Closed call for evidence

Housing disrepair claims

Published 4 December 2025

Applies to England

This call for evidence seeks views on cases where tenants in England consider seeking redress through the County Court by bringing a claim against their landlord for housing disrepair, and the role of claims management activity in this process. 

Everyone deserves the security and comfort of a safe and decent home. We know that many landlords provide safe and decent homes to their tenants, dealing with complaints and solving issues quickly. But sometimes tenants are left living in homes which are not safe or habitable, despite complaining to their landlord.

When this happens, tenants have a number of options to try to resolve the issue, including bringing a legal claim against their landlord for housing disrepair.

We want to hear from tenants, landlords, legal professionals and claims management companies about your experiences of housing disrepair claims, how the current process works, including the roles of companies and solicitors in these cases, and what you think doesn’t work or is unclear so that we can make sure it is as effective as possible.

We have set out some questions that will help us to gather information on your experiences along with some information on the housing disrepair process when a claim is brought against a landlord. To make it as quick and easy as possible to respond we have included short summaries at the beginning of each section of this document to help you decide which bits are relevant to you. We have also grouped the questions aimed at specific groups (e.g. landlords or tenants) together. The more technical questions, which everyone can answer but where we would particularly welcome views from legal professionals, are at the end of the survey.

Thank you for taking the time to read this document and respond.

How to respond

We are inviting evidence about 4 topics associated with housing disrepair claims. This document provides information on these topics followed by a series of questions. A glossary of the terms used is in Annex A.

We welcome responses from all interested parties, in particular tenants, landlords, solicitors and claims management companies.

The questions are broad ranging, and we know that respondents will have different areas of expertise, so the questions aimed at specific groups (e.g. landlords or tenants) are grouped together. Questions for all participants are at the beginning and the more technical questions, which everyone can answer but where we would particularly welcome views from legal professionals, are at the end.

You may respond by completing the online survey. 

Alternatively, you can email any enquiries or your response to the questions in this call for evidence to: housing.disrepair.claims@Communities.gov.uk

Introduction

Tenants have several options to raise concerns and get help or compensation if their landlord fails to keep their home safe and habitable. We call this ‘seeking redress’. Too many renters put up with poor conditions in their homes: it’s unacceptable that 10% of social housing and 21% of privately rented homes do not meet decency standards.

That is why we have introduced Awaab’s Law, to set strict new timeframes for landlords to address hazards such as damp and mould and ensuring that there is an effective system in place to help tenants when things go wrong.

All social housing tenants can complain about disrepair to their landlord and, if unsatisfied, escalate to the Housing Ombudsman. Private tenants and social housing tenants of housing associations can report issues to their local council.

We are also introducing a new Private Rented Sector Landlord Ombudsman service, which will be mandatory for nearly all private landlords to join with the service expected to go live in 2028. All tenants, no matter who their landlord is, can seek redress through the County Court by bringing a claim against their landlord for housing disrepair.   

This call for evidence focuses on cases where tenants consider seeking redress through the County Court by bringing a claim against their landlord for housing disrepair, and the role of claims management activity. 

In housing disrepair, and other types of cases, organisations such as claims management companies sometimes seek out people who might be able to make a legal claim so they can pass those claims on to law firms and earn a referral fee. Some solicitors also directly seek out individuals who might be able to make a claim. Claims management can play a valuable role in connecting tenants with legal remedies. However, we are aware that there may be cases where unscrupulous activity is resulting in vulnerable tenants being exploited.

We want to gather evidence to understand more about the role and impact of claims management activity in redress for housing disrepair issues.

We will use this evidence to determine if any claims management activity conducted by claims management companies and solicitors is causing issues in the process of redress for housing disrepair, how big these issues may be and what form they take, and whether government action is necessary.

Recognising that claims management companies and solicitors fall under the oversight of regulators that are independent of government, the evidence may also be shared with the:

• Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA)
• Legal Services Board (LSB)
• Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)

This will inform discussions with them on whether any regulatory improvements are needed.

Background

Housing disrepair claims

We want to understand the experiences of landlords, tenants, solicitors and claims management companies of handling housing disrepair cases. This includes: how frequently tenants are making claims, why they are making claims, what the process looks like for tenants and landlords, and the outcomes.

Tenants seeking to make a legal claim can represent themselves, consult a solicitor or direct access barrister, or use a claims management company (CMC). We are aware that there may be issues with some CMCs and solicitors not acting in tenants’ best interests. Tenants may also face unclear or unexpected costs.

This section provides more information on how CMCs and solicitors support tenants to make claims, the costs involved, and possible issues. There are questions for you to answer in our survey about housing disrepair cases and the organisations you may have interacted with.

