Dudley Council will have to pay nearly £18,000 to cure damp and mould caused by building defects at a property in the borough. The hefty sum will be paid despite the council receiving £62,651 following a warranty claim to the National House Building Council (NHBC), which covers homeowners if problems arise after construction.
The council-owned property, in Messiter Way, was built in 2017 and had been rented out as affordable housing. In notes confirming a decision to accept the payout, Kathryn Jones, Dudley group director of housing, said: 'In 2025, a claim was submitted to NHBC by the council following extensive site investigation and specialist reports which identified significant construction latent defects causing damp and mould within the ground floor of the property.'
The council estimates the total costs of fixing the problems, including lost rent while the work is carried out, will amount to £80,636. The difference between the costs and the amount paid by NHBC is £17,984, which will be met from the council's ring-fenced Housing Revenue Account (HRA). Ms Jones said: 'The shortfall will be met from a contingency budget held within the HRA assets revenue subcontractor budgets, which are specifically maintained for unforeseen circumstances such as this. There is sufficient budget available within this provision to cover the cost.'
The council may be liable for additional non-construction related costs, such as disturbance allowance paid to the resident or settlement of a legal claim as a result of this. Social housing providers like Dudley Council have a duty to act quickly to investigate and repair damp and mould, which can be dangerous to health, under the Social Housing (Regulation) Act. The section of the act relating to mould, which came into force in 2025, is known as Awaab's law in memory of two-year-old Awaab Ishak, who died in 2020 from medical problems caused by prolonged exposure to black mould.
Ms Jones said: 'The council have a statutory obligation to address Category One hazards in the strict timescales that legislation imposes, irrespective of whether this cash settlement was offered by NHBC. Costs borne by the HRA have been considerably reduced as a result of this successful claim under the NHBC warranty.'
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