Council forced to pay tenant £600 compensation over botched wet room

A Derbyshire council has apologised to a housing tenant and been ordered to pay them £600 due to delays and leaks caused by installing a wet room. An Ombudsman investigation found the tenant - referred to as Ms X throughout an investigation report - was left waiting eight months for the wet room to be installed.

Inspectors found the work carried out on behalf of South Derbyshire District Council was of a poor standard, with Ms X left with a leak under her floor, problems with an extractor fan not working and mould in her home.

The resident initially applied for the wet room under the Disabled Facilities Grant, that allowed her to access funds for the work to be carried out.

After eight months of waiting the wet room had been completed. However the standard of work caused Ms X so much distress that she requested that the contractor was not allowed back in her town to remedy the situation.

Ms X even commissioned her own contractors to complete the work, however damage had already been done to her floor inside the house after the significant leaks.

While the council did reimburse Ms X for the work she commissioned, they had failed to come and re-inspect the property after promising to do so in early 2023.

This re-inspection may have revealed the defective pipework and leaks earlier which was found as a fault by the local Ombudsman, the investigation found.

While Ms X was able to use the wet room for long periods, she has reported ongoing issues which she claims is causing her avoidable distress and inconvenience.

The council has now agreed to commission a independent survey of the wet room which will identify any ongoing issues that the local authority can remedy.

The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman found in Ms X's favour, ordering South Derbyshire District Council to apologise to the tenant, pay her £600 in light of the "poor quality of works, the delays completing her wet room under a DFG and for not completing as full inspection of the wet room earlier".

A spokesperson for South Derbyshire District Council said: “The Council has fully accepted the Ombudsman’s findings and is implementing the actions as proposed by the Ombudsman including; issuing an apology to Ms X, undertaking the remedial works and making the recommended payment.

"The Council has learnt from this investigation and has reviewed and changed its procedures.”