The role of claims management companies and solicitors

To make a legal claim, tenants have a number of options. They can:

• represent themselves
• go directly to a solicitor or a direct access barrister
• use a claims management company (CMC) for advice, before referring them to a solicitor

A CMC will often get involved at the early stages of the claims process and helps individuals to identify problems that need to be resolved, access legal advice, and resolve claims that they might otherwise struggle to pursue. A CMC will often then pass the claims with merit to a solicitor who handles the legal work, and the solicitor pays a fee for the work carried out by the CMC.

Cases are often taken on a contingency fee basis, colloquially known as ‘no win, no fee’ arrangements. This means if the tenant loses at court their solicitor is not paid for their time.

However, the court may order the tenant to pay the landlords’ costs. Sometimes after the event insurance can be taken to cover those adverse costs. If the tenant wins the case, they will pay a success fee to their solicitor which is typically calculated as a proportion of the compensation awarded, plus any expenses such as expert reports.

Possible issues

The SRA recently published a thematic review and a discussion paper on high-volume consumer claims, including housing disrepair. The thematic review raised concerns that some of those operating in the sector may not be fulfilling their obligations to always act in their clients’ best interests and follow all the relevant rules and regulations.

On housing disrepair we have heard reports of CMCs and solicitors targeting tenants who might be more vulnerable to exploitation, encouraging claims when it may not be in the tenant’s best interest, failing to warn tenants of risks involved, and offering counterproductive advice – for example encouraging a tenant not to let landlords in to carry out inspections or fix issues. This can result in tenants having to live with disrepair for longer and discourage them from accessing more effective redress routes.

A tenant making a housing disrepair claim may face several types of costs, which might not always be made clear to them. These include paying their solicitor, either through hourly rates, fixed fees, or a ‘no win, no fee’ arrangement where a success fee is charged if the claim succeeds. They may also be unaware of the need to pay theirs and their landlord’s court fees if they are unsuccessful, or that they may have to pay their landlord’s legal expenses.

Existing financial support

In some cases, legal aid may be available to help cover the cost of legal advice and representation in court or tribunals. A tenant may qualify for legal aid to bring a disrepair claim against their landlord if the disrepair is posing a serious risk to their health and safety, and if they also meet certain financial tests which demonstrate they cannot pay for their own legal costs.

Tenants that are at risk of losing their home may also get legal aid through the Housing Loss Prevention Advice Service (HLPAS), regardless of their financial situation.

Regulation and oversight

We want to learn more about CMCs’ and solicitors’ behaviour in housing disrepair cases and whether they are complying with the rules set by independent regulators.

Legal professionals and CMCs are regulated by a number of different organisations, depending on the professionals they employ and the services they offer.

The 2 main organisations are the SRA and the FCA.

More detail is provided below to help you answer questions in our survey whether the regulation system is working effectively.

Claims management activity

In England, Wales and Scotland CMCs are regulated by the FCA. The focus of their regulation is on driving up standards of conduct, and to boost consumer protection. They want CMCs to be trusted providers of high quality, good value services that help people pursue legitimate claims for redress. 

If a CMC breaches FCA rules, the FCA has a wide range of enforcement powers to take action, including imposing financial penalties, preventing the firm from carrying out regulated claims management activities, issuing public warnings and launching investigations, and taking civil or criminal action where necessary. The FCA has guidance on claims management activity.

If an individual makes a complaint to their CMC for the service received and they are unhappy with the outcome, they are able to take their complaint to the Claims Management Ombudsman, which is part of the Financial Ombudsman. Information on their services and how to complain is available on their website.

Legal professionals

The SRA is the largest frontline regulator of legal services in England and Wales and is responsible for regulating solicitors and the vast majority of law firms. Their role is to protect consumers and set and enforce high professional standards. The SRA and other frontline legal service regulators are overseen by the LSB.

Although the SRA does not regulate CMCs, the solicitors and firms it does regulate can carry out claims management activity. In addition to rules about how claims management activity is carried out, the SRA also has rules about how the firms it regulates interact with CMCs, including transparency around charges and marketing activity such as making sure claimants have not been secured through cold calling. The SRA has guidance on claims management activity.

If an individual is dissatisfied with the service or conduct of a solicitor, they can raise their concern directly with the solicitor or firm, as all solicitors are required to have a complaints procedure. If the concern relates to serious professional misconduct – such as dishonesty, fraud, or discrimination – and the individual is not satisfied with the solicitor’s response, they can report the matter to the SRA. If the concern relates to poor service – such as delays, poor communication, or billing issues – and the individual remains dissatisfied after receiving a final response from the solicitor, they can contact the Legal Ombudsman.

Legislation

There have been several legislative measures introduced by successive governments designed to address issues related to the area of low value personal injury claims. These include banning referral fees and reforming how ‘no win, no fee’ arrangements work, introducing rules to deter exaggerated or fraudulent claims, and changing the way damages are awarded in some cases to make sure compensation is proportionate. Rules were also changed so that more claims could be allocated to the small claims track, streamlining the process.

We want to gather views on whether lessons from the approach taken to personal injury claims could be applied to housing disrepair claims. These questions in our survey are open to everyone, but we would particularly welcome views from legal professionals.

