Complain about a building safety risk in a high-rise building
Find out how to complain about a building safety risk, or the performance of an accountable person or principal accountable person, in a high-rise residential building.
Applies to England
Accountable persons and principal accountable persons are usually an organisation, like a resident management company, the local council, a private company, or social housing provider. Residents can complain to accountable persons and the principal accountable person about building safety risks.
A high-rise residential building has:
- at least 7 floors or is at least 18 metres in height
- at least 2 residential units
What you can raise concerns about
Your concerns may be about the performance of an accountable person or principal accountable person. For example:
- their communications to residents
- responses to raised concerns
- how they manage building safety risks
You can also raise concerns about building safety risks, which are structural safety issues and spread of fire issues. For example:
- flammable cladding on the outside of a building
- fire doors or smoke extraction which are not working or missing that may increase the risk of fire spread
- failure of the building’s structure, such as parts of the building collapsing,
cracks, or parts of the building falling off
These are known as relevant complaints.
Make a complaint
You can raise issues to the principal accountable person for your building. They must display their name and contact details clearly in the building.
You should follow the principal accountable person’s complaint process for the building.
Accountable persons must tell residents how to make a complaint. They should tell you:
- what a relevant complaint is
- when to expect a response and what those responses will cover
They must give you easy to follow information about all the stages of the complaints process. You can ask for a copy of the complaints process for your building from your accountable person.
The complaints process should be available in different formats, for example large text, easy read, braille, or audio. If you need the complaints process in a different language or in alternative format, you should ask an accountable person if they can provide it.
If necessary, you can appoint a representative to raise your concerns for you.
You can refer a complaint to the Building Safety Regulator to the Building Safety Regulator if you:
- cannot make a complaint
- feel unable to raise your concerns
- are not satisfied with your response from the principal accountable person
After making a complaint
When the principal accountable person receives your complaint, they must:
- confirm that they received it
- tell you if they accept or reject the issues raised as a relevant complaint
If they accept it, the principal accountable person must investigate the complaint. They’ll need to:
- provide you with a date when they expect to respond to you
- tell you the actions they have taken
- update you with a timeline for any remaining issues
If they reject a complaint, they should give you the reasons why.
Challenge a response
If you’re not satisfied with the final response or your complaint gets rejected, you can challenge it. The principal accountable person should provide you with details on how this can be done in the final response to you.
Refer a complaint to the Building Safety Regulator
When you:
- are not satisfied with the final response
- have unresolved issues
- have not got a response
You can contact the Building Safety Regulator (BSR).
Documents you need to provide
If you refer your complaint to the Building Safety Regulator, it’s helpful if you can provide:
- a copy of the final response from the principal accountable person or accountable person
- photos or video recordings of the issue
- emails, letters, and any documents about the issue
You should provide any information you have about actions that the principal accountable person or accountable person are going to take or have already taken.
After you refer a complaint to the Building Safety Regulator
When you raise an issue to the Building Safety Regulator, they will decide if it’s a relevant complaint. If the issues are not for the Building Safety Regulator to investigate, they will suggest you contact another regulator or organisation. Where possible, they will give you contact details.
The Building Safety Regulator may speak to the principal accountable person and accountable persons to offer advice on how to resolve the issue. When necessary, the Building Safety Regulator will investigate and assess if any other action must be taken.
Disclosure
The Building Safety Regulator will not disclose any personal details without your consent. If the Building Safety Regulator needs to disclose personal information to carry out an investigation, we will contact you first to let you know.