Decision Report 201205210

Summary

Ms C, who was a homeless applicant, was offered and accepted the tenancy of a council house. She subsequently reported a number of defects and made a number of requests for repairs, most significantly with respect to smells in her wet shower room, the operation of the central heating, a leaking roof and poor drainage in the rear garden, before applying for a transfer some two months after moving in. Ms C complained that the council unreasonably refused to carry out remedial work to bring her home up to the required housing standards.

Our investigation found that Ms C had accepted the house on the basis that it met her personal requirements, and the council explained that when it was allocated to her they considered it to have been of a lettable standard. After she moved in, Ms C had made a number of requests for repairs, and other repairs were requisitioned by council officers. We did not uphold her complaints, as our investigation found no evidence that the house did not meet the requisite letting standard when allocated to Ms C or that remedial work was required to bring it up to standard.