FOI request (FOIR-382906914)

Mouldy/damp rented homes

Requested Fri 03 December 2021
Responded  Mon 13 December 2021

Please can you provide the following data for an FOI request for your local authority:

The number of complaints relating to mouldy/damp rented homes received in each of the past five calendar years including this year so far.

The number of claims relating to mouldy/damp rented homes received in each of the past five calendar years including this year so far.

The number of these claims which were successful each year.

Total amount paid out on claims relating to mouldy/damp rented homes in each of the past five calendar years including this year so far.

The proportion of these claims received directly from tenants and the proportion which came through a third party or claims firm.

Response

Although local authorities may offer advice and information where requested, these claims are dealt with by tenants directly, often with assistance from independent legal advisers.

Hastings Borough Council does not hold any information in relation to success or otherwise of any claims.

The council does not have any social housing stock, they were all transferred to 1066 Housing Association (now Optivo) as part of a Large Scale Voluntary Transfer (LSVT) in 1996.

Social housing tenants are advised to report disrepair to their housing association (Register Provider) in the first instance and if tenant remains dissatisfied with the response from their housing association then they can complain to the Housing Ombudsman at:

https://www.housing-ombudsman.org.uk/

We do not hold information on the number of disrepair complaints reported to housing associations.

The two main housing associations in Hastings are Optivo and Orbit.