Cara Hall secures damages of over £30k for disrepair, including damages equivalent to 90% of the rent for the period that the property was unfit for human habitation

In E v The London Borough of Lambeth (Wandsworth County Court, 17 April 2024), District Judge Daley awarded damages of £33,990.09 for disrepair, including £17,687 of special damages.

Factual background and the proceedings

The Claimant had been a secure tenant of the Property since 17 October 2018. Since the outset of the tenancy, the Property has suffered with extensive disrepair including damp and mould as a result of issues to the external brickwork, pointing and chimney and due to failed damp proof courses. On 21 December 2022, a leak started at the property, and on 16 January 2023, the ceiling in the living room collapsed as a result of the leak. In February 2023, the electrics blew and the claimant was without working electrics for six weeks. The disrepair had persisted to date, with much of the electrics in the Property not working.

As such, the Claimant issued a claim for damages and specific performance on or around 7 February 2023. On 17 March 2023, a consent order was entered into whereby Lambeth agreed to provide the Claimant with temporary decant accommodation by 13 April 2023 while the Property was repaired, and to complete the necessary works by 17 May 2023.

Lambeth did not comply with this agreement and as such, the claim was restored on 1 August 2023.

Lambeth did not file a defence to the claim and, on 1 December 2023, the Claimant obtained default judgment for damages to be assessed.

The disposal hearing

Lambeth did attend the disposal hearing and were permitted to make oral submissions about quantum. There was some dispute about at what point the property became unfit for human habitation for the purposes of quantum, and also argument about whether the Claimant had been unreasonable in refusing a decant and whether and from what point any damages should be curtailed as a result of this, with Lambeth alleging that this is the reason no works had been done at the Property. 

The Judge considered that there were effectively two distinct periods of disrepair: the disrepair before the leak, and the disrepair after the leak.

In respect of damages for the period before the leak, the judge awarded damages equivalent to 30% of the rent, amounting to £8,383.79.

In respect of damages for the period after the leak, the judge considered that at this point the property undoubtedly became unfit for human habitation pursuant to section 9A of Landlord and Tenant Act 1985. The judge was pointed to the County Court judgments in Dezitter v Hammersmith & Fulham Homes (Legal Action, February 2024) (see our note here) and Mason v Olivera and Santana (Legal Action, February 2024) where 100% of the rent was awarded for the period that those properties were unfit for human habitation, but the judge noted that these decisions were not binding and simply indicated that the court may award damages equivalent to 100% of the rent where a property is unfit, not that it must. However, the judge did consider that those judgments suggested that where the property was unfit, the court should award a considerable proportion of the rent, and as such, he awarded damages equivalent to 90% of the rent for that period, amounting to £6,437.20.

The judge curtailed the damages from one month before the hearing in relation to the decant: he was not satisfied on the evidence that the Claimant had been unreasonable in relation to a decant prior to that point.

Applying the uplift in Simmons v Castle, damages of £16,303.09 were awarded for the disrepair.

The judge also awarded the full extent of the special damages sought, amounting to £17,687, providing a total award of £33,990.09.

Lambeth were also ordered to pay the Claimant’s costs, to be assessed. The issue of an order for specific performance remains outstanding to be determined at a later hearing. 

Comment

This judgment again indicates that where a property is unfit for human habitation, a high proportion of the rent should be awarded by way of damages for disrepair. Those acting for Claimant’s in disrepair claims should always be aiming for this in such claims.

Cara Hall, instructed by Taylor Rose appeared for the Claimant at the disposal hearing, while Matthew Lee had acted for the Claimant in the proceedings before then.