Since 2012, primary and secondary legislative reforms have included the following.

Legal Aid Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012

Part 2 of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act (LASPO) 2012 protected claimants by banning referral fees and reforming how ‘no win, no fee’ arrangements work in personal injury cases.

LASPO changed how costs are recovered under a ‘no win, no fee’ deal, making it so that if the claimant wins their case they receive compensation and their legal fees are recovered from the defendant, but they have to pay their lawyer’s success fee (capped at a maximum of 25% of their compensation, excluding future losses), and any insurance premiums taken out to protect against losing the claim. To balance against this, compensation paid for pain and suffering was increased by 10% following the Simmons v Castle^{[footnote 1]} Judgment in the Court of Appeal.

The introduction of Qualified One-Way Costs Shifting also protects claimants from paying the defendant’s legal costs if they lose, unless certain conditions are not met. This means that a losing claimant doesn’t have to pay the defendants costs unless they have behaved unreasonably during the case.

Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015

In 2015, new laws were introduced under the Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015 to protect the integrity of personal injury claims. Courts must now dismiss an entire claim if the claimant is found to be fundamentally dishonest, even if part of the claim is genuine, unless doing so would cause substantial injustice to the claimant. This is intended to deter exaggerated or fraudulent claims. The Act also banned solicitors from offering large cash sums or gifts to persuade clients into making a claim which may not be in their best interests.

Civil Liability Act (CLA) 2018

In response to concerns about disproportionate payouts, the government introduced measures through the CLA 2018 to define whiplash, ban offers to settle being made without medical evidence, and introduce fixed compensation for whiplash injuries.

These reforms were supported by additional secondary legislative changes to increase the small claims track limit for road traffic accident-related personal injury claims from £1,000 to £5,000, streamlining lower-value cases. Track allocation is explained in more detail below.

A new Road Traffic Accident Small Claims Protocol governing how claims should be made by both represented and unrepresented claimants was also introduced to provide a structured process for resolving claims pre-court under the new system. Claimants and solicitors must try to settle their claim by following the protocol before going to court or face consequences from the court.

The industry, on behalf of Ministry of Justice, also launched the free to use online Official Injury Claim portal to assist claimants affected by the reforms. The portal provides a platform for them to bring, negotiate and settle low value road traffic accident-related personal injury claims. The system provides claimants with a choice of using a lawyer or to progress and settle their claim themselves and ensures they follow the required protocol.

Housing disrepair – referral fees

Referral fees are currently not banned in housing disrepair claims. A referral fee is a type of commission or payment paid by a third party as a reward for making a successful introduction. For example, they can be used to financially reward a CMC for generating a lead which connects a client with a specific firm of lawyers.

Banning referral fees would tackle the issue of claimants being passed to the firm willing to pay the highest referral fees, rather than to the one most appropriate for their claim. Banning their use would not prevent claimants with valid claims from pursuing their case but would enable a claimant to choose a solicitor based on their specific needs, rather than being referred to the highest bidder.

Housing disrepair claims – track allocation

Under the Civil Procedure Rules Part 26, track allocation is the process by which the court assigns a civil case to one of 4 tracks based on its complexity and value. Generally, a housing disrepair claim will be allocated to the small claims track, which is used for simpler cases, if the estimated cost of repairs or other work is not more than £1,000; and the financial value of any claim for damages is not more than £1,000.

If either the costs of the repair or damages exceed £1,000, the claim will typically be allocated to the fast track, which is used for moderately complex cases. Additionally, if the tenant seeks a specific performance (i.e. the landlord to carry out certain repairs) this is likely to lead to an allocation to the fast track.

The small claims track is designed to be uncomplicated and accessible to people who represent themselves in court without a lawyer, and it runs on the principle that each side usually bears their own costs.

There are different procedure and costs rules for the fast, intermediate and multi tracks which operate under the principle that ‘costs follow the event’. This means that the legal costs of each party are paid for by the unsuccessful party in the case. The current process is expensive for losing defendants, as in most claims they must pay out for compensation/cost of repairs as well as the legal fees/costs of both parties.

The ability to recover costs can also encourage unmeritorious claims to be made as defendants can often choose to settle such claims rather than risk the expense of fighting a claim.

Increasing the small claims track limit to ensure all housing disrepair claims are heard in the small claims track could reduce and rebalance these costs across both parties to the claim.

Alternatives to court

There are different ways that tenants can raise concerns and get help or compensation if their landlord fails to keep their home safe without going to court. We want to understand tenants’ awareness of the different options and hear about suggested improvements in our survey.

All tenants, no matter who their landlord is, can bring a claim against their landlord for housing disrepair if their landlord has not complied with the law. Where a tenant makes a claim, tenants and landlords should try to resolve the issue before it gets to court.

The different ways to raise a housing disrepair issue are described in more detail below.

