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Decision Report 201304407

  • Case ref:
    201304407
  • Date:
    May 2014
  • Body:
    East Lothian Council
  • Sector:
    Local Government
  • Outcome:
    Not upheld, no recommendations
  • Subject:
    repairs and maintenance

Summary

Ms C said that her elderly parents' home had been burgled twice in the last 18 months and she was very unhappy with the council's response to the situation. She said that council staff had misinformed her father by giving various reasons why they would not fit locks to his windows to prevent further burglaries. She was particularly annoyed at the refusal as she said the tenant's handbook advises that all accessible windows should be locked using a key locking mechanism.

Our investigation found that the council's repairs and maintenance policy explains that the fitting of additional locks is the tenant's responsibility. This is also reflected in the tenant's guide to repairs and maintenance policy which Ms C's parents would have been given when they took up the tenancy. We were satisfied that section 2.12 of the tenant's handbook, which refers to ensuring all accessible windows are fitted with key-operated locks, was for advice and information only. We did not uphold the complaint.

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Updated: March 13, 2018