Housing compensation

We use our Compensation Policy when a customer has been inconvenienced by a failure in our Housing Service or when the complaint require a compensation to be paid.

Compensation Policy (Word Document, 0.1 Mb)

The Housing Ombudsman has recently launched a Complaint Handling Code to support effective complaint handling and prevention alongside learning and development. A self-assessment undertaken in November 2020 has confirmed the Housing Service at North West Leicestershire District Council is fully compliant with the current requirements set out in this code.  The completed document is available to view below:

Ombudsman Compensation (Word Document, 0.1 Mb)

1. Can I Claim? 

It applies to all current and former tenants, leaseholders, and customers of North West Leicestershire District Council’s Housing Service. In most instances, compensation is considered to be a just remedy for inconvenience or distress, and these claims will be considered on a case-by-case basis

However, in the majority of cases, compensation payments will be made where:
• There has been a failure in standards of service delivery
• NWLDC has failed in its repairing obligations as a landlord, or has failed to meet a repairs deadline as specified below
• There has been loss or damage to persons, or personal property where liability is not in dispute. Where liability is in dispute, this should be referred for consideration under the council’s insurance scheme.

However, there may be instances where compensation can be considered where a customer complaint has been addressed through the full complaints procedure. NWLDC will not pay compensation if we are unable to achieve our standards due to circumstances beyond our control, for example:

• Exceptional weather conditions
• Accidental damage where NWLDC has not done something wrong – e.g. burst pipes, blocked drains or other events which could not have been predicted and/or were not reported
• Any alteration to the property or its services carried out by the tenant without written permission or to an adequate standard
• Loss or damage caused by tenants, visitors or adjacent occupiers
• The tenant prevents or delays NWLDC delivering a service, or contributes in some other way to the service failure
• The loss of water where a tenant is on a water meter and has not taken adequate steps to mitigate the loss. (Reasonable effort is expected from the tenant to minimise loss of water by making the council aware about the issue, locating the main isolation valve and closing it, and contacting the supplier if necessary).

For cover and peace of mind with these types of events, we strongly recommend you sign up for the tenant’s contents insurance administered by the council. Please contact 01530 454798 for details.

2.What payment can I expect?

Failure to keep an appointment or to re-arrange an appointment
A payment of £10 will be made by request where an officer of the council or one of its contractors has failed to keep a pre-arranged appointment without a minimum of 24 hours’ notice. 

Failure in landlord’s repairing obligations or failure to meet a repairs deadline
Where a contractor has made reasonable efforts to gain access without success, or has carried out a temporary repair, then compensation will not be payable. In addition, if the delay in completing the work can be shown to be the tenants’ responsibility, compensation will not be paid.

A payment will be made by request where:

• A reported repair is not completed within its specified timescale ( £10 per job number)
  o Emergency/Out of Hours repairs – 24 hours from first reported
  o Urgent repairs – 7 calendar days from first reported
  o Routine repairs – 28 calendar days from first reported
  o Batched repairs – 90 calendar days from first reported

• A tenant has been required to use a dehumidifier for at least 7 calendar days, at £10 per 7 calendar day period

• A tenant has suffered from a loss of heating or hot water (£2 per calendar day for the loss of either facility (a maximum of £4 a day) from the day it was reported to the council until the day the repair was completed.

Loss or damage to persons, or personal property

Where liability for damage to persons or personal property is not in dispute, and where damage has occurred to tenants’ possessions, either as a result of a failure to deal with a reported repair, or as a direct result of a rectified issue, we will consider claims up to a maximum of £2,500. Claims in excess of this amount may be referred to NWLDC’s insurance provider. 
In the event of any claim, we would welcome receipts as evidence from the claimant.

Disturbance payments

Where NWLDC wishes to undertake major repairs to a property, and the tenant is required to move out temporarily while the work takes place, a disturbance payment may be made. A disturbance payment is intended to ensure that the tenant is no worse off, and no better off than if they had not been obliged to move. 
For more information about Disturbance Payments please refer to our Housing Decant Policy. A copy of this policy is available on the Council website or can be posted upon request.

Tenant home improvements

Tenants may make alterations to their home providing written permission has been given by NWLDC prior to works taking place. It is the tenant’s responsibility to obtain any other necessary consents (i.e. planning permission), and to ensure that the work is completed to a high standard and in accordance with all necessary regulations (e.g. Building Control, Gas Safe, FENSA etc). NWLDC reserves the right to refuse the works prior to being undertaken, and to inspect the works during, and
afterwards. 

Under “The Secure Tenants of Local Authorities (Compensation for Improvements) Regulations 1994”, compensation can be paid, upon request, at a depreciated value of the original cost which is decided by both the notional life of the improvement and the age of the improvement at the time of the tenants request.
For more information about compensation for home improvements, please refer to our Housing Repairs Handbook . A copy of the handbook is available on the council website or can be posted upon request.

Time and trouble

We consider the extent of inconvenience a complainant has experienced to get a resolution to their problem. The most amount of compensation that can be offered for time and trouble is £250. In assessing whether time and trouble compensation is payable relevant factors could include: 

• The length of time, including response times by the council, taken to deal with the problem and the complaint itself

• The time and effort required from the complainant

• Any specific difficulty experienced by the complainant in dealing with the council

• The degree of inadequacy of the council’s response to letters, phone calls or visits

• Whether there has been an element of wilful action on the part of the council that has resulted in poor management of the complaint

• The level of minor unquantifiable expenditure incurred by the complainant such as significant post, telephone or travel costs, whether the complainant was acting on behalf of others in pursuing the complaint, as a representative of a tenants’ group for example

3.Award and offsetting of payments

Following authorisation, we will write to the claimant and inform them of the total award amount. The letter will contain a detailed list of all the factors considered and the costs awarded for each factor. It will also explain that compensation will usually be offset against any arrears the claimant owes to the council unless there are exceptional circumstances. This will be in the order of housing rent, council tax and other debts owed to the Council.
Attached with the letter will be a confirmation form that the claimant must sign and return to the Council to confirm agreement of the final award. The council’s preferred payment method is by bank transfer and payment will be made within two weeks upon receipt of the award agreement signed by the claimant.

4.Disputes and appeals

Where a tenant is not satisfied with a decision made under this policy, they may appeal to the Head
of Housing Services.

To make a claim for compensation please fill in the this document 2018 compensation form (Word Document, 0.1 Mb) and send it to:

Income & Systems Team - Housing Compensation
North West Leicestershire District Council
Council Offices
Whitwick Road
Coalville
Leicestershire LE67 3FJ. 

For more information contact us on

Email: Housing@nwleicestershire.gov.uk

Call us on: 01530-454628