What happens after I make a housing complaint

We will send the customer an acknowledgement in writing by email, or by post if an email address is not provided, within 5 working days of receiving the complaint.

In acknowledging the complaint, we will set out:

• our understanding of the complaint and the outcomes being sought
• We will be clear which aspects of the complaint we are, and are not, responsible for and clarify any areas where this is not clear
• what will happen next
• the customer can expect a response

In acknowledging the complaint, we will offer the customer the opportunity to discuss their complaint, so we can make sure our understanding of the complaint and the outcome being sought is clear.

Within our acknowledgement of the Stage One complaint, we will include the contact details of the Housing Ombudsman and that the resident can approach them for advice at any point in the process.

If the complaint is unclear, we will seek clarification from the customer before the complaint is logged. If we do not receive a response from the complainant, the complaint will be recorded in accordance with the Housing Ombudsman’s Code and the landlord’s complaints policy.

If the complaint is in relation to Building Safety, any immediate safety concern will be raised with the Building Safety Manager and managed in line with this policy. The Fire Safety Group / High-Rise Group may be consulted with, in providing a response at Stage One.

Once a complaint has been logged and acknowledged, it will be passed to the relevant manager to investigate and respond. The quality of investigations and responses will be monitored by the Landlord Complaints Team.

Investigating a complaint

You may be contacted by the complaint investigator by telephone or email to offer you the opportunity to discuss your complaint in more detail and to understand the outcome that you are seeking. Once we have defined the complaint, we will need to gather information and evidence to be able to reach a decision.

We will use this information to decide two things:

• What happened?
• What should have happened?

We will investigate the issue, taking into account the available facts and evidence. We will then make a decision on the matter.

It is not always possible for us to make decisions ‘beyond all reasonable doubt’. We will therefore make decisions ‘on the balance of probabilities’, that is whether something was more likely to have occurred than not.

If we believe we were at fault, we will further consider:

• How the fault disadvantaged the customer
• What we need to do to put things right

We will respond to a Stage One complaint within 10 working days of the complaint being logged in line with the Housing Ombudsman Complaint Handling Code.

We will decide whether an extension to this timescale is needed when considering the complexity of the complaint and then inform the resident of the expected timescale for response. We will keep the resident updated regarding the status of their complaint, throughout the process.

Any extension must be no more than 10 working days without good reason, and the reason(s) must be clearly explained to the resident.

If a complaint response exceeds agreed extended timescales, we will liaise with the resident to set clear update intervals.

The resident can approach the Housing Ombudsman if there has been an extension to timescales or if the timescales exceed the agreed extension.

If the customer is unhappy with the response for Stage One, they can escalate to a Stage Two, and the Landlord Complaints team can discuss the case with the customer if they wish.

Residents must not be required to explain their reasons for requesting a stage two consideration. We will make reasonable efforts to understand why a resident remains unhappy as part of its stage two response. A request to escalate a complaint to Stage Two should be made within 30 working days but we may consider requests outside this timescale if there are exceptional circumstances.

We will send the customer an acknowledgement in writing by email, or by post if an email address is not provided, within 5 working days of receiving the Stage Two escalation request.

In acknowledging the complaint, we will set out:

• our understanding of the complaint and the outcomes being sought
• We will be clear which aspects of the complaint we are, and are not, responsible for and clarify any areas where this is not clear
• what will happen next
• when the customer can expect a response

In acknowledging the complaint, we will offer the customer the opportunity to discuss their complaint, so we can make sure our understanding of the complaint and the outcome being sought is clear. Within our acknowledgement of the Stage Two complaint, we will include the contact details of the Housing Ombudsman and that the resident can approach them for advice at any point in the process.

This is the final stage of the complaint’s procedure. The complaint will be further considered by either:

The appropriate director, who has not been involved with the Stage One complaint or  an appropriate senior manager, who has not been involved in the Stage One complaint and reviewed by the director.

We will respond to a Stage Two complaint within 20 working days of logging the Stage Two complaint. If we are not able to meet these timescales, we will let the complainant know.

We will decide whether an extension to this timescale is needed when considering the complexity of the complaint and then inform the resident of the expected timescale for response.

Any extension must be no more than 20 working days without good reason, and the reason(s) must be clearly explained to the resident.

If a complaint response exceeds agreed extended timescales, we will liaise with the resident to set clear update intervals.

The resident can approach the Housing Ombudsman if there has been an extension to timescales or if the timescales exceed the agreed extension.