Richard Blakeway wants a “single vision of fair compensation” paid to residents across the sector
The Housing Ombudsman has published new guidance for social landlords in a drive for a “single vision” of fair compensation paid to residetns.
The guidance sets out the watchdog’s position on when and how it orders compensation, how it calculates financial redress and how a landlord’s offer of compensation is considered within its casework.
Effective from 1 April 2026, the guidance seeks to “make clear expectations and encourage consistency” in how providers approach compensation.
Richard Blakeway, housing ombudsman, said: “There should be a single vision of fair compensation shared across the sector. At the heart of compensation is fairness. Individual circumstances will lead to different awards but the core principles driving decision-making should be common.”
The handbook was published alongside the ombudsman’s latest “learning from severe maladministration” reportt identifying where landlords have not applied their own compensation policies correctly. For example, housing association Riverside did not offer a tenant compensation despite failing to fix damp and mould for over three years in a home with a four-year-old child.
However, the ombudsman offered £3,000 in redress, calculated using a proportion of the rent charged during the failings and taking into account the distress and inconvenience caused.
In its learning statement, Riverside said it has now adopted an approach including whole house mould inspections, same-day mould washes and has appointed additional contractors to reduce delays. It has also updated its complaint handling process and compensation policies to align with the ombudsman’s orders.
The report also looks at instances where landlords have increased the compensation after its stage two response. In one case, Stonewater offered £5,000 to a tenant for failing to fix damp for two years after the ombudsman’s evidence request – an increase from just over £600 it previously calculated. The watchdog acknowledged the £5,000 as a “reasonable” amount but said the offer should have come earlier.
In its learning statement, the landlord said it has introduced virtual triage for complex damp and mould cases to allow quick assessment and escalation of suspected high-risk issues.
The final section of the report examined the difference between the ombudsman’s orders and the landlord’s offer. For instance, the watchdog offered 10 times more compensation than the London Borough of Kingston for leaks, damp and mould in a home for two years.
The landlord reported it has now added extra resources to manage damp and mould issues, including training of staff and contractors, improved processes and case management.
Blakeway said: “Compensation is emotive. When times are hard and budgets tight, for both residents and landlords, this can drive the wrong behaviours. It can result in residents expecting unrealistic redress for failings. Or organisations being institutionally reluctant to compensate.”
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