Alternative routes of redress

All social housing tenants can seek redress for disrepair through their landlord’s complaints process. If they are unhappy with their landlord’s response, they can also go to the Housing Ombudsman, an independent organisation that reviews complaints.

Private rented sector tenants and social housing tenants of housing associations can also report poor conditions to their local council.

We are introducing a new Private Rented Sector Landlord Ombudsman service, which will be mandatory for nearly all private landlords to join. This service will investigate private tenants’ complaints about their landlord’s actions or behaviours, including complaints about standards and repairs. We expect the service will go live in 2028.

Alternatively, a tenant can raise concerns and get help or compensation by going to court if their landlord fails to keep their home safe and habitable. Tenants are encouraged to explore and exhaust other options before resorting to court action.

Pre-action protocols

Where a resident makes a housing disrepair claim, parties should try to resolve the issue before it gets to court through the Pre-Action Protocol for Housing Disrepair, which sets out the steps to complete before bringing a claim. It is designed to encourage early communication, exchange of information, and resolution without going to court, or at the very least, narrow the issues between the parties.

If the case does go to court, the judge will check whether both sides followed the correct steps and exhausted other avenues first. If steps haven’t been taken, it could affect how the case is managed by the judge and any orders related to costs.

Consultation questions

We have set out the full list of questions below for information and for those who wish to respond via email. However, we recommend that you respond by completing the online survey.

Questions for all respondents

Trends in housing disrepair claims

Question 1

Have you noticed any differences in housing disrepair claims in recent years (for example their frequency, the types of issues raised, the time for remedies, or the outcomes?)

(Free Text)

Question 2

If you have any evidence on trends in housing disrepair claims please share it here.

(Free Text)

Regulation and Oversight

Question 3

Before answering this call for evidence, if you had concerns about a claims management company’s behaviour, would you have known how to report it? (Select one)

• yes
• no
• unsure

Question 4

Before answering this call for evidence, if you had concerns about a solicitor’s behaviour or service, would you have known how to report it? (Select one)

• yes
• no
• unsure

Question 5

Do you feel the existing regulatory regimes support and protect tenants? (Select one)

• yes
• no
• unsure

Question 6

If you said no to question 5, please provide details.

(Free text)

Question 7

Have you experienced inappropriate behaviour from either a CMC or a solicitor when pursuing a possible housing disrepair claim or do you have any evidence that it has occurred? (Select one)

• yes
• no
• unsure

Question 8

If you said yes to question 7, please provide details and clarify whether this was a CMC or solicitor if known. (Free text)

Question 9

If you said yes to question 7, did you make a complaint to the relevant ombudsman? (Select one)

• yes
• no
• unsure

Question 10

Are there any changes to the regulation of solicitors or claims management companies that would better protect tenants making housing disrepair claims?

(Free text)

Question 11

Is there anything else that could be done to improve the housing disrepair claim process?

(Free text)

Alternatives to court

Question 12

If you have made a housing disrepair claim or had a claim made against you, did you take steps to comply with the pre-action protocol?

• yes
• no
• unsure

Question 13

Is there any aspect of the Housing Disrepair pre-action protocol that can be improved and if so what and how?

(Free Text)

Demography question

Question 14

In which capacity are you completing these questions? (select all that apply)

• arms-length management organisation (ALMO) housing provider
• charity (providing housing but not a registered provider of social housing)
• charity (providing support services and advice)
• claims management company
• government body
• landlord representative group
• law centre
• leaseholder
• leaseholder representative group
• local authority registered provider
• local authority not responding in the capacity of a registered provider
• owner occupier / individual
• private rented sector landlord operating as an individual or group of individuals (for example a couple)
• private rented sector landlord operating on behalf of an organisation/ company
• private registered provider of social housing (for example housing association)
• regulatory body
• social landlord (but not a registered provider)
• tenant management organisation (TMO)
• tenant representative group
• tenant of the private rented sector (including lodgers)
• tenant of the social rented sector (including licensees)
• shared owners
• solicitor
• other (please specify) [free text]

Questions for tenants

Question 15

Where do you live? (Select one)

• East of England
• East Midlands
• Inner London (Transport for London Zones 1 to 2)
• Outer London (Transport for London Zones 3 to 6)
• North East
• North West
• South East
• South West
• West Midlands
• Yorkshire and the Humber
• other (please specify)
• prefer not to say
• not applicable

Question 16

Do you spend more than 30% of your household income on rent? (Select one)

• yes, I spend more than 30% of my household income on rent
• no, I spend less than 30% of my household income on rent
• don’t know
• prefer not to say

Experience of Making Housing Disrepair Claims

Question 17

Have you ever experienced disrepair issues in your rented home that made it unsafe or unsuitable to live in? For example, damp and mould, problems with the heating and hot water, or water leaks. (Select one)

• yes
• no
• unsure
• not applicable

Question 18

If you have experienced disrepair, have you made a housing disrepair claim against your landlord? (Select one)

• yes
• no
• unsure
• not applicable

Question 19

If you made a disrepair claim, can you describe the condition of your property at the time? What problems, if any, were you experiencing and how were they affecting you? If you have made more than one disrepair claim, please answer based on your most recent claim.

