The Housing Ombudsman has focused on how landlords can handle complaints involving leaseholders in its latest ‘learning from severe maladministration’ report.

The report looks at two main areas the ombudsman says it is seeing severe maladministration involving leaseholders – leaks and hazards. While Awaab’s Law does not apply to leasehold, the ombudsman says there are important lessons landlords should still apply.

According to the ombudsman failings led to one leaseholder losing seven buyers for her home, while another was left dealing with a leak for 14 months while the landlord decided if it was responsible. Other issues include suffering damp and mould for two years and one resident having to replace her own boiler to resolve a hazard.

The impacts of service failures meant one leaseholder missed time with a dying relative and another was unable to decorate the nursery for their new baby.

The report includes the following social landlords:

  • A2Dominion Group
  • Arun Council
  • Haringey Council
  • Lambeth Council
  • L&Q
  • Origin Housing
  • Peabody
  • Southern Housing
  • Southwark Council

Richard Blakeway, Housing Ombudsman, said: “When things go wrong, an individual leaseholder can be left feeling isolated and exposed. It can appear the system is unresponsive or indifferent to the impact on them.  

“This report shares the stories of 12 leaseholders who experienced that.  

“Their cases are not about service charges but repairs and maintenance which fall within the responsibility of the landlord. Unlike freehold, leasehold home ownership means responsibilities can differ between the parties and our casework shows it is a continuous cause of friction.  

“While the impact is unique to each individual household, the causes are not isolated. They can form part of a repeated pattern where events which could have been prevented had landlords adopted lessons from complaints. This includes service failings familiar across tenures: delays, miscommunication, poor records. But also specific to leaseholders, especially confusion over lease obligations, including handling section 20 consultations.  

“For all the positive experiences many home owners will have, these issues cannot be ignored. 

“With a welcome and major boost to housebuilding planned, home ownership in different forms will continue to be part of social landlords offer. The lessons from these cases provide insights for landlords who are actively looking to renew and improve their relationships with leaseholders.”