Yeovil: Blind woman left in mouldy house for years

A housing association that allowed a blind woman with a heart condition to live in a mouldy house for years has been fined.

The woman began living in the Abri housing property, in Yeovil, with her guide dog and sons in 2017.

Issues were noted in numerous inspections between 2018 and 2021, but a lack of action led the woman to complain to the housing ombudsman.

Abri was ordered to pay £4,588 in compensation.

The housing association - based in Eastleigh, Hampshire - has apologised to the woman, who has since moved to another of its properties.

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, when the woman - who is registered blind - moved into the three-bedroom semi-detached house, her tenancy agreement stated the housing association would treat any reports of "severe dampness" within 30 days of it being reported.

The property was inspected on 29 November 2019, during which time it was noted there were damp and mould issues in the main bedroom, with one wall "very damp/wet to touch".

At the time, a doctor said the woman's son had developed a bad chest as a result of a fungal infection caused by the mould.

Damp problems in the bedroom and kitchen were found to be persisting on 25 March 2019, with a further inspection in July 2019 finding "mould spores all around the exterior walls and rake of ceiling".

Despite anti-mould paint being applied to all surfaces on 3 September of that year, "extreme dampness and mould issues" were noted in inspections in January 2020 and January 2021, leading to the formal complaint being lodged.

In the woman's complaint, she said the mould situation was "getting severely out of hand", to the extent she had been forced to throw away all her soft furnishings.

She said the ordeal had left her "so down, dirty and completely demoralised".

Abri responded in April 2021, apologising for the delays and recognising "the issue should have been fixed sooner".

The resident's complaint was escalated in July 2021, with subsequent surveys and visits being carried out in early August.

During one of these visits, the resident complained the work carried out to date had not been satisfactory - including "unsuitable shower controls and bath taps, and a bath fan being installed in the kitchen which blew in cold air".

Following further visits in November, the resident complained to the ombudsman and indicated her wish to move.

Housing ombudsman Richard Blakeway ordered the compensation, which took into account rent paid during this period, as well as implementing a damp and mould strategy and improving Abri's record keeping.

He said: "Various fundamental issues with Abri's repairs service are on show in these cases, including extensive delays, haphazard record keeping, inadequate actions despite expert advice and poor communication.

"Particularly concerning is that one resident has vulnerabilities, and these were not considered or treated with appropriate urgency to put things right."

An Abri spokesman said: "We are very sorry for the distress and inconvenience experienced by our customer in this case. Our response to completing work in an acceptable timescale, and the handling of the complaints, was not good enough.

"We acknowledged this at the time with the customers and have subsequently accepted the ombudsman's determinations. We have carried out all orders and recommendations made."

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