(Free text)

Question 20

If you made a disrepair claim, why did you decide to take legal action against your landlord? If you have made more than one disrepair claim, please answer based on your most recent claim

(Free text)

Question 21

If you made a disrepair claim, what was the outcome? If you have made more than one disrepair claim, please answer based on your most recent claim (Select one)

• settled out of court
• the court found that there was disrepair
• the court found that there was not disrepair
• the case was dismissed by the court without making a decision about the disrepair itself
• other (please specify)
• not applicable

Question 22

Have you ever received any unexpected contact (e.g. cold calls, leaflets, automated messages, or home visits) about housing disrepair claims, even if you did not have any disrepair? (Select one)

• yes
• no
• unsure
• other (please specify)

Question 23

How, if at all were you first contacted about making a claim (select one)

• phone call
• visited you at home
• leaflet
• advert on social media
• other (please specify) – (e.g. phone call, text, visited you at home, leaflet, advert, social media)? (Free text)

Question 24

When you were contacted, did the person tell you they were from (select one):

• a solicitor
• a CMC
• unsure
• they did not say
• other (please specify)

Question 25

What kind of information would help you make a more informed choice about whether using a CMC is right for you?

(Free text)

Question 26

Is there anything that the government or other relevant organisations could do to help make it easier for you to choose an appropriate provider (such as a CMC or a solicitor) to help with a housing disrepair claim?

(Free text)

Question 27

Have you ever refused to let your landlord enter the property until ongoing court proceedings were finalised? If yes, why?

(Please provide details in free text)

Question 28

If you used a CMC to help make a housing disrepair claim, what was your experience with them? For example, were you happy with how they approached you, how they explained the process and how your case was handled?

(Free text)

Question 29

If you used a solicitor to help make a housing disrepair claim, what was your experience with them? For example, were you happy with how they approached you, how they explained the process and how your case was handled?

(Free text)

Question 30

If you have made a housing disrepair claim, did your landlord serve you with a possession notice at any point of the court process? If you have made more than one disrepair claim, please answer based on your most recent claim (Select one)

• yes, they submitted a repossession notice before I applied for a housing disrepair claim at court
• yes, they submitted a repossession notice after I applied for a housing disrepair claim
• no
• unsure
• other (please specify)
• not applicable

Question 31

If you have made a housing disrepair claim at court, did you take any of the following steps to address the issue before making the claim? (Select all that apply)

• reported the issue to your landlord
• went through your landlord’s complaint process
• escalated the issue to the Housing Ombudsman
• escalated the issue to the Property Ombudsman
• escalated the issue to the Property Redress Scheme
• reported the issue to your local council
• other (please specify)
• none of the above

Question 32

If you answered ‘none of the above’ to question 31, please can you explain why you decided not to take any of these steps?

(free text)

Question 33

Could the alternatives to making a disrepair claim be improved in any way?

(free text)

The cost of housing disrepair claims

Question 34

If you have made a housing disrepair claim, how did you pay for the solicitor fees? If you have made more than one disrepair claim, please answer based on your most recent claim. (Select all that apply)

• legal aid, including through the Housing Loss Prevention Advice Service (HLPAS)
• a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA), commonly known as a ‘no win, no fee’ arrangement
• insurance
• self-funded
• other (please specify)

Question 35

What fees did you pay? Did these fees match what your solicitor told you at the start of the process?

(Free text)

Question 36

Before answering this call for evidence, were you aware that legal aid may be available to help meet the costs of legal advice for housing disrepair claims? (Select one)

• yes
• no

Question 37

If yes, how did you first become aware that legal aid may be available? (Select one)

• online advert (e.g. Google, Facebook, Instagram)
• online research (e.g. Google search)
• GOV.UK Website
• leaflet/Post
• telephone (the solicitor called you)
• telephone (the CMC called you)
• in person (the solicitor came to your door)
• in person (the CMC came to your door)
• referred by another organisation (e.g. a charity, Citizens Advice)
• other (please specify)

Question 38

Have you ever accessed legal aid funded advice for a disrepair claim? (Select one)

• yes
• no
• don’t know

Question 39

If yes, did you find it easy or difficult to access? Please explain.

(Free Text)

Questions for landlords

Demography questions

Question 40

In which region(s) in England do you/your company currently let or manage rental properties? (select all that apply)

• East of England
• East Midlands
• Inner London (Transport for London Zones 1 to 2)
• Outer London (Transport for London Zones 3 to 6)
• North East
• North West
• South East
• South West
• West Midlands
• Yorkshire and the Humber
• other (please specify)
• prefer not to say
• not applicable

Question 41

How many rental properties in England do you own or manage? If necessary, rounded figures can be entered.

