Hackney Housing Disrepair Complaints Mould Damp What Council Says

Hackney Council acknowledges it failed tenants on damp and mould repairs, found 1,400 open cases (500+ overdue) in 2024, and now inspects within 5 days while fixing leaks by the next day. The council apologised for maladministration after the Housing Ombudsman investigated 56 cases with 87% maladministration rate on leaks, damp, and mould. Tenants can report online or call 0208 356 3691, with Awaab’s Law requiring emergency repairs within 24 hours from October 2025. Compensation ranges from £7,500 to £9,000 for multi-year disrepair, with Alternative Dispute Resolution settling 309 cases in 3 months versus 12+ months legally.

This comprehensive guide covers everything East London residents need about housing disrepair complaints in Hackney: legal rights, reporting procedures, council responses, compensation calculations, and future reforms under Awaab’s Law.

What Is Housing Disrepair and How Does Mould or Damp Fit Into It?

Housing disrepair is a landlord’s failure to maintain structure, exterior, and essential installations under Section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, including mould and damp caused by leaks or poor ventilation. The Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018 added Section 9A, requiring properties free from hazards like excessive damp that impacts health.

Mould appears as black, green, or white fungal growth on walls, ceilings, or windows, while damp refers to moisture accumulation causing wet patches, peeling paint, or musty smells. Three types of damp exist: rising damp (ground moisture moving up walls), penetrating damp (water entering through cracks/leaks), and condensation damp (moisture from daily activities without ventilation).

Hackney Council manages over 30,000 housing units with 60% of residents living in flats—significantly higher than England’s 17.1% average—creating unique disrepair challenges. The borough has 261,000 residents and the highest social rented housing percentage among inner-London boroughs.

What Rights Do Tenants Have When Their Home Has Mould or Damp?

Tenants have legal rights under Section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 requiring landlords to repair structure, exterior, leaks, damp-proofing, and ventilation within reasonable timeframes. The 2018 Homes Act makes properties unfit if disrepair affects health or safety, giving tenants grounds for legal action.

Four key responsibilities fall on landlords: maintaining structure and exterior (walls, roof, windows), ensuring safe gas/electrical systems, providing sanitation and water supply, and fixing damp/mould caused by structural faults而非tenant behaviour. Rising damp or penetrative damp from structural leakage is always the landlord’s responsibility.

East London tenants can escalate to their local council if landlords fail action, requesting inspections and enforcement notices. If councils don’t resolve issues, tenants pursue court action under pre-action protocols for housing condition cases, which encourage alternative dispute resolution before litigation.

Hackney tenants specifically can report via online portal at hackney.gov.uk/repairs, call 0208 356 3691 for repairs centre, or email [email protected] for private renters.

How Did Hackney Council’s Housing Service Fail Regarding Damp and Mould?

The Housing Ombudsman found Hackney Council had 1,400 open damp and mould cases in August 2024, including 500+ overdue and 600+ severe cases, with 87% maladministration rate on leaks, damp, and mould. The investigation covered 56 cases between October 2023 and June 2024, finding 14 severe maladministration instances—6 relating specifically to leaks, damp, and mould.

Six systemic failures caused these problems: poor record keeping following a 2020 cyber-attack that encrypted key datasets, underestimating urgency and risk of service requests, inadequate work quality, repeat visits for same issues (33% of repairs visits are repeats), missed appointments, and work orders raised or cancelled in error.

The cyber-attack in October 2020 encrypted datasets housing services depended on, leaving staff using spreadsheets, forms, and standalone workarounds through 2024 without fully integrated systems. The landlord admitted some repairs completed may not appear in records at all if raised through the “legal disrepair route”.

One case study showed Miss E suffered flooding and damp for 3 years with 13 months of no internal work completion after final complaint response, receiving £5,647 compensation plus required apology. Another resident with asthma and son suffering asthma received only £7,500 initially (increased to £9,000) despite mould impacting health since 2012.

What Steps Must Tenants Take to Report Damp, Mould, or Disrepair in Hackney?

Tenants must report damp and mould immediately in writing to Hackney Council’s repairs centre at 0208 356 3691 or online at hackney.gov.uk/repairs, providing photos, dates, and clear details with resolution deadlines. Council tenants report online conveniently, while private renters contact the private sector housing team on 020 8356 4866 (Mon-Fri, 9am-4pm) or [email protected].

The reporting process follows four essential steps: first, report disrepair to landlord in writing with clear details and deadlines; second, if landlord fails action, escalate to local council for inspection and enforcement notice; third, if council measures ineffective, pursue legal action through courts; fourth, document all correspondence, photos, and timelines as evidence.

