman, said:

“These figures are another stark reminder of the scale of the housing emergency and the urgent need for landlords to improve essential services and some living conditions.

“Both our complaint review and satisfaction surveys show that social housing residents deserve better.

“Every day social landlords do vital work and resolve requests successfully. But where things go wrong the causes are consistent: failing to meet statutory requirements or its own policies and procedures, including failing to recognise hazards, protracted repairs, and overlooking disabilities and health needs. These failings are compounded by poor communication, complaint handling and record keeping.

“Behind every statistic is a resident’s life that has been disrupted by landlord inaction or ineffectiveness. Our cases show this leads to children missing school, reports of declining health or people forced to sleep on sofas or floors.

“This could be avoided with more investment into existing homes, improved systems and technology and stronger service management. Without tackling the root causes of complaints, trust in landlords will be eroded, with communities and the economy adversely impacted.

“Resolving some of these fundamentals can be the catalyst for a better future where landlords prevent complaints coming to us and deliver better outcomes for residents.

“Until then this review also shows the scale of our intervention. We are making more remedies and, using our wider orders powers, these are becoming more far reaching to put things right for other residents impacted and prevent complaints.

“Early next year we will also publish a Spotlight report on disrepair, which is the main driver of complaints, to support landlords to learn from these cases.

“The incoming Decent Homes Standard will set minimum conditions of social homes for the next generation. This important and vital programme risks being an unfulfilled promise if landlords do not grip the issues exposed by this review. Social landlords also need to ensure they can focus on improving and investing in existing homes when wanting to help build the thousands of more homes needed.”