Decision Report 201302349

Summary

Ms C complained that the association had failed, over a period of three years, to investigate fully and resolve her complaint about a continuing strong smell of sewage in her home. When Ms C brought the complaint to us, she said that the association had eventually used a camera to inspect the drainage pipework, and had found a burst pipe in the bathroom which had been fixed, and had later replaced a section of piping in the kitchen, which was also found to be cracked. However, Ms C maintained that there was still a smell, and she was unhappy that the association would not agree to her request for her garden to be dug up to investigate further.

Our investigation found that there was evidence that the association had done what they could to resolve the matter, and that their actions and decisions about carrying out work had been reasonable. There was, however, evidence that they had not followed up on a request they made to Scottish Water to inspect the communal public drainage system, to check for any further blockages, and so we made a recommendation about this.

Recommendations

We recommended that the association:

• follow up with Scottish Water the action they have taken in relation to their email request, and let Ms C know the outcome.