Hackney Council’s repairs policy lists four priority levels with timescales: Immediate (within 2 hours), Emergency (within 24 hours), Urgent (within 5 days), and Normal (within 21 days). For damp and mould specifically, the council now targets inspection within 5 working days and prioritises cases based on severity and tenant health conditions.

All reports of damp and mould will be inspected within five days as the council’s current target. In severe damp and mould cases, the council removes mould immediately to eliminate immediate risk until full remedial work carries out.

How Does Hackney Council Handle Complaints About Unresolved Repairs?

Hackney Council operates a two-stage complaints process: Stage 1 acknowledges within 5 working days and responds within 10 working days; Stage 2 acknowledges escalation within 5 working days and responds within 20 working days. However, actual performance shows Stage 1 averaged 19.9 days in 2023/24 (above 10-day target) and Stage 2 averaged 24.03 days (above 20-day target).

Over 30% of repairs-related complaints now resolve on first day of receipt, with 78% within the 10-day target, representing significant improvement from 32% tenant satisfaction in 2023/24 to 51% in 2024/25. The council established a dedicated complaints handling team in Building Maintenance for resident-focused approach.

If complaints remain unresolved after Stage 2 or after eight weeks without response, tenants escalate to the Housing Ombudsman online via their dedicated portal with evidence of prior reports. The Ombudsman’s Complaint Handling Code became statutory on 1 April 2024, requiring landlords to submit annual self-assessment and performance reports.

Hackney’s maladministration rate increased from 44% in 2021/22 to 83% in 2023/24, with severe maladministration at 16% (over twice similar landlords’ 7% average). In reviewed cases, 47% of complaints weren formally acknowledged or escalated when residents requested, and 57% of Stage 2 responses delayed (37% by more than 1 month).

What Compensation Can Tenants Receive for Housing Disrepair Including Mould and Damp?

Compensation for housing disrepair typically calculates as a percentage of rent reflecting loss of enjoyment plus out-of-pocket costs, with Hackney offering £7,500-£9,000 for multi-year damp/mould cases impacting health. The council calculates damages as percentage reduction of rent: 25% reduction over 18 months equals £3,231.72 for window issues, 15% over 18 months equals £1,943.64 for wet room issues, and 25% over 4 months equals £718.16 for roof leaks.

Hackney’s Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) scheme settled 309 full and final cases averaging 3 months versus over 12 months for legal disrepair cases, with residents guaranteed 100% of compensation offered. Since ADR introduction, 334 tenants signed up, drastically reducing the disrepair process.

The Housing Ombudsman ordered £50,187.10 total compensation during review period, over double the £24,025.77 Hackney offered during its own complaint process. The council often failed to consider case circumstances and award appropriate compensation, finding reasonable redress only in 5 cases.

One elderly resident with no heating/hot water for 7 weeks and kitchen ceiling hole received £250 at Stage 2, increased to £960 after Ombudsman complaint, but Ombudsman ordered £2,200 total. Tenant satisfaction with landlord’s complaint approach was 28% in 2023/24, averaging 3.4 out of 10 from 334 survey responses.

What Is Awaab’s Law and How Will It Change Damp and Mould Response Times in 2025?

Awaab’s Law brings mandatory damp and mould response times for social rented sector from October 2025, requiring emergency repairs within 24 hours, initial investigation within 14 calendar days, and repair commencement within 7 calendar days if significant health risk identified. Named after 2-year-old Awaab Ishak who died in 2020 from mould exposure, the law expands to wider hazards from 2026-2027.

Four mandatory requirements under Awaab’s Law: initial investigation within 14 calendar days of becoming aware of potential hazard, written report detailing findings and next steps provided to resident, repair work commencement within 7 calendar days if significant health/safety risk identified, and all repairs completed within reasonable period focusing on root cause.

Emergency repairs for hazards posing imminent threat to life must occur within 24 hours, and if property cannot be made safe within prescribed timescales, landlord must arrange and cover costs of suitable alternative accommodation. Hackney Council is investing staff training on Awaab’s Law responsibilities by December 2025.

The council’s self-imposed 5-day inspection target for damp and mould already exceeds the 14-day Awaab’s Law consultation proposal, though the focus remains on inspection pace rather than work completion time. The real issue identified is days taken to complete work following inspection, not inspection speed.

Failure to meet Awaab’s Law timescales could lead to legal action from tenants, with compliance deadline of October 2025 requiring social housing providers to overhaul processes immediately.

What Improvements Has Hackney Council Implemented Since the Ombudsman Investigation?

