Residents at a retirement housing block say their landlord hasn’t dealt with a two-year bed bugs problem – or a major leak that forced a 70-year-old out of her flat.
Pam Thelwell and Julie Harvey, 69, have lived at Kiln Court in Holtspur for over five years – and have had recurring issues with housing association London and Quadrant (L&Q) since moving in.
Particularly pressing issues have included an as-yet-unresolved bedbugs’ infestation which they allege has spurred two other tenants to pay for their own pest control after becoming frustrated with inaction from the association.
What pushed the pair over the line, however, was L&Q’s apparent inability to spot long-term damp and mould issues in the ground-floor flat Pam moved into over the summer – putting both her mental and physical health at risk.
The 70-year-old, who has mild chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), said she had been excited to move from her upstairs flat into the new spot, which has an attached garden and was freed up after its former tenant passed away.
“There was so much we had to do to make it look nice before I moved in. My daughter and I spent weeks gutting the place – it probably cost around £2,000 to do it up, all in all.
“I have a little dog, so I was really looking forward to having a garden and I’d decorated all the insides and put a table and chairs out the back.
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“Then, after about four weeks, I noticed that my bedroom carpet was soaking wet. I reported it and pulled back some of the carpets – and the long and short of it is that the whole flat was in such a state.
“There were leaks everywhere and I was told that all the flooring had to come up because everything is rotten.”
Pam moved back to her upstairs flat while L&Q sent contractors to assess the flat – and, four-and-a-half months later, she says the repairs have yet to begin.
“It’s been really stressful. I was struggling and had to get another inhaler before my daughter told me I had to move out for my health. I tried to tell L&Q about it, but I couldn’t get in touch with anyone above the repairs department.
“I waited so long and fought so hard to get in there, and now this has happened. And they just don’t seem to care.”
Julie said Pam’s leak issues were just the tip of the iceberg of problems at Kiln Court – adding that she “sees bedbugs every time she empties the fluff from the dryer” and only recently had a ceiling leak outside her flat fixed, over a year after she first reported it.
“They keep telling us there’s no asbestos in the building too, but they put new kitchens in some of the flats this year and the work was all halted because there was asbestos everywhere.
“It’s just one thing after another – and we’re not told about these issues upfront, which makes it even worse.”
Charlie Culshaw, Director of Care and Support at L&Q, said: “We’re sorry that resolving some of the issues at Kiln Court is taking longer than we would have hoped, and we would like to thank residents for their patience and understanding while works are carried out.
“Getting rid of bed bugs in one of the homes has been difficult, but we are arranging for our contractors to return to the property shortly to fix the issue. This is only affecting one room in one of the flats, and we want to reassure residents that we are working on it as a priority. No communal areas are affected.
“Difficulties in identifying the cause of damp and mould at one of the homes in Kiln Court has unfortunately resulted in a delay to repairs, and we would like to apologise for this. We have supported the resident and their family to find suitable temporary accommodation so that we could clean and repair the affected areas, and as soon as their home is ready, we will provide help and support so that they can move back in as soon as possible.”
“When any works are carried out, an initial check is carried out to determine if there is any asbestos in the fittings/fixtures and whether there is any risk to residents. There has been no risk identified at Kiln Court.”
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