Urging caution after scam housing claim leaves customer with court bill
Customers are being advised to be wary of ‘no win, no fee’ housing disrepair scams after a resident was left with a bill of more than £1,500 when their claim was dismissed in court.
Following a 4-year protracted process and one and a half days in court, the claim of disrepair was dismissed at Barnstaple Magistrates Court as there was absolutely no evidence of failings from landlord and charity, North Devon Homes. The court found that the damp and mould issues in the property were solely attributed to the ‘lifestyle’ and compounded by alterations made to the property by the customer. Moisture levels in the property had been elevated by the introduction of fish tanks and not using the ventilation systems provided. It was further found that covering the radiators which reduced the efficiency of the heating system and removing internal doors, so moisture travelled across the property, exacerbated the issues. This resulted in a £1,608 bill for the customer for unauthorised works to the property.
Following the court ruling, Claire Fallow, Head of Asset Management said “As a responsible community landlord, we always seek to work closely with our customers to provide safe, sustainable homes. In this case, no issues relating to damp and mould had been reported to us. We would like to remind all our customers to discuss any concerns they have about their home with us before entering into an arrangement with another party which they may later regret. We’re increasingly becoming concerned about largely unregulated claims firms who aggressively target residents by enticing them with the promise of a ‘no win, no fee’ outcome, but sadly too often it’s the claimant who loses out. We would urge our customers to be cautious if they are approached by any of these scammers making promises which are often too good to be true, and to talk to us first. Sometimes these individuals gain access under false pretence, and we would always advise customers to check ID and call our Customer Care Team if they are any doubt about someone trying to gain access to their home.”
North Devon Homes reported it had received similar claims where tenants have expressed a wish to withdraw the claim at an earlier stage but found that the small print involved a financial penalty for doing so, which they found to be unaffordable. Meaning they were forced to continue with a claim that they had no interest in pursuing.
Claire continued “Whilst the result was in our favour, sadly in this case, there are no winners. The time taken by staff to work on this case to protect our customers’ money has resulted in significant resources being diverted away from areas that could benefit our customers. Condensation related mould can form in any home, even where there is no building defect, although it can of course be exacerbated by faults. We advise our customers to make use of existing ventilation, to reduce condensation where possible, but we also have a programme of ventilation improvements, thermal improvements, tailored advice and financial support, which has been a great benefit to customers who have worked together with us to solve these problems.”
Any customer who has any issues their property, please report it to us by emailing [email protected] or by calling 01271 312500.