• free text (number only)
• don’t know
• prefer not to say

Question 42

Social Landlord only: Which, if any, of the following describes how you currently view your role as a landlord? (select all that apply)

• charity who rents out a property or properties on a short or long-term basis
• local authority registered provider
• Private Registered Provider e.g. housing association
• other (please provide details)
• prefer not to say
• not applicable

Question 43

Private Landlord only: Which, if any, of the following describes how you currently view your role as a landlord? (select all that apply)

• ‘accidental’ landlord who became a landlord due to external circumstances e.g. inheriting a property
• buy-to-let landlord whose properties are an investment
• landlord who lives in the property i.e. rents to a lodger
• landlord who is a developer/investor/manager of build-to-rent properties
• professional landlord making a living from a portfolio of rental properties
• short-term landlord who rents out a property or properties only at certain times
• other (please provide details)
• prefer not to say
• not applicable

Experience of Disrepair Claims

Question 44

Has a tenant ever brought a housing disrepair claim against you or your organisation? If yes, how many disrepair claims? Please provide your best estimate. If necessary, rounded figures can be entered.

• free text (number only)
• don’t know
• none
• prefer not to say

From September 2024 to September 2025

Question 45

How many of the claims were from solicitors working under a no win no fee agreement (if known)? Please provide your best estimate. If necessary, rounded figures can be entered.

• free text (number only)
• don’t know
• prefer not to say

Question 46

How many of the claims were generated by a CMC (if known)? Please provide your best estimate. If necessary, rounded figures can be entered.

• free text (number only)
• don’t know
• prefer not to say

Question 47

How many of the tenants who made disrepair claims had informed you of the housing disrepair issue before you received the letter of claim? Please provide your best estimate. If necessary, rounded figures can be entered.

• free text (number only)
• don’t know
• prefer not to say

Question 48

What proportion of the housing disrepair claims you or your organisation were involved in had each of the following results. Please provide your best estimate. If necessary, rounded figures can be entered.

• settled before a court claim was issued – Free text (number only)
• settled after a court claim was issued but before a court issued findings – Free text (number only)
• went to court and the court found that there was disrepair – Free text (number only)
• went to court and the court found that there was not disrepair – Free text (number only)
• dismissed by the court – Free text (number only)
• don’t know
• prefer not to say

Cost and Impact of Disrepair Claims

From September 2024 to September 2025

Question 49

How much did you spend in total for all the housing disrepair claims? For instance, legal defence, adverse costs, settlements (i.e. settling out of court) and damages. Please provide your best estimate. If necessary, rounded figures can be entered.

• legal defence - Free text (number only)
• adverse costs – Free text (number only)
• settlements – Free text (number only)
• court awarded damages – Free text (number only)
• other – Free text (number only)
• don’t know
• prefer not to say

Question 50

Have you made any changes to your service as a result of disrepair claims? For example, improving internal processes to address disrepair, or reducing spending to offset the cost of defending claims.

(Free text)

Question 51

Is there anything that could reduce the costs involved in defending disrepair claims?

(Free Text)

Question 52

If you have any additional data or evidence on the cost of housing disrepair claims or the impact on your operations, please provide it here.

(Free Text)

Questions for solicitors and claim management companies

Question 53

Solicitors only: Who do you represent? (Select all that apply)

• landlords
• tenants
• other (please specify)

Question 54

CMCs only: What best describes your role? (Select all that apply)

• lead generator
• process the claim yourselves
• other (please specify)

Question 55

Which sectors do you provide services in? (Select all that apply)

• housing disrepair
• personal injury
• financial services and products
• specified benefit
• criminal injury
• employment
• other (please specify)

Question 56

Who is your regulator for the housing disrepair work that you or your organisation undertake? (Select all that apply)

• the FCA
• the SRA
• other (please specify)
• no regulator
• don’t know

From September 2024 to September 2025

Question 57

How many clients have you or your organisation handled housing disrepair claims for? (Select one)

• 1 to 100
• 101 to 1000
• 1,001 to 5,000
• 5,000 plus
• prefer not to say
• not applicable

Question 58

Solicitors only: How did you generate the majority of your leads? (Select one)

• self generated
• CMC referral
• other (Please specify)

Question 59

What proportion of the housing disrepair claims you or your organisation were involved in had each of the following results. Please provide your best estimate. If necessary, rounded figures can be entered.

• settled before a court claim was issued – Free text (number only)
• settled after a court claim was issued but before a court issued findings – Free text (number only)
• went to court and the court found that there was disrepair – Free text (number only)
• went to court and the court found that there was not disrepair – Free text (number only)
• dismissed by the court – Free text (number only)
• don’t know
• prefer not to say

Technical questions

Question 60

Are there any lessons from the approach taken to Personal Injury claims in recent decades that could be applied to housing disrepair claims?

(Free Text)

Question 61

In your experience, how frequently are referral fees paid on housing disrepair claims? (Select one)

• never
• rarely (up to 25% of the time)
• sometimes (26% - 50% of the time)
• often (51% - 99% of the time)
• always
• unsure

Question 62

How appropriate do you think referral fees are in housing disrepair claims? Please explain your answer.