Hackney Council implemented eight key improvements: 5-day damp/mould inspection target, prioritising severe cases by health conditions, immediate mould removal in severe cases, ventilation specialist contractors, temperature/humidity monitors, leak fixing by next day end, 12-day average complaint response (78% within 10 days), and 30% first-day complaint resolution. The council apologised for tenant service shortfalls and committed to full housing service improvement.

Ten action plans will be completed by specific dates: document management system for housing staff from July 2025, complaints handling review by July 2025, backlog repairs reduction by September 2025, advisory group with external professionals by October 2025, service wholesale reorganisation by December 2025, damp/mould policy review by December 2025, Awaab’s Law training by December 2025, and integrated housing management system phase 1 January 2026.

The council invested £48m between 1 April 2025 and 31 March 2026 to improve and maintain housing stock despite decades of underfunding. Repairs satisfaction increased consistently: December 2022 at 58.7%, December 2023 at 67.5%, December 2024 at 77.3%, showing improvement journey impact.

Complaints escalating to Ombudsman reduced from around 16% in nine months before investigation to 9.2% in nine months following it. The council appointed four additional contractors increasing capacity, introduced robust contract management, and performance monitoring at each surveyor stage reviewed monthly.

Area Surveying Managers or Project Leads now provided to residents for direct contact while repair issues resolve, ensuring better Building Maintenance team coordination. Tenant satisfaction in complaints surveys increased from 32% in 2023/24 to 51% in 2024/25.

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How Can East London Residents Escalate Unresolved Housing Disrepair to the Housing Ombudsman?

To escalate to the Housing Ombudsman, tenants must complete the council landlord’s full two-stage complaints process or wait eight weeks for response, then submit online via the Ombudsman’s portal with evidence of prior reports including correspondence, photos, and timelines. This applies to social housing tenants in East London councils including Newham, Tower Hamlets, and Hackney.

The escalation process follows six steps: report repair in writing to landlord immediately noting issue, date, and photos as evidence; allow reasonable 14-28 day response time based on urgency; enter Stage 1 of landlord’s complaints procedure via online portal or repairs team if no action; escalate to Stage 2 if unsatisfied with Stage 1 requesting detailed final response; submit to Housing Ombudsman online after receiving final Stage 2 response or after eight weeks without one; provide all correspondence, photos, and timelines during submission.

The Ombudsman reviews eligibility quickly and makes final independent, impartial, fair decisions on disputes between residents and member landlords under the Housing Act 1996 and Housing Ombudsman Scheme. The Ombudsman considers evidence to determine if ‘maladministration’ occurred, including failure to keep to law, follow proper procedure, follow good practice, or behave reasonably and competently.

Hackney’s 2023/24 annual performance showed 83% maladministration rate (above similar landlords’ 79% average) and 16% severe maladministration (over twice similar landlords’ 7%), prompting the special investigation. The Ombudsman investigated 56 cases between October 2023 and June 2024, finding systemic failures affecting complaint handling, damp/mould, leaks, and repairs.

Residents can access the Ombudsman’s free, independent, impartial dispute resolution mechanism after completing landlord complaint process, with the centre providing focus and support for landlords to expand knowledge.

What Future Relevance Does the Hackney Disrepair Case Have for East London Housing?

The Hackney case establishes precedent for social housing accountability with 87% maladministration on damp/mould driving national policy changes including Awaab’s Law October 2025 implementation and increased scrutiny on London borough housing budgets facing £2.2bn black hole by 2028. London Boroughs may need to reduce spending by £264m in real terms over three years without national policy changes securing better future for London social housing.

Ten tenant satisfaction measures show Hackney at 57% in 2024/25 (slightly lower than 59% in 2023/24), close to peer median benchmark of 59%, with overall repairs satisfaction at 63% consistent with peer group median. The improvement journey shows higher satisfaction levels in virtually every single area compared to two years ago when service started improvement.

The case demonstrates dangers of performance-related bonus schemes creating perverse incentives for operatives to mark jobs ‘complete’ to meet targets, with around 33% of repairs visits being repeats due to system flaws. Online reporting functions launched December 2022 achieved only 3% uptake in 2023/24 because nearly every option told residents to call instead.

Four critical lessons for East London: focus on outcomes (work completion) not outputs (inspection speed), implement quality assurance frameworks for both complaint stages, analyse root causes rather than presenting positive data without context, and ensure compensation policies applied consistently rather than minimum offers increased only after Ombudsman contact.

The Housing Ombudsman published this report to help other landlords identify potential learning to improve own services, part of wider work monitoring landlord performance and promoting complaint learning. Hackney’s systemic failures across multiple service areas—complaint handling, damp/mould, leaks, repairs, knowledge management, policy, vulnerability, risk management, and scrutiny—represent warning signs for similar boroughs.