All Case Studies

Heat loss (July 2025)

Summary

Mr E’s living room is raised off the ground and there is an external walkway underneath it.

Mr E reported heat loss in December 2022, which we inspected and found that his heating system was working correctly.

Mr E notified us in November 2023 that he was still experiencing heat loss, which had led to his son being unwell. He also said that he had not heard anything from us since December the previous year.

In our stage 1 response (December 2023) we did not uphold the complaint. We detailed the outcomes of the December 2023 inspection and that no further action was needed. We, however, agreed to conduct another heating assessment.

The surveys found no issues, however we said we would insulate the walkway, which was completed in August 2024.

Mr E raised a stage 2 complaint in November 2024 stating that he was still experiencing heating loss from his property. In our response in January 2025, we partially upheld the complaint and said that the property was adequately heated and habitable. Our Head of Repairs carried out a further visit and found the property to be warm, despite it being 5 degrees outside. We did however offer Mr E £250 compensation in relation to our complaint handling.

The Ombudsman found that:

1. we were mindful of our obligations as we had acted promptly to inspect the efficiency of the heating system and provided details of our findings
2. when further reports were made, we had logged it as a stage 1 and offered a further inspection
3. a further survey was arranged, which demonstrated proactive and solution focussed response
4. the surveyor found no issues but recommended insulating the walkway. This work was delayed for 4 months
5. once the insultation had been completed, there was no evidence of us maintaining contact with the resident or update on reason for delay
6. the insulation works would not fall under a repairs policy, but rather classed as an ‘improvement’ which should have been completed within 28 days
7. in November 2024, we carried out a welfare check following further reports of heat loss
8. our award of £250 compensation for the delays in complaints handling was reasonable

Outcomes

• maladministration in our handling of the resident’s reports of heat loss
• reasonable redress in relation to our complaint handling

Orders and recommendations

• write a letter of apology to the resident
• pay £150 in compensation
• pay compensation of £250 previously offered concerning our complaint handling