A FURIOUS woman was given just £30 in compensation after her housing association ignored her fears that the ceiling would COLLAPSE.
Fatima Djabra claimed she was forced to move out of her mouldy and leaking flat in Brixton, South London, for four months because it was unsafe to live in.
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So when she was offered only £30 in compensation after wasting over £2,000 on rent and bills for the empty flat – she was disgusted.
The woman in her 50s has been pleading with Metropolitan Thames Valley Housing (MTVH) for repairs in her home ever since the first leak started in 2005, she told MyLondon.
Over the years, she claimed the property has smelt of damp and even had mushrooms growing on the mouldy walls.
But when her ceiling partially collapsed in the middle of one December night, it was the final straw and Fatima moved out and in with a friend.
She was too terrified to live at home under the damaged ceiling, but never stopped returning to empty the buckets full of dripping water.
For the next few months, Fatima had nowhere else to go – with no choice but to carry on paying £504 on rent, council tax and bills each month.
She even contributed to her friend’s bills, who was putting her up, always hoping MTVH would compensate her for the horrible ordeal.
So she was horrified and insulted by the mere £30 that the housing association offered her for four months of trouble – as compensation for “poor complaints handling”.
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An apology letter from the organisation allegedly stated that it would not reimburse her rent in full because it had been her decision to leave – before the Repairs Team were able to establish if this was needed.
Fatima felt she was being “punished” for her decision to live somewhere safer.
“I worried for my own safety which is why I moved out,” she said.
“When I read the apology letter I was so upset, I didn’t even reply.
“It was a letter of apology because ‘I chose to get out’, so basically I was punished.”
As well as the gaping hole in Fatima’s ceiling and piles of debris on the floor, Fatima claimed she returned to the flat in April to signs of further leaks.
The teacher said yellow patches had started to appear on her ceiling again, although MTVH had informed her the repairs were completed,
Fatima also claimed her boiler was still broken and her sink still blocked, despite having reported both to MTVH.
She said back in March: “I just want all of this disrepair c*** to just stop so I can get on with my life.
“They’re wasting my time, they’re taking away my energy and dragging me down, I can’t do this anymore – they’re abusing me emotionally.”
A spokesperson for MTVH said in a statement: “We do understand Ms. Djabra’s frustration. Quite simply, everyone wants and expects to be comfortable in their home.
“That is why we are continuing to work to resolve things. It is unfortunate that the recent works did not solve all the issues.
“However, our colleagues have since been to Ms. Djabra’s home to assess what work is now required and we are addressing them.
“To this end, we have been in contact with Ms. Djabra over a boiler appointment and will also soon be able to confirm a date for our repairs team to visit.
“Ms. Djabra was unhappy with how her original complaint was handled.
“This has been investigated thoroughly and concluded that we could have handled things better, for which we have apologised sincerely.
“The compensation awarded related purely to how the complaint was handled.
“We know that moving people from their home is a very significant step.
“That is why the decision over whether to decant was referred to a professional surveyor, whose expert opinion our decision was based on.
“At the same time, we know that Ms. Djabra has experienced disruption and distress over this period. We want Ms. Djabra to be happy in her home.
“As such, we will continue to work with her to ensure that the necessary repairs are completed as soon as possible.”
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