Housing Ombudsman Service (HOS) in England

 by: MisS VictoriA DaviD

Courtesy of HOS

The Housing Ombudsman Service (HOS) is a non-departmental public body of the UK Government's housing department. This means that the HOS is, as follows:

• independent of social housing landlords (e.g., housing associations, local authorities and managing agents);
• impartial in how it investigates and makes decisions regarding complaints; and 
• free service for residents (e.g., tenants, leaseholders, shared owners and others with a recognised right to occupy a residential property) 

When raising a complaint to the HOS, you must first raise the issue(s) with your landlord and follow their 2-stage complaints procedure to put things right. This is because the HOS will only consider a complaint that has been through the landlord's complaints procedure. 

Once complaints are considered, the roles of the HOS are to: 

• investigate disputes between social housing residents and landlords – i.e., registered members (either through mandatory or voluntary) of the HOS Scheme. You can find verified registered members on https://www.housing-ombudsman.org.uk/landlords/; 
• make final decisions where they can require landlords to, amongst others, put things right, pay compensation or improve their service handling where non-compliance or maladministration is found; and 
• enforce the statutory Complaints Handling Code for social landlords, which came into force on 01st April 2024. 

Apart from investigating ongoing disputes, the HOS may also consider complaints if any of the following apply to you: 

• you applied for a property with a landlord that is a member of the HOS Scheme (Note: not through Local Authorities homelessness or housing application); 
• you have applied to succeed a tenancy, or you are the successor to a tenancy following the tenant's death (e.g., statutory succession rules in the Housing Act 1985 (ss87-90)/1988 ( s17) or succession clause in the tenancy): 
• you are seeking to take over a tenancy or mutual exchange, or have already done so; 
• you have matrimonial home rights – i.e., set out in s30 of the Family Law Act 1996; 
• you hold a court order or power of attorney (e.g. special power of attorney and lasting power of attorney) relating to someone in a landlord-and-tenant relationship (Note: additional evidence may be required if capacity to act is in question); and 
• you have signed authority to act on behalf of a resident (Note: refer to HOS Complaint Checklist – My Version and Based on Publicly HOS Guidance) 

Furthermore, the HOS also provides advice (e.g., guidance, information and support) in addition to investigating complaints about landlords. However, you must first raise issue(s) with landlords and follow their 2-stage complaints procedure. 

The HOS Complaint Checklist – My Version and Based on Publicly HOS Guidance, is not exhaustive but will help you assess your eligibility where further information, amongst others, will be required, as follows: 

• complaint reference number issued by your landlord; 
• copy of tenancy agreement; 
• copy of original complaint; 
• stage 1 response (if applicable); and
• stage 2 response (if applicable)

Thus, if any of the situations in the HOS Complaint Checklist – My Version and Based on Publicly HOS Guidance, apply to you, it is advisable to answer the HOS Questionnaires - Summary and Additions, in advance. 

Answering the HOS Questionnaires - Summary and Additions beforehand will ensure that you will recall key details, clarify goals and provide clear information before completing the actual HOS online complaint form on 

https://www.housing-ombudsman.org.uk/online-complaint-form/

HOS Complaint Checklist (1-2)

HOS Complaint Checklist (2-2)

HOS Questionnaires (1-2)

HOS Questionnaires (2-2)

COMPLAINT FORM SUBMISSION

Once you have completed filling out the online complaint form (17 pages) and selected “yes” to receive a PDF copy, the HOS will email it to you immediately - provided you entered a correct email address. 

If you are unable to complete the form because you do not have the relevant supporting evidence to upload, you can save your answers for up to 14 days. Thus, HOS will send you an email with a link to return and complete the form later. 

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT 

The HOS will conduct an initial check to confirm whether the issues you have raised fall within its scope of work. This will be passed on to their assessment team, which will allocate an officer. 

If your complaint is something the HOS can investigate, they will then decide the most appropriate approach to take with you and your landlord. The HOS aims to complete investigations within 12 weeks to 4 months (for high-risk cases) of the date the complaint is accepted for investigation. 

If you disagree with the HOS's final decision, you must request a review within 3 weeks of the determination being made. 

DECISIONS ARCHIVE

The HOS publishes outcomes 3 months after the final decision where resident identities are anonymised whilst landlords' names are published. Furthermore, the HOS releases new decisions every two weeks to uphold its commitment to openness and transparency. 

The above information reflects my understanding of the Housing Ombudsman Service. It is provided for general information only and should not be taken as legal advice. If you believe that any part requires clarification or correction, please feel free to contact me. Hence, it should not be taken as legal advice.