Housing Ombudsman unveils revised special investigations process aimed at facilitating early resolutions

The Ombudsman said the process allows it to intervene when it sees a landlord performing less well than others on a series of key metrics.

The revised process uses a tiered approach that encourages landlords to detect and fix problems early. Each tier in the process brings a higher level of scrutiny, the Ombudsman said.

Landlords will be asked at ‘Tier 1’ to provide the Ombudsman with a response plan of how they are resolving the issues seen by the Ombudsman in its casework.

At ‘Tier 2’, if there is a continued lack of improvement, the Ombudsman will follow up with the landlord.

This will also apply if performance gets worse, despite having previously undergone Tier 1 engagement.

‘Tier 3’ is the stage of full investigation where the Ombudsman will seek to identify the root causes for a landlord's poor performance. It will make recommendations for improvement through a full report.

The full process, including how escalation between tiers is managed, is available here.

The revised process has been trialled with a range of organisations including A2Dominion, Hexagon Housing Associations, the London Borough of Redbridge and Norwich City Council.

Richard Blakeway, Housing Ombudsman, said: “Complaints are vital tools for learning and continuous improvement.

“Our casework sometimes reveals similar service failings repeatedly happening. It’s important to look at what sits behind a complaint and avoid treating them as isolated incidents.

“Joining the dots between complaints can inform targeted interventions, whether those relate to policies, processes, people or systems.”

He added: “This new approach to special investigations enables us to engage landlords earlier, sharing our insights and encouraging the landlord to identify how it can prevent service failings reoccurring.

“This proactive approach to learning from complaints should deliver better outcomes for residents and landlords, improving services, strengthening trust and preventing complaints.

“This is integral to embedding a positive complaints culture across the sector.”

Harry Rodd