Paul Hampson, CEL Solicitors’ CEO, was recently interviewed by Channel 4 News regarding their investigation into the state of council houses in the UK.
The investigation, which included Freedom of Information data obtained from 50 English Councils, showed that since 2020, nearly 17 thousand housing disrepair claims have been made by social housing tenants.
CEL Solicitors, which itself has settled thousands of housing disrepair cases, acts for people whose homes are plagued by a range of defects such as structural issues, leaks, subsidence, damp and mould.
Commenting on why tenants are turning to legal firms for help, Paul Hampson said: “There is a saying in the UK that an English man’s home is his castle. It’s not a first choice to instruct a law firm and make a legal claim.
“The majority of our clients aren’t financially motivated [by compensation], they’re solely focused on the repairs. They’re living in poor quality accommodation and they just want to be house proud.”
There is currently an estimated 4 million social homes in England. Much of this accommodation, which was built in the mid-20th century, is ageing and councils aren’t keeping up with repairs. Frustrated, tenants are subsequently turning to ‘no win, no fee’ solicitors for help.
Commenting on the councils’ view that intervention by solicitors drives up their costs, Paul Hampson added: “If I had a local authority or a housing association, I would look to resolve matters as quickly as possible to keep costs down.
“Sometimes we have claims that go on for two or three years and it’s a fight to get the repairs made when people’s lives are at stake.”