(Free text)

Question 63

Currently, successful claimants’ legal fees in fast track cases are recovered from the defendant, but they have to pay their lawyer’s success fee where there is a Conditional Funding Agreement in place. If the claim is not successful, the claimant does not pay a success fee to their lawyer, but they may have to pay the defendant’s legal costs and disbursements. If a claim is allocated to the small claims track, costs are generally not recoverable from the losing party. Does the way in which defendants’ and claimants’ legal costs are managed provide suitable protections for both parties?

(Free text)

Question 64

Do you think the small claims track limit for housing disrepair claims (the estimated cost of repairs or other work is not more than £1000; and the financial value of any claim for damages is not more than £1000) is appropriate? (Select one)

• yes
• no
• other (please specify)

Question 65

Please expand on your answer above with your rationale and evidence to support this view.

(Free text)

Further Comments

Question 66

Is there anything else that you would like to share about claims management activity or housing disrepair claims?

(Free Text)

Annex A: Glossary

Claims Management Activity: Claims management activity can involve:

• seeking out, identifying, investigating and referring potential legal claims; and
• providing advice or representation for claims.

Claims Management Company (CMC): Businesses that offer claims management services in areas like financial services, personal injury, housing disrepair, employment disputes, or criminal injury. They charge a fee for their services. A CMC will often then pass the claims to a solicitor who handles the legal work, and the solicitor pays them a fee.

Claims Management Ombudsman: The Claims Management Ombudsman looks at complaints about claims management companies. The service is free, independent and impartial, and is part of the Financial Ombudsman Service.

County Court: A civil court that deals with non-criminal matters, such as disputes between individuals, businesses, or organisations. It adjudicates on a wide range of matters including contract disputes, housing possession and disrepair, personal injury, and consumer issues.

Direct Access Barrister: A specialist court lawyer. Usually, clients work with a solicitor, who will instruct a barrister on the client’s behalf if needed. A direct access barrister can take instructions directly from a client, without the need for a solicitor.

Financial Conduct Authority (FCA): In England, Wales and Scotland, claims management companies are regulated by the FCA. They regulate financial services firms and markets, setting standards for firms to meet and holding firms to account if they don’t meet those standards.

Financial Ombudsman: The Financial Ombudsman looks at complaints from consumers about businesses that provide financial services. The service is free, independent and impartial.

High-Volume Consumer Claims: When large numbers of consumers file claims against the same organisation, or in relation to the same issue.

Housing Disrepair Claim: Legal action taken by a tenant who claims that their landlord has failed to carry out required repairs after being notified of issues that may affect health or safety.

The Housing Ombudsman Service (HOS): The HOS resolves disputes involving the tenants and leaseholders of social landlords (housing associations and local councils) and a small number of voluntary members (private landlords and letting agents). The service is free, independent, and impartial.

Legal Aid: The system of public funding to help meet the costs of legal advice, family mediation and representation in a court or tribunal. To qualify, individuals usually need to show that their case is eligible for legal aid, and they cannot afford to pay for legal costs.

Legal Ombudsman (LeO): The independent body established to resolve complaints about the service provided by authorised legal service providers (including law firms) in England and Wales.

Legal Services Board (LSB): The oversight regulator of legal services in England and Wales. It covers frontline regulators (such as the SRA and Bar Standards Board) as well as the Legal Ombudsman.

Private rented sector: The properties owned by private landlords and rented to tenants.

Referral Fee: A type of commission or payment made by a third party in return for making a successful introduction. For example, in relation to housing claims they can be used to financially reward a CMC for connecting a tenant with a solicitor.

Social Landlord: A local council landlord or private registered provider of social housing (such as a housing association).

Solicitor: Professionals who provide legal services across a wide range of areas. Only people approved by the Solicitors Regulation Authority can call themselves solicitors.

Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA): The SRA is the largest frontline regulator of legal services in England and Wales and is responsible for regulating solicitors and the vast majority of law firms.

About this call for evidence

This call for evidence document and call for evidence process have been planned to adhere to the Consultation Principles issued by the Cabinet Office.

Representative groups are asked to give a summary of the people and organisations they represent, and where relevant who else they have consulted in reaching their conclusions when they respond.

Information provided in response to this call for evidence may be published or disclosed in accordance with the access to information regimes (these are primarily the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA), the Environmental Information Regulations 2004 and UK data protection legislation.  In certain circumstances this may therefore include personal data when required by law.

If you want the information that you provide to be treated as confidential, please be aware that, as a public authority, the Department is bound by the information access regimes and may therefore be obliged to disclose all or some of the information you provide. In view of this it would be helpful if you could explain to us why you regard the information you have provided as confidential. If we receive a request for disclosure of the information we will take full account of your explanation, but we cannot give an assurance that confidentiality can be maintained in all circumstances. An automatic confidentiality disclaimer generated by your IT system will not, of itself, be regarded as binding on the Department.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government will at all times process your personal data in accordance with UK data protection legislation and in the majority of circumstances this will mean that your personal data will not be disclosed to third parties. A full privacy notice is included below.

Individual responses will not be acknowledged unless specifically requested.

Your opinions are valuable to us. Thank you for taking the time to read this document and respond.

Are you satisfied that this call for evidence has followed the Consultation Principles?  If not or you have any other observations about how we can improve the process please contact us via the complaints procedure.

Personal data

The following is to explain your rights and give you the information you are entitled to under UK data protection legislation.

Note that this section only refers to personal data (your name, contact details and any other information that relates to you or another identified or identifiable individual personally) not the content otherwise of your response to the call for evidence.

1. The identity of the data controller and contact details of our Data Protection Officer    

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) is the data controller. The Data Protection Officer can be contacted at dataprotection@communities.gov.uk or by writing to the following address:

Data Protection Officer
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
Fry Building
2 Marsham Street
London
SW1P 4DF

2. Why we are collecting your personal data  

Your personal data is being collected as an essential part of the call for evidence process, so that we can better understand the experiences of people involved with housing disrepair claims and identify if this varies between different groups.

We will collect your IP address if you complete a call for evidence online. We may use this to ensure that each person only completes a survey once. We will not use this data for any other purpose.

Sensitive types of personal data

Please do not share special category personal data or criminal offence data  unless absolutely necessary for the purposes of your call for evidence response. By ‘special category personal data’, we mean information about a living individual’s:

• race
• ethnic origin
• political opinions
• religious or philosophical beliefs
• trade union membership
• genetics
• biometrics 
• health (including disability-related information)
• sex life; or
• sexual orientation.

By ‘criminal offence data’, we mean information relating to a living individual’s criminal convictions or offences or related security measures.

3. Our legal basis for processing your personal data

The collection of your personal data is lawful under article 6(1)(e) of the UK General Data Protection Regulation as it is necessary for the performance by MHCLG of a task in the public interest/in the exercise of official authority vested in the data controller. Section 8(d) of the Data Protection Act 2018 states that this will include processing of personal data that is necessary for the exercise of a function of the Crown, a Minister of the Crown or a government department i.e. in this case a call for evidence.

Where necessary for the purposes of this call for evidence, our lawful basis for the processing of any special category personal data or ‘criminal offence’ data (terms explained under ‘Sensitive Types of Data’) which you submit in response to this call for evidence is as follows. The relevant lawful basis for the processing of special category personal data is Article 9(2)(g) UK GDPR (‘substantial public interest’), and Schedule 1 paragraph 6 of the Data Protection Act 2018 (‘statutory etc and government purposes’). The relevant lawful basis in relation to personal data relating to criminal convictions and offences data is likewise provided by Schedule 1 paragraph 6 of the Data Protection Act 2018.

4. With whom we will be sharing your personal data

MHCLG may appoint a ‘data processor’, acting on behalf of the Department and under our instruction, to help analyse the responses to this call for evidence. Where we do we will ensure that the processing of your personal data remains in strict accordance with the requirements of the data protection legislation.

5. For how long we will keep your personal data, or criteria used to determine the retention period.

Your personal data will be held for 2 years from the closure of the call for evidence, unless we identify that its continued retention is unnecessary before that point.

6. Your rights, e.g. access, rectification, restriction, objection

The data we are collecting is your personal data, and you have considerable say over what happens to it. You have the right:

a. to see what data we have about you

b. to ask us to stop using your data, but keep it on record

c. to ask to have your data corrected if it is incorrect or incomplete

d. to object to our use of your personal data in certain circumstances

e. to lodge a complaint with the independent Information Commissioner (ICO) if you think we are not handling your data fairly or in accordance with the law.  You can contact the ICO at https://ico.org.uk/, or telephone 0303 123 1113.

Please contact us at the following address if you wish to exercise the rights listed above, except the right to lodge a complaint with the ICO: dataprotection@communities.gov.uk or Knowledge and Information Access Team, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Fry Building, 2 Marsham Street, London SW1P 4DF.

7. Your personal data will not be sent overseas.

8. Your personal data will not be used for any automated decision making.

MHCLG will take reasonable and proportionate steps to prevent personal data from the call for evidence responses being sent to any Artificial Intelligence (AI) tool used to process data. Any AI tools used will process the data securely and does not copy or share data. The data will only be accessed and used by those authorised to do so. Your data will not be used to train the AI models.

9. Your personal data will be stored in a secure government IT system.

We use a third-party system, Citizen Space, to collect call for evidence responses. In the first instance your personal data will be stored on their secure UK-based server. Your personal data will be transferred to our secure government IT system as soon as possible, and it will be stored there for 2 years before it is deleted.

1. Simmons v Castle [2012] EWCA Civ 1